One night my boyfriend and I had dinner with his parents at their home. Lovely meal, great wine (not that I would know, I was 21 and didn’t drink wine unless the word “cooler” was also on the bottle) and good conversation. At one point my future mother in law leaned in and said “if this doesn’t work out, we’re dumping him and keeping you.”

It was funny and sweet and I really felt that I was valued for who I was as a person, rather than as my future husband’s accessory. My in-laws are still great and if my wonderful husband and I ever bicker in their presence, they remind my husband of our “deal.”