Blog Posts by Smitten, Glamour Magazine

by Meredith Turits, Glamour

Holiday cheer! Beverages that end in "-nog"! Your boyfriend's relatives screaming at each other as you awkwardly stand there, noting you are related to none of these people, yet here to witness this all go down!

So, hopefully this won't be the case for you, but, honestly, it's possible. Holidays are difficult for lots of reasons," says Dr. Deanna Brann, Ph.D, and clinical psychotherapist. "It's a stressful time anyway for most people, but people also have a Norman Rockwell mindset for what that is supposed to be, and not many people have that. Issues are magnified, worst behavior starts to come out." Brann is also the author of Reluctantly Related: Secrets To Getting Along With Your Mother-in-Law or Daughter-in-Law, so I tapped her to spill all the wisdom she had to help survive visiting your guy's family for the first time.

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Behold, Brann's has these top three tips to keep in mind:

1. Be a team player. When you go

by Melissa Melms, Glamour

Conde Nast Archive You get the invite from work: "Please come to this year's holiday bash…and bring a friend!" Are you more likely to RSVP +1 or hit the party up solo?

Back in the day (you know, in like 2010), I was all for bringing J to my work holiday parties. Right out of college I worked with mainly guys at this lifestyle magazine in Hoboken, NJ, but I wanted my guy by my side while they brought their girlfriends and wives. Since it was such a small office, inviting an extra 5 people (our significant others) wasn't a huge deal. We were all friends so it truly was a big party.

But now I'm all for flying solo at the office bash. Glamour is pretty big and pretty much all ladies, so I like to enjoy a sort of girls' night out with my coworkers. And since J's office is big, too, he goes to his holiday party by himself and enjoys a night out with his buds. Maybe it's because we're living together (or because our jobs require a little extra networking), but we don't invite each

by Melissa Melms, Glamour

It's really funny how things can change in a year's time. You can move in with a guy, have the time of your life figuring out the whole cohabitation thing and maybe even get engaged. Hey, it happened to me!

Yeap, in October 2011, J moved into my one bedroom apartment in Hoboken. We had been dating for two years at the time and were both ready to take the next step in our relationship--a step neither of us had taken with anyone else before. And here I am, a little over a year later, engaged this past October and now I'm planning our wedding.

I remember sitting down to write about "boyfriend-proofing" my apartment right before J moved in. I was so nervous about hiding my tampons and trying to make as much room for him as possible in the closet. Oh, how naive I was! You see, those boyfriend-proofing tips only last a couple months into living with your guy. You can primp and hide your feminine products, but when you're comfortable together you form brand new

by Glamour

James Van Der Beek, the actor formerly known as Dawson, plays a jerky version of himself on Don't Trust the B---- in Apt. 23 and posts silly memes online--but here he gets serious about what guys want this time of year.

BEST
1. Skydiving lessons. Ask, "Have you ever wanted to jump out of an airplane?" and then change the subject. A month later you can give him skydiving lessons, and he won't remember having said it.

2. Socks. It's the worst present when we're eight; now that we're 28, it's a relief not to have to buy them ourselves. And socks can add a little rebelliousness to our buttoned-up wardrobe.

3. Tools. But only if you've heard something like, "Man, that new Makita 12-volt drill really looks great." If we're that specific, we mean "Go get it."

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4. Steak of the month, beer of the month… Food is great. I'm always happy with flavored popcorn.

5. A personalized barbecue branding iron. That's cool. That's fun. [They actually exist!

by Gena Kaufman, Glamour

The typical urban legend is that sex on a first date won't lead to a relationship, period. That's debatable, so a new study has examined what effects, if any, a couple may experience in their relationship as a result of hooking up right away.

And well, it isn't great. In a study of 11,000 unmarried people in serious relationships, those who engaged in sex before or within the first few weeks of dating had lower levels of relationship satisfaction, communication and stability than those who waited longer. In case you're feeling doubtful about those results, it's in line with earlier research showing that couples who wait longer to have sex have higher marital satisfaction, and the researchers also accounted for other factors that could have affected the findings, such as religion, education, race and number of sexual partners. The results still held.

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Scientists aren't exactly sure why delaying sex is linked to better

by Gena Kaufman, Glamour

Attention all Santa Baby-style gift givers! If you're the type that likes to get your sexy on as a Christmas gift to your man, hey, do your thang! (Did I just say "thang"?) It's not my style, but I can see how some silky red lingerie and a Santa hat, or a strategically placed bow might make for a hot present.

To help you out, I could have rounded up a selection of sexy, holiday-appropriate lingerie sets, orrrrrr I could show you guys the most utterly ridiculous "sexy" Christmas* get-ups I could find. Guess which I chose?

You know me well, readers. Let's go for the totally bizarre, who-in-the-world-thought-this-would-be-a-sexy-idea ensembles! (NSFW warning: I didn't show the most racy options, but some of these are straight-up lingerie, so beware in a conservative environment. Though even the more costumey options should probably not be worn publicly. Or privately, unless you're a couple with a great sense of humor and some extra cash to burn.)

My search

by Gena Kaufman, Glamour

Because girl, surviving a breakup is a marathon, not a sprint.

After a devastating split, it's hard to get your groove back. What's even worse is that getting over it doesn't happen all at once. Just when you think you're over it, you get hit with another wave of sadness.

It's taken me about a year to feel fully like myself after my big, life-changing breakup. Along the way, I spent a lot of time beating myself up for not moving on in a speedier fashion but looking back, I can see that only hurt my progress. What I should have done instead was to be proud of myself for every step I took, and when I felt discouraged and set back, looked forward to the next goal.

Don't repeat my mistake. Pat yourself on the back for each of these little mile markers on your way to a full recovery.

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1. The first morning he's not the first thing you think of when you wake up.
2. The first night he's not what you're thinking about as you try

by Melissa Melms, Glamour

It's that time of year. You know, the candy-cane-licking, cookie-baking, wrapping-paper-tearing, gift-giving holiday season. Well, guess what? The gift you choose for your significant other actually says a thing or two about your relationship.

It's true. Your holiday gifting style can reveal a lot about the relationship you're in. First, think about what you got (or are planning to get) your S.O. this holiday season. Next, see how it fits in with the super accurate (JK, you guys, these are just for fun) categories, below, to see what it means about your relationship. Then, enjoy the holidays--and your gifts--with your love. It's as easy as that.

So, which of these gifting styles best describe you?

* The Crafty DIY-er:
(AKA The Pinterest Princess) You're artsy, love a good homemade (or home-cooked) gift, and are obsessed with all things Etsy. Your go-to gifts include snowman cake pops baked from scratch, DIY wrapping paper, specialty drinks for toasting on