Jay Landa, a jewelry designer and the owner of J. Silver in Houston, has found love with Daniel Turner, an East Austin homeowner and Development Director at Stepping Stone School. They divide their weekends between their respective homes, value time with families and dream of what a shared home might look like. Their rituals around love, travel, coffee, wine and music go with them, no matter where they are.
WEEKDAYS APART, WEEKENDS TOGETHER
An ideal Saturday is completely unplanned. “We usually try not to schedule ourselves during the weekend. We wake up when we do and start from there. if we don’t have our date night on Friday, we do so on Saturday,” said Jay. Daniel agreed.
“Every Saturday with Jay is ideal! i know that sounds corny, but this is my first long-distance relationship. if it weren’t for the weekends, it wouldn’t work.”
Coffee is a serious matter.
“i’m so lucky that he knows exactly how i like my coffee and surprises me in bed with my cup! He’s the best boyfriend,” Jay gushed. “coffee is a religion in both our houses. i still remember our first cup together—in robes, in the living room, trying to figure out what happened the night before.”
FUN AND FAMILY
Daniel counts time spent together on special occasions as a gift—each playbill, concert ticket and boarding pass tells a story and brings back a warm memory.
For these two, family is a priority—but it’s difficult to decide where to spend their holidays. Their anniversary is Thanksgiving weekend, which complicates things even more. Their families “are a huge source of strength for us and support us without exception. We are in love with all our nieces and nephews and recognize our roles in helping shape their lives.”
THINGS THAT ARE WHEREVER YOU ARE
Daniel said, “We lean pretty heavily on each other when it comes to working through the various challenges that arise over the course of the day. He’s helped me become more of a big-picture thinker and realize that all things worth accomplishing come with their fair share of challenges. i’m working on keeping him sane too.” Jay loves how Daniel answers the phone. “it’s the littlest things that make me smile. He’s a kid at heart and silly. I love his sense of humor…we laugh constantly.” Similarly, Daniel holds that there is a whole collection of “Jay-isms”. “They are quite addictive. There is ‘ish’ to define a measured quantity of anything. There is ‘presh’ to define a measured quantity of anything precious. Also, i love that he calls me ‘babe.’”
DREAMS OF A TOGETHER HOME
The closets will be large and both will shop in each other’s wardrobes—their similar tastes and same shoe size come in handy, though all style questions are deferred to Jay.
Daniel and Jay have plans to one day share a home…or two. Daniel will cook; Jay will help by cleaning up and being a good host.
Music will be heard in the house they share— ’80s will rule, though Jay will sprinkle in some country hits.
This together home will be filled with at least one pet. Each of them recently lost a longtime pet, and they are still discussing when and what type of animal to adopt next.
