Both knew they wanted to finish school and realized they would just have to stick it out. “We saw the light at end of tunnel and both knew when we started dating we wanted to spend the rest of our life together,” said Roloff.
After graduation, they got married and moved to Los Angeles. Roloff says a lot of people questioned so many big changes happening all at once for them – finishing college, getting married, moving to L.A., starting jobs, moving in together.
“People asked us ‘Man you guys never dated in the same place so what’s it like being in Los Angeles in this tiny apartment together?” Roloff said. “And it was amazing because we learned to not take our time together for granted, and it was just beautiful being able to be together. We were so grateful for it. I think the lord just really blessed us in preparing us for that.”
Jeremy grew up in the public eye because his family is on the reality TV show, Little People Big World. They were married at Roloff Farms, in his family’s backyard. The wedding was filmed for national television and because of his public life, Roloff thinks they may have had a little more backlash about being married so young.
“There was a lot of negativeness towards it,” she said. “People would say things like ‘get ready to lose your freedom’ or ‘he’s not gonna be the man you married 10 years from now.’ It was really disheartening because I had such a good view of marriage from my parents growing up and now all these people were tainting it with all this negativeness.”
That, along with a lot of friends who didn’t want to get married because of such cynicism, made Roloff and Jeremy want to do something to combat those doubts.
“So many in our generation are ok dating and waiting it out because what if he’s not the same guy when he’s 30, or what if I do have to surrender my freedom a little bit,” she said. “So, we wanted to take that and turn it around and show there’s these amazing things that come with becoming one. Sure you might lose a little freedom but you’re one with this person and you don’t get to become one with just anybody. How the lord can use that as a ministry to other people, use it as a billboard of the gospel to other people is incredible so that’s how the mission of Beating50Percent transpired.”
Beating 50 Percent is a marriage blog with videos, photos, and writings meant to inspire covenant marriages. Marriages that are undividedly devoted, completely committed, persistently selfless, value-centered, joy-filled, and love-based.
With Beating 50 Percent, the Roloffs want to help couples with better than average marriages, and to give more than 50 percent to your spouse.
In addition to their blogs, the Roloffs are busy launching a clothing and devotionals and more.
“We just launched our The Marriage Journal, (a Navigators Council Journal), which is our first product Beating50Percent. It’s essentially a marriage journal,” Roloff said. “It has weekly questions and a little calendar, and it’s basically for you and your spouse to get on same page and practice to create a rhythm of communication in your marriage. We`ve been doing it since the week we got married and we have reaped so many benefits of it. In telling other people about it, they’ve grown to love it too and were like you’ve got to do something about this and make this a thing.”
The foundation of the journal is six questions to ask each other and record your answers once a week. Each week also includes a devotional to help foster good conversation. There is a weeklong calendar page for you and your spouse to communicate about events, appointments, social gatherings, and big to-do’s in the upcoming week.
After growing up in Oregon and moving to Los Angeles after college graduation, the Roloff’s are back to life in Oregon where they have welcomed their daughter Ember.
