Signs you're in love

1. You chuck out your old relationship souvenirs

For years, you hoarded ticket stubs from concerts and days out with your ex. Then you fall in love, and suddenly all these souvenirs are just tat that’s cluttering up your space.

So, if nothing else, falling in love makes you tidier.

2. Your ex announces their engagement, and you don’t care

What’s more, you fail to understand what you ever saw in them. The idea of sleeping with them… eww!

3. You’re no longer shy around your former crush

You used to be a quivering wreck when your office’s payroll assistant entered the room. These days, you barely notice them.

When you’re in love, your partner becomes infinitely more attractive than any other person on the planet. Yes, even Cheryl Cole.

4. You’re more adventurous in bed

When you’re in lust, a quick shag usually does the trick. But when you’re in love, you want to explore what really turns you both on – including things you’ve been too shy to try before.

5. You aren’t put off by physical imperfections

Lust is far more fragile than love. Here’s an example. If your lust-object arrives for a date with a big green crusty lump sticking out of their nose, your attraction will disappear in an instant.

But if you’re falling in love, you won’t be put off. You’ll feel protective. You’ll rub your nose and hope that they mirror you… and hey presto, problem solved. Ain’t love grand?

6. You tell them your plans – big and small

Whether it’s babbling about your world-travel dreams or asking them to help make the shopping list, you include your lover in your plans because they’re part of your life.

7. You wonder where “we” should go on holiday

Even if it means compromising your idea of the perfect holiday or putting up with their mum’s brussels sprouts.

8. You’re thrilled by a joint invite to a family wedding

Partly because you’re happy that family and friends treat you two as a unit. And partly because you want your wingman beside you when the boredom sets in at 10pm in the church hall.

9. You show them off

When you’re falling for someone, you want to include them in your social life and show them off to your friends. However…

10. You’re happy doing nothing together

Ultimately it’s not about being a couple on a social stage, but just about being two people together. Just going for a walk together sounds like the perfect afternoon.

11. You join their photography class

You want to know what make your lover tick – and you want them to see that you’re showing an interest.

12. You ring them to moan about work

When they’re the first person you want to talk to about what a class-A berk the boss is today, it’s because you think they’re a keeper. (Your lover, not the boss.)

13. You take their kids out for lunch

If your other half has children from a previous partner, your relationship with the kids is a barometer of your future as a couple. And if you’re in love, you’ll try your hardest to get along with them.

Try not to let it stress you out. If you and the kids can be relaxed in each other’s company, you’re onto a long-term winner.

14. You aren’t afraid to argue

Couples don’t agree all the time. If you’re in lust, you don’t care about standing up for yourself – it’s more trouble than it’s worth.

But when you’re in love, you want to put your point across. Speaking up shows that you’re secure enough to question what your lover says or does.

However…

15. You feel terrible when you argue

You wouldn’t be half as upset about a row with anyone else. Here’s why…

16. You care more about their happiness than your own

You feel bad when your other half isn’t happy, so arguments are a double whammy of emotional trauma.

On the bright side, it shows that you’re really in love. You’re no longer looking after number one all the time. Instead, you want your partner to be OK.

17. You show them where you grew up

It may seem an odd choice of weekend adventure, but love means wanting to show them where you’re from. “That’s my old school, that’s where I had my paper round, that’s where I puked up my dad’s home-brew…”

18. You don’t mind saving if you're usually a spend-thrift

Our money habits are deeply entrenched, but love motivates you to make an exception.

For example, if you’ve spent your adult life being unwilling to save up for anything dearer than a haircut, love could suddenly make you want to save a deposit on a flat.

Likewise…

19. You don’t mind splashing out if you're usually frugal

If you’re suddenly willing to splash out on a luxury holiday together, it shows how important they are to you.

But it’s not about changing the real you. If you’re usually more comfortable being a saver, love won’t change that. It just means you’re less rigid about it. Which brings us to…

20. You risk being yourself

Of all the love-signs on this list, this is the big cheese.

When you’re infatuated or in lust with someone, you edit yourself to fit what you think they want. You might dress to suit them, or hide the fact that you don’t have much in common with their friends.

But when you’re in love with someone, you want your other half to know and like the person you really are.

It’s a risk, of course. Certain incompatibilities may come to the fore. But you know that you can’t be happy for long if you’re faking it.

This isn’t an excuse to be stubborn or tactless. “Being yourself” does not mean sticking rigidly to habits, or telling your lover that their CD collection is crap. A bit of flexibility works wonders.