Second marriages can and do succeed, despite any setbacks the previous marriage or marriages may have encountered. When kids are involved, there are many positive ways to help them and let them grow. Kids can learn new skills, find out better ways of communicating with all parents involved, and develop strong bonds and ties. Within any marriage there is a history. It’s the history that develops over time when you live with someone. Perhaps your partner is saying that he doesn’t want to go to the dinner party your great aunt is holding – and your friends will tell you that they always thought he was unsociable, that he’s being unreasonable, that men just don’t get the family thing and so on. For women, the traditional wedding vows were slightly different and stated that the bride promised to “love, cherish, and obey” her husband. This is now considered out of date by many people and so in most traditional wedding ceremonies, both the bride and groom make the same vows to each other, and the notion of the bride “obeying” her husband is abandoned. Your spouse’s friends will be jealous of such a romantic proposal story! Go Somewhere New If you cannot think of any marriage proposal ideas at places that mean something to your relationship, start a new memory by selecting a romantic new place. Find somewhere beautiful and memorable that sets the perfect backdrop for your proposal. Because the laws of all states that recognize common law marriage require death or formal divorce to dissolve a common law marriage, you are not skirting your obligations or the gravity of commitment by foregoing a formal wedding. All states that provide for common law marriage require that both parties be of majority age, 18 years old. Rules governing whom one could marry have existed throughout the history of marriage, and religious and civil law have contained restrictions that have limited marriage options, and intermarriage within a kinship group has often been forbidden. Many countries today continue to enforce laws that prohibit marriage between certain relatives.