…and we couldn’t be happier to hear it!

She says “I think the idea of marriage is very romantic; it’s a beautiful idea, and the practice of it can be a very beautiful thing,”

“I don’t think it’s natural to be a monogamous person. I might be skewered for that, but I think it’s work. It’s a lot of work. And the fact that it is such work for so many people — for everyone — the fact of that proves that it is not a natural thing. It’s something I have a lot of respect for and have participated in, but I think it definitely goes against some instinct to look beyond.”   Source: news.com.au

Johansson, goes on to discuss her views on marriage, feminism and pregnancy – but we won’t bore you with all that. Instead, feast your eyes on the natural beauty while letting the news that she isn’t into monogamy sink in…

Here are our favourite Scar Jo gif moments:

That moment when she shared a steamy kiss with Penelope Cruz in Vicki Cristina Barcelona:

That moment when her bouncing bosom stole the show in He’s Just Not That Into You:

That moment when we all wished we were Bradley Cooper:

That moment that we all realised this was our ultimate fantasy…

…close followed by this ending:

And my personal favourite? This moment from We Bought A Zoo:

What are your thoughts on what Scar Jo has to say about monogamy? Share your opinion with us below!

Four years ago, Bayne, 40, was suffering post-natal depression, had lost interest in sex and was regularly arguing with her husband.

Though medical treatment helped, she saw her husband’s lament about the loss of sex and intimacy in their relationship as just another demand.

“I had a couple of friends who had read Fifty Shades of Grey and were going, ‘I love it, I love it, I love it’. And I thought, ‘I’m not getting on that bandwagon’. And then I went, ‘You know what? I’m curious, I’m going to read it.’”

“It took me back to the first few weeks where you can’t eat, you can’t sleep, you’re just so excited that you’ve met someone and you are connecting with them. It’s like, ‘Wow, what’s going on here?’” Bayne says.

“I recognised that in the book. The guy (Christian Grey) is so madly in love with her (Anastasia Steele) that he can’t function. I remember being like that. It’s kind of sad when it wears off.”

Bayne met her husband when they were in their late 20s and they both had children from previous relationships. They married 18 months later and in 2007 welcomed a son into their blended brood of four children.

Bayne, who works as an accounts officer, says it’s easy to let your marriage fall apart.

“You become complacent. It almost creeps up on you,” she says. “You have to consciously work on it.”

She says many people assume Fifty Shades of Grey, with its exploration of bondage and domination, has encouraged couples to be more kinky in the bedroom.

“None of my friends that I know of have become interested in trying that angle at all,” she says. “It didn’t make me go, ‘Let’s try this’. It was the relationship underneath it all, the intimate connection. It was fun to read, but it was fantasy.”

Nor did she read more erotic fiction.

Bayne will see the Fifty Shades of Grey movie starring Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson with three friends this week.

“I’m going in without huge expectations. From the trailers I think Jamie Dornan is going to do a great job.”

Source: news.com.au

Have you read 50 Shades of Grey? Are you excited to see the movie? Tell us what you think!

So begins chapter one of therapist Susan Pease Gadoua and journalist Vicki Larson’s new book The New I Do: Reshaping Marriage for Skeptics, Realists and Rebels, which challenges readers to consider alternate marital agreements in a world where lovers live together without tying the knot, more couples are having children out of wedlock and about half of all marriages end in divorce.

“Rather than continue to encourage people to cram themselves into an old model that isn’t working for many — about one out of two marriages ends in divorce — we want to acknowledge what’s already happening and encourage you to think about new ways to marry,” the authors write.

The book, which hit shelves in late September, offers up seven models of alternate marriages for modern couples to consider. This is an adapted excerpt about open marriages:

“Bryce readily admits that he isn’t cut out for monogamy. When he met Dana, he was thrilled that she was open to inviting another lover into their bed. While they were dating, this couple in their thirties had threesomes, and they even swapped partners on their wedding night six years ago.

In their first two years of marriage, the Pennsylvania couple had sex with others together. Then they talked about having sex with others separately. They felt like they were in a good place, that they trusted each other, and had confidence to explore. But like many others in open relationships, they had rules — the sex was always safe, there were no sleepovers, and every arrangement was to be agreed to beforehand.

