Married at First Sight is back! On season 5 of Kinetic Content’s hit social experiment show, three couples meet for the first time at the altar just minutes before exchanging vows. The newlyweds (whose wedding portraits were taken by Mike Staff Productions) are alternating each week blogging exclusively about the ups and down of marriage for PEOPLE. Check back after every episode for the latest in their road to (possibly) happily ever after! This week’s blog comes from Anthony D’Amico, a 33-year-old sales and marketing professional who’s ready for kids, and Ashley Petta, a 30-year-old restaurant manager who’s been single for the past two years.

ASHLEY’S TAKE

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Everyone can relax now! I NEVER walked out on Anthony. When we arrived at the rooftop, I had a little bit of work drama so I stepped away to handle it. My sister (who doesn’t even work at my bar) went in to open up for me so that I could attend the brunch. Unfortunately, one of my employees didn’t show up. I felt very guilty that I was not there to handle the situation and I took some of my frustration out on my sister, which was completely wrong. There was no way she could have handled the situation on her own — she doesn’t even know 90 percent of my staff.

After about 10 minutes on the phone, I was able to find someone that was willing to come in. I sent a few more texts to confirm that everything was good and that was the end of it. After we finished our first round of drinks, I went to go get another round and the line was seriously 30 minutes long! I can see now why Anthony might have been frustrated that it took so long, but it was hot and we were all very thirsty!

Regarding the conversation, Anthony and I had while we were getting ready to go to Michigan …

Anthony needs to STOP walking on “eggshells.” I’m trying to get to know him. I want to know what he thinks, what might possibly annoy him, etc. He shouldn’t avoid conversations just because they might upset me. How else are we supposed to get to know each other? Watching it back, I really wish Anthony would have communicated more honestly with me. Anthony talked more openly to the experts and the camera in private interviews than he ever did with me. That’s frustrating.

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I was really excited to go to Michigan to get to know Anthony’s family! We had to spend five hours in the car, so I thought this was a perfect opportunity to start searching for some apartments. Of course, Anthony brings up the kid thing AGAIN. I was very serious about having children on my own when I turned 30. I turned 30 and then two months after, I was married to a stranger. Fate? I don’t know. I was very surprised Anthony was so shocked by this. A lot of women and even men raise children on their own. Although it isn’t the most ideal situation for me, I’m very confident that I will be a great mother, with or without a husband.

As far as our living situation goes, we were in a time crunch. We had four weeks to find another place to live. At this point, I had already sublet my apartment and Anthony’s lease was up, so we had to find something quick. It was really hard to find the time to look between our jobs and filming — we had no time to do anything outside of all the activities that were planned for us.

When we got to Anthony’s mom’s house, I was really excited to get to spend some time with her. I could not have asked for a better mother-in-law. She was so welcoming and made me feel like I was part of the family from the very beginning.

The next day, we went to Anthony’s sister Deanna’s house. The whole family was there! The food was great and the conversation was even better. Celeste (Anthony’s stepmother) accidentally let Anthony’s secret slip! Oops. I thought it was hilarious. I had gone on and on for five weeks about how amazing his teeth are and how jealous I am that mine aren’t as flawless and he neglected to tell me that he had veneers! I still love Anthony’s smile — I’m just not jealous anymore now that I know how much he had to pay for them. No reason to be embarrassed Anthony, your smile is beautiful.

My conversation with Alena comes off a little tense, but she means well. We barely had a chance to speak at the wedding so this is really the first conversation we ever really had. She is Anthony’s overprotective little sister. Most people are skeptical of this process, so I don’t really blame her.

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ANTHONY’S TAKE

The Brunch

Sooo everyone wants to know the whole story behind the brunch … honestly, it looked like a bigger deal than it actually was. That whole work thing actually happened way before we even sat down with everyone. It seemed like I went looking for her, but I had an idea of where she was. I was asked to go look for her and make sure she was okay and it got turned into a “Where’s Ashley?” scene. It was a stressful situation for Ashley but she did not bail on me or anyone else at the party.

The Road trip

During the car ride, Ashley and I were discussing where we were going to live after the eight weeks was over. Time was of the essence since we had little time to find a place. One thing that Ashley brings out in me is a higher sense of urgency, which I really like. Do we need this in every situation, no, but situations like finding a new place can get crazy if you’re not on top of it, especially in Chicago where demand is high. Somehow we got on the topic of kids and it ended up seeming like our “time frame” was about kids when it was actually about finding a new place to live.

To clear up the kid talk, one thing that I misunderstood Ashley about was time frame of kids. When she said she wanted to have kids in a year, she actually meant start trying to have kids in a year. I always took it as we would have a kid in a year which meant starting pretty much now to try and have kids … I completely agree on starting to try in a year.

My Mom

I was so happy bringing Ashley to mom’s house. It really solidified even more that she was my wife and bringing her around my side of the family was the icing on the cake. I’m so glad Ashley and my mom got a chance to talk and get to know each other better.

My sister Deanna’s place

Ohhh never a dull moment at the Picciurro house … so let’s just get right into it. The whole teeth situation … UGH! I don’t even know how to explain myself here. Honestly, I should’ve just told Ashley when she first gave me a compliment on my smile. But remembering what Dr. Pepper told me, “I don’t have to hit her with everything all at once.” Since it got kind of brought up at my mom’s house, my plan was to tell her this weekend on the ride home (off camera) and then when my dad and stepmom blurted it out, I was caught off guard and got all embarrassed, which made that situation a little more awkward than it actually needed to be. Just so everyone knows, I do have some veneers in my mouth, not dentures or anything like that.

Ashley’s chat with Alena

Where to start, my sister Alena has always been a “free spirit”… yeah that’s a good way to put it 🙂 Living by her own rules, Alena has always had a way with words ever since she learned to speak. No filter, and she will tell you exactly what’s on her mind at the exact time when it pops up. Sometimes I don’t think she realizes what she’s saying or how it will affect someone until it’s too late. She means well but sometimes it doesn’t always come out right. I think when Alena and Ashley had their sit down, all Alena wanted to do was get a read on Ashley but it ended up being more like an intimidation session. Haha.