A lot of people are complaining that 2016 was the worst year ever, but Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth might just disagree.
After splitting up for several years, the couple found their way back into each other's arms in January and later confirmed their engagement is back on. But more than just rekindling the old flame, it's safe to say Liam and Miley are happier than ever before, continuously sharing their love with the public through the media, social platforms, red carpet events and more.
Thus, we think the couple might actually say this has been their best year yet. Let's take a look back on the last 12 months to see why..
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The Moment of Kindling: The pair first reconnected with each other at a music festival in Australia just days after ringing in the New Year. Sources told E! News at the time that they hung out with Liam's whole family and showed quite a bit of PDA, "cuddling and kissing" while watching the concert.
From that moment forward, they were spotted out and about together more frequently, and we came to the conclusion that their years apart actually made their rekindling all the more fulfilling.
The Break Served Them Well: After rekindling, both Miley and Liam admitted their two-year break helped them find each other again.
Covering the June/July issue of GQ magazine, Liam explained, "Of course it was hard, man. But at the time we were going in different directions and it's just what needed to happen. We were both super young and it was a good decision at the time—we both needed that."
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Miley Cyrus & Liam Hemsworth's Movie Date
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Family Approval: After getting back together, both Liam and Miley's families were very supportive. The 24-year-old singer has been photographed with her beau's family several times and even got matching tattoos with his sister-in-law, Elsa Pataky.
Liam shared a Christmas photo with the Cyrus clan earlier this week, and Billy Ray Cyrus has gushed to E! News about the couple getting back together. "They're so happy. That's the main thing," he told us in May. "Miley and I, we always had this slogan—'If you ain't happy, it ain't working.' Just seeing these—I still call 'em kids—these two kids happy, that's all that matters.
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They Got Re-Engaged: And it was much better timing. After their break, the pair realized they were both in the wrong place of their life when they first got engaged but the love was always there.
"You fall in love with who you fall in love with; you can never choose," Liam told Men's Fitness. "I guess some people just come with a little more baggage," the Australian actor says, laughing. "I mean, look—we were together five years, so I don't think those feelings will ever change. And that's good because that proves to me that it was real. It wasn't just a fling."
"Liam never stopped loving Miley. Liam and Miley's timing was just off the first time they were engaged, many things played into them calling it off. They both needed to grow up and figure themselves out more."
More Puppies: Miley helped bring another furry child named Dora into Liam's life at an adoption event before the pair officially got back together. Since then, they've shared several photos of their dog posse, which consists of at least five dogs at this point.
And More Fun: The couple has been all smiles in photographs taken of them together while out and about. For example, in July, the were spotted leaving Nobu restaurant in Malibu, giving the finger to on-looking photogs and cracking up while doing so.
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Rare Public Events: Since rekindling, the pair rarely joined one another during major public events, but Liam made sure to support his boo when she was honored at Variety's Power of Women luncheon in October. They posed for photos, and an onlooker told E! News that at one point, "[Miley] wrapped her arm around him and leaned her head against his shoulder."
Growing in Love: During an interview with Ellen DeGeneres in October, Miley chatted about her engagement ring that she's been wearing again and admitted that it's not really "her." However, she proved how far she's come with the relationship by noting that she wears it because it reminds her of the love she shares with Liam.
"This is really weird because this is like real jewelry and most of my jewelry is made out of gummy bears and cotton candy and they don't look that good together because they kind of mix up," she explained. "So sometimes I replace it with an actual unicorn or a Looney tune, and [Liam] is kind of like, 'What's going on?' It's like, 'Well, this isn't really my aesthetic, but I'll wear it because you love me.'"
They're Living Together Again: After several years of going out and dating, Miley has found her happiness beside her man.
On October the pair moved in together again. "Miley really loves nesting with Liam. She's loving just being at home with him," the insider shared. "She cooks a lot. She loves trying out new recipes all the time."
Cute Instagram Posts: Another telling sign of how far they've come is their sweet, public notes of affection on social media. For example, Miley posted the photo above, writing, "So much love in one pic."
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