Their extramarital romps are just about sex, period; they’re not looking to forge relationships and explore deeper intimacy with others. Their goal is to recognise and celebrate each other’s needs. “We want each other to be happy, and we know sometimes either one of us might want to have a sexual experience with somebody else that would make us happy. For me, that’s what it’s all about,” Dana says.

What about you? Where would you draw the line on celebrating your partner’s sexual needs and happiness — or your own? Most people don’t question whether they’re really suited for monogamy or not, as Bryce and Dana have. Even though people today are growing up in more diverse families than ever before and are much more open to and accepting of broader views of gender and sexuality than generations past, society still tends to view non-monogamous relationships negatively.

Just look at the language that’s used to talk about it. Those who engage in it are either promiscuous, putting themselves and others at risk of sexually transmitted diseases, or cheaters, with a breakup being the expected outcome once an affair is discovered. It’s all about diseases, betrayal, secrecy, and deception.

There are scant positive models of healthy non-monogamous relationships, and so monogamy is generally not considered a choice but a given. Once a couple commits to each other, sexual exclusivity is expected and assumed — for now and forever. Is that a reasonable expectation? Is monogamy willingly embraced or just endured?

Brad and Kira, who got married in their early twenties, have also learned valuable lessons from their foray into non-monogamy. Less than two years into their marriage, Kira felt a strong attraction to a co-worker. It wasn’t much of a surprise to Brad because Kira had been a virgin when the couple met in college.

It was Kira’s suggestion that they open up their marriage. Having an affair wasn’t an option. She didn’t want to hurt Brad — she loved him — and she didn’t want to lie to him. She had seen how infidelity damaged her own family growing up. So, she read the writings of philosopher Bertrand Russell, a proponent of open marriage, and found the language to suggest that they bust free from monogamy.

After their exploration ended, Kira says she realised how happy she is to be in a monogamous relationship. Juggling schedules took a lot of work, and, a few times, she felt like she was becoming emotionally attached to her lovers, which “seemed kind of dangerous,” she admits.

Still, they believe there was something incredibly brave and empowering about their decision; a “badge of courage,” is how Kira describes it. They learned that they could make up their own rules and take risks in their relationship, and, frankly, doing something different than the mainstream together — without any deception — was exciting.

“Our sex life was better because we felt invigorated,” Brad says. “We found each other very compelling because we were both embarking on this experiment and it takes a certain kind of bravery, and we found that attractive in each other and ourselves.”

Bella also was a virgin when she met Ted. They married when she was just twenty, as many women from the south of America do. Thirty years into their forty-five-year childfree marriage, she experienced a series of family deaths. Then 9/11 happened. The fragility of life startled her, and she began to reflect on the things she missed out on by marrying so young.

They went to a few workshops on threesomes, and one day found themselves in bed with another man. Then they went to a sex club as part of an intimate group of friends and had a few more threesomes, together and separately. For a trip abroad, Bella got a hall pass and spent a glorious night with a much younger man.

But Ted never really felt 100 per cent comfortable with their experimentations. “He’s a one-woman man,” Bella sighs. So after a little more than two years of sexual play, they returned to monogamy.

Still, their brief journey into an open marriage transformed their relationship for the better. “It’s actually made us more open to other kinds of non-sexual experiences. We do a lot more social stuff than we used to do,” Bella says.

For whom does consensual non-monogamy work? Kira says it’s important to have confidence in yourself, believe in what you’re doing, and know your boundaries. Being outgoing helps.

“For a lot of people, it doesn’t even occur to them that they can be anything other than monogamous, and they get into a situation and then realise they maybe feel differently. I also feel monogamy can be dangerous even without sleeping with other people. Just having a sense of your own sexuality, being attracted to other people, being able to flirt with other people; when you can’t do that, it just shuts down a part of you. It changes who you are in your marriage and so long-term, that can be really damaging,” she told us.

Source: news.com.au

Got a story to share about open marriage, or open relationships? Tell us in the comments section below!