My husband and I dated for 7 years before getting married and we lived together for most of that time. As Christians, many of our family members considered it "shacking up" and felt that we shouldn't live together before walking down the aisle but we completely disagree. Instead, we believed that living together before marriage would help us to test our compatibility in the long run. Our experience is that some people live together and realize that they can't tolerate one another and the relationship is not going to work.
What are your thoughts? Do you believe in "shacking up" before marriage? Why or why not?