SOCIAL MEDIA

09 January 2014

If You Kiss You Have to Marry



In the movie Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, there's a scene where the two little kids are peeking at their father and a lady he recently met. One kid asks the other one "Have they kissed yet?" and, upon getting an answer in the negative, says, "Okay, well let me know if they do, because if they kiss they have to marry!"

Now, that is not a direct quote. It's probably been 10 years since I've seen the movie. I'm sure someone here on the internet could provide me with the exact wording of the conversation, but that's the gist of it. The conclusion of the children was that if their father kissed his new lady friend, he would be required to marry her.

Somehow, after watching the movie as young children, that statement became a part of my family's vocabulary. I can't remember if my parents actually encouraged it as truth or not, but I distinctly remember from that point on, if characters in a movie ever kissed, we'd start chanting: "Oh no! They kissed, now they have to get married!!"

I'm sure our parents must have found us hilarious. If we ever saw married people (including our parents) kissing, we'd shout, "Good thing they're already married!"

We were such interesting children.

"If you kiss you have to marry."

That little phrase was drilled into me as a kid, first heard in the context of an exceptionally silly movie.

I didn't give it too much deep thought as I grew up. Sure, there was always someone in our family who would obnoxiously shout "If they kiss they have to marry" at the most tender moments in movies like Roman Holiday. Some of us eventually grew out of that method of dispelling the emotional tension of a traumatic goodbye scene, some of us didn't. (Hint: Don't watch over-the-top romantic movies with my little sisters. You will spend the whole time laughing at the running commentary.)

However, after leaving home, I kind of forgot about our family tradition/rule/theory/whatever-it-was. Or maybe not. Maybe I knew very well what I was doing when I recklessly kissed Angel on that Sunday in May 2009. Poor guy, he didn't know that he'd just kissed a girl under the "If you kiss you have to marry" spell. He never had a chance.
AwesomelyOZ said...

awww that's so sweet and cute :) I'm sure he doesn't regret it one bit! I barely remember that movie either, I wonder if it's worth a re-watch :P Have a great one! -Iva

Moonofsilver said...

I LOVED that movie as a kid. We own it on VHS. one of my favorites. :)

Poor Angel. :P But somehow I think he's happy being kissed by you, and doesn't mind the trap :P

Allie @ Everyday Adventures said...

It's lucky ya'll got married! ;) I haven't seen that movie in YEEEEEEARS. I do tend to make raspberry noises during heartfelt romantic scenes when we watch cheesy movies at home though!

Charlene Maugeri said...

haha this is awesome! I LOVE that movie and it seems just fitting that your fun-filled-family would take that quote and run with it! Priceless!

Jillian @ Hi! It's Jilly said...

Aww, I love that! We do something similar in our family, because when we were first married my two youngest sisters were 4 and 6 years old. Whenever they saw us kiss they'd say, "Ewww, gross!". We thought it was hilarious, so now when we watch movies with our own kids we say, "Eww!" when people kiss and pretend to cover their eyes. They love it!

The Divine Diabetic said...

What a cute and thoughtful blog post. You two seem to make a great match!

xo.
Brittney

Cramer Coffee and Jesus said...

haha so he was your first kiss? I always thought it would be so cool to kiss only the guy I married; I also thought it would be cool for my first kiss to be on my wedding day; unfortunately it didn't happen and that's okay but it's still a cool thought.

Lenya said...

You made me smile again Rachel. Thx for sharing this wonderful story.

Kaysie said...

i LOVE chitty. And, the first and only boy I ever kissed ended up being my husband. Make this is a real thing!

Unknown said...

Haha, I love this. I have never seen Chitty Chitty Bang Bang though so a little of me feels like I am missing out on the full appreciation :(.

Bekah Loves Blog said...

HAHAHA! You sneaky thing, you!

Amanda - Voyage of the MeeMee said...

Awwwww... so sweet and cute! :) Thank god I didn't marry some of the guys I kissed though... YIKES! :P

Susannah said...

Haha. Your family sounds hilarious!!! Good thing you and Angel got married. ;-)

Angi said...

I just watched that movie recently! Love it. And I love that line, my sister and I used to quote it all the time when we were kids, too. Good thing you married Angel...you rebel. ;)

Tammy Jo said...

Ummm I LOOOOOVE that movie by far my favorite :)

Erin said...

awww this is sweet!!!

AiringMyLaundry said...

So sweet! I really liked that movie as a kid.

mckenziewinkel said...

This is fabulous! Kids do the strangest things haha

Courtney said...

Ha! We've discussed the status of our extreme kissing lives before lol, but this also makes me think of Sweet Home Alabama. "why do you want to marry me?" "So I can kiss you anytime I want!!"

The Lady Okie said...

A wwww, this is cute :) it's a good thing I didn't go by this plan, though. My first kiss boy was a dud. Ha! Third time was a charm for me!

Unknown said...

Such a cute story, Rachel! I'm not sure if I ever saw that movie all the way through. I may have to rent it for the kids. Thanks for the reminder :)!

Blond Duck said...

Ha! I love that! Such a sweet concept!

Imogen said...

That's so sweet! In the end you did live by your childhood concept, that's so funny. If you apply it to me, well lucky I'm married too!

Erica said...

Funny how things from childhood seem to stick, especially in families! Malcolm and I both grew up with a song from an advert that we associate with getting out the shower ;)

Anonymous said...

I love this! He never had a chance! Hahaha!

Lauren @ My Passion Journey said...

This is a super cute story! I even listed it on my Friday Favorite's List today!
http://mypassionjourney.com/a-few-favorites-from-the-week/

Jessica @ Independent Travel Cats said...

Love this story and both of those movies!

Marli said...

haha! this is great! if my family sees a couple being "over the top" and they're not married, we say, "show me those wedding rings!" we say it more to ourselves than to the couple that we don't know doing things we don't think they should be doing until marriage. ;)

Michelle said...

I just watched that movie last weekend! It's one of my favorites. And I remember laughing at the line in particular because I had completely forgotten about it.

April Grant said...

Goodness... I'm so glad that's not true. I feel I married my soul mate, but I kissed a LOT of frogs first! Thanks for sharing and linking up with Countdown in Style! Don't forget to come back on Friday to see if you were featured!

~~April~~
100lbCountdown.com

Anonymous said...

Hahaha! I love it! I definitely will teach my kids not to kiss until marriage. I just think it's a very intimate act..more intimate than what Hollywood and the rest of the world has made it. For ladies, I think it spares their emotions from getting attached to someone who isn't their husband. I know boys can get attached, but girls tend to be a bit more on the emotional side. I know this sounds unconventional and weird but I'm a Christian so just about everything I do is opposite of the rest of the world. :) Thanks for sharing your two posts with us at Countdown in Style! Don't forget to stop by Friday to see if you are featured! xo

Caitlin said...

This is so cute :)

Janna Renee said...

Aww! I love that movie! I forgot that part, hehe.

Catherine Gacad said...

this is the cutest story ever! i haven't seen chitty chitty bang bang since i was a kid. i need to rewatch it. anyhow, i love how it became part of your family history.