Jana Kramer Says She's 'Growing, Learning and Loving' with Boyfriend Ian Schinelli

Jana Kramer went Instagram official with Ian Schinelli in January

By

Published on March 17, 2022 12:50AM EDT

Jana Kramer is enjoying a new kind of happiness with boyfriend Ian Schinelli.

On Wednesday, the country music star, 38, shared a sweet carousel of her and Schinelli, 36, enjoying a pool day at Garza Blanca Resort & Spa Cancun. The pair shared hugs, kisses and smiles in the snaps.

After joking in the caption that she "found a few without his head cut off," Kramer penned a sweet message to Schinelli.

"I was happy before you but thanks for making me smile even more❤️," she wrote alongside what she called her "appreciation post" for the single dad and Navy SEAL reserve member.

"He knew I had lots of emotions going into this week and instead of making me feel bad or crazy for them, he listened and was there," Kramer continued. "What I've learned so far …It's not about perfection. It's about growing, learning and loving."

Since making their relationship Instagram official in January, the One Tree Hill alum shared how she plans to take things slow after her divorce with Mike Caussin. The exes split in April after nearly six years of marriage.

"It's going good, but it's very hard to be in a healthy relationship outside of a toxic relationship," Kramer told PEOPLE last month, adding of Schinelli, "I'm just trying to relearn things and he's very patient."

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Kramer, who shares daughter Jolie Rae, 6, and son Jace Joseph, 3, with Caussin, said she continues to make her children her top priority. "My focus isn't to hurry up and get married," she explained. "My focus is my kids and myself and continuing to heal and grow." While the singer and actress is "happy" right now, she doesn't want to risk "forcing or pushing anything."

Earlier this month, Schinelli served as a guest on the March 6 episode of Kramer's Whine Down podcast, where the couple candidly discussed their "very different lifestyles."

RELATED VIDEO: How Jana Kramer Taps into Her Strength During 'Hard Days': 'It's Okay to Feel All the Feels'

Good friends Shawn Johnson East and her husband, Andrew, who introduced Kramer to Schinelli, also joined the podcast for the intimate chat.

"It's been different. It's been really good, but I don't get caught up with the limelight of stuff like that," Schinelli said of dating someone in the public eye.

When Shawn asked Schinelli what the hardest part of dating Kramer is, the single dad replied, "It's two very different personalities and two very different lifestyles."

Schinelli pointed out that he goes to bed relatively early and gets up at "three, four in the morning," while the "I Got the Boy" singer's schedule is a little different.

"Little things like that, we're kind of getting used to each other," he continued. "It's not a boundary, it's just more understanding her needs, my needs… We didn't address those right away, and it was definitely a difficult thing to get to, and once we finally got to it, it was like, I need this in my day and my week, and she needs this in her day and her week."