Mama's not suffering from a broken heart this year.
It's been nearly a year since Miranda Lambert and Anderson East made their debut as a couple on the Academy of Country Music Awards red carpet, and with the 2017 ceremony coming this Sunday, April 2nd, it's only fitting we take a look back at how their love has evolved since then.
First, let's rewind to when Miranda had a very public and surprising split from fellow country star Blake Shelton in July, 2015. At the time, they were considered country music royalty, right up there with Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. And perhaps it was that same fame and excessive attention surrounding their relationship that led Miranda to make the conscious decision to keep her romance with singer Anderson East on the low for months.
The Platinum singer was first rumored to be dating Anderson in December, 2015, just months after she and Blake announced their divorce. It wasn't until New Year's Day, 2016, when she took to Instagram to post a photo of her and her new beau together for the first time. In the shot, the two are squeezed together in a chair and all wrapped up in a cozy blanket. The picture was a clear sign that this wasn't just a regular friendship or an overnight romance - Miranda basically confirmed she was happy in love again.
After her lovved up New Year's post, it was a slow burn for fans who wanted more pics of Miranda and Anderson together. She acknowledged their relationship in several posts throughout January by only tagging him in photos (including an adorable one in which she gushed over his new song), but none of the shots featured the two of them together. That is until February, when she crashed her boyfriend's concert to sing classic Mariah Carey tune "Always Be My Baby".
Their romance really heated up in April, first with the big red carpet reveal at the ACMs, and then later that month, when the couple took their love to the stage again. This time around they joined forces at pal Chris Stapleton's concert in Los Angeles, where Anderson and Chris took the lead on the Temptations classic, "My Girl", while Miranda and Chris' wife Morgane sang backup vocals.
Since then, Miranda and Anderson have posed on a few more red carpets arm-in-arm and posted sweet Instagram photos about each other, but their public displays of affection seem to be far less public than when she was with her ex-husband. In fact, Miranda previously told Entertainment Weekly that she doesn't want to put her entire life on social media on display for everyone to see. She admitted she prefers to keep her relationships - whether platonic or not - out of the public eye, and especially wouldn't want to know the same intimate details of people she looks up to.
"I really believe in leaving some mystery," she confessed. "I don't need to know what everybody's doing all the time - especially with heroes of mine."
Enjoy these few and far between snaps while you can, shippers.
Now, a little after a year of dating, E! News has learned that Miranda and Anderson are stronger than ever - to the extent that they've even discussed tying the knot and starting a family together.
"Miranda and Anderson are doing good. They try to keep their relationship private and out of the public's way. They are definitely gonna get married," the source told E! News exclusively. "They have discussed marriage and kids that they both want in the near future. She has learned many things about what she wants and needs after her breakup and Anderson fulfills it all."
With the ACMs on Sunday, we wouldn't be surprised if we see these two more in love than ever, especially given it's the anniversary of their first big outing. Miranda may be up for five awards (and could win her eighth consecutive title of Female Vocalist of the Year), but no matter what happens or how many trophies she goes home with, it's clear she's already won.