A woman who met her husband – 19 years her senior – in a yoga class has revealed what life is like with such a big age gap.
Michael Stomatuk, 47, and wife Emily Downing, 28, met in 2018 at a yoga class after she was drawn to her “natural beauty” and impressive fitness skills before marrying in November 2023.
The pair, who live in Los Angeles, have a TikTok account where they give an insight into their life together — including how Emily’s parents reacted when they first met.
“My parents were concerned,” Emily said.
Michael said the pair had been friends for a year, starting very slow so they could see if their maturity levels matched. Emily joked she also had to “train some of the f*** boy out of him”.
“But there was one thing my dad said to me when he found out I was still seeing Michael,” Emily said.
“He said, ‘I raised you better than this’. It was a dagger to the heart.”
Emily said that eventually, when the pandemic hit and the pair became more serious, Michael met Emily’s parents, and the family has had no issues since.
Previously, Michael revealed he made the first move by complimenting her yoga practice, and while both say there was an instant chemistry between them Emily, from Arizona, was hesitant because of their obvious age gap, The Sun reported.
Emily was initially hesitant but eventually swapped numbers with the older man. Michael said he immediately found Emily sweet and easygoing, while she recalls thinking he was funny.
“I think we both knew there was a connection, but due to a prior relationship of mine and our age difference, we were both quite reserved in the beginning and didn’t want to rush into a relationship,” he said.
The duo walked the model’s dog around their neighborhood and talked for more than three hours. Both quickly noted their strong physical and emotional attraction before quickly falling in love and telling friends and family in 2020.
