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Lately, I have been thinking about the words we use to denote our relationships, and how one day I will be a wife, a wife, how amazing and crazy is that. When Ginger and I first got engaged, we felt a bit weird using the title fiancee. Ginger kept saying fiancee with a french accent and a giggle because it just felt so surreal and silly in those first moments of being engaged. Over time, we got accustomed to it, and now fiancee is our preferred title for one another. I am happy to be done with girlfriend. It worked for a while, but in the south it was too easily confused with friend. We skipped partner, because it wasn’t a term that either of us felt comfortable with. After we had been living together for years, girlfriend didn’t seem to completely describe the depth and length of our relationship. But when I introduce Ginger as my fiancee, it’s clear that we are in a serious relationship, and it just fits. However, recently I have discovered a problem with the title, fiancee. It is very easy to find yourself playing the pronoun game with it. When I talk about Ginger as my fiancee to people that haven’t met her, they, at first, assume I mean my male fiance. At least with girlfriend, there was no question about gender. Even though it is hard to imagine actually being addressed as wife, I am happy to trade up to a title that is crystal clear about exactly what our relationship is. Have you struggled with these titles? Or, made up new and creative terms for your relationship? How are you navigating the name game?