You ladies sound fantastic!  I can´t wait to learn more from you all in these forums!!!  Some things I wonder about in addition to marrying a Turkish man are making friends with Turkish women and hearing more about traditions that still widely exist in Modern Turkey.  İyi geceler!

 Ohhh, yes I understand what you mean.

Well, my advice usually is, follow your heart but don´t leave your brain at home!

I have to say, I met my partner in real life, fell totally in love, but at the end of a holiday. So, I was with him for only 5 days. Okay, in those 5 days we went on our first date, I met his father and about half of his family But ofcourse, I needed to get to know him better. I was back home in Holland, jumped on the computer, and booked a ticket for a week later... This does sound crazy, BUT... I did take everything into account in my head.

Firstly, he invited me to stay at his family´s place, and I declined. I wanted to stay in a hotel the first time, since I didn´t know him well enough. I didn´t want to be in "his" territory. I made sure I had enough Turkish money to go from the airport to the city with the bus, in case he wouldn´t pick me up. I made sure that one of my friends who lived in the same city knew I was coming, and around which time, so in case something would happen on the way from the airport to the city she would know. I promised I would check in with her the moment I arrived. Also, she was my back-up person in case this lovely man turned out to be a mass-murderer. (I´m still alive so I guess he wasn´t!)

I followed my heart, since I just HAD to know... but I also took precautions. I´d rather be sorry for the things I did, than for the things I didn´t do. It´s okay to go crazy sometimes and see where love takes you, but your safety has to be your number one priority. I don´t know which city you are planning to go to, but perhaps you can figure out a back-up plan through this website. It is a must!

 ´I followed my heart, since i just HAD to know...´

Thats exactly how i feel. I simply cant NOT go to Turkey to see him, my father doesnt think its a good idea, telling me to be careful etc, but i just HAVE to know where this could lead...i´d go crazy in the future wondering about all the ´what if´s?´. I dont know many people who have had long distance relationships, just two. Both with Turkish men. And both failed. But i cant let that stop me....im following my heart, and i´ll try not to leave my brain at home! Although even when its with me, its not much good anyway!!!

[Diary of an Expat Bride] Baby dreams

http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/news-197940-132-diary-of-an-expat-bride-baby-dreams.html

"[...] Having a baby is not as easy as it sounds, especially the older you get. Not only biological but emotional obstacles stand in the way. My friends who married young and had babies right away rarely thought, “Is this the right time?” or “Next April would be the best time to have a baby, after such and such is paid off.” However, the older we get the more we want things to be specifically planned in an almost obsessive way, and mother nature doesn’t always agree. While Can and I knew we wanted to have a baby, we thought it would be best for our respective schedules to wait at least a year before trying, when we would be in a “better position” to have a baby [..]"

A Turkish mommy who is not happy that her married (kind of old) son is "having" a baby? IMPOSSIBLE

Yesterday somebody added me on msn (how he got my e-mail address, I still don´t know). He said I was on a dating site, looking for love. Now, I´m pretty damn sure I never put myself on a dating site, so I thought it was a very bad prank! But no, he said, just google "turkish husband"... Let me make this clear... being in this thread, does NOT mean that you are looking for a Turkish husband!!! Pffff...some people...

DD

[Diary of an Expat Bride] Dealing with the ex factor "[...] Marriage is not easy at any age, as each partnership brings different things to the table".

http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/news-202765-132-diary-of-an-expat-bride-dealing-with-the-ex-factor.html

[Diary of an Expat Bride] Dollar Days

"[...]A few months after my wedding a Turkish friend of mine invited me to her “gün.” After living in Turkey for several years I was familiar with the gün concept but had yet to attend one personally. Before attending I asked several friends and their mothers how this interesting tradition started in Turkey. “Gün” means day in Turkish. My friend’s mom, Ayşe Teyze, theorized that the concept began before telephones were common in every household. In the past, in her small city near Balıkesir, each woman of the house reserved one day each month where she was home to receive visitors [...]"

 .

 Look here the link:

http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/news-203442-132-diary-of-an-expat-bride-dollar-days.html