week 4: balance within the family.

Have you ever wondered why a family needs a mom and a dad? why can't there just be one or the other? This week in class we dove into these questions and found some great answers. Males and females each have different strengths and weaknesses, they differ in many ways, but when their differences are put together, they become strengths. The Family: A Proclamation to the World sets guidelines for how families should be and how they should be run. Mothers are supposed to nurture and care for their children, they take care of them when they're sick and make sure they are healthy and strong. Fathers are meant to provide, preside and protect, the role of a father is very important as well as that of a mother. Parents have to work together, each of theme contributions to make a family that is stable and of God. There is no president and vice president, mothers and fathers work together. In my life I have been blessed with a mother and a father who work together to make our family happy and to make sure all of our needs are met. I don't know what I would do without that and I am so grateful for the roles they play in my everyday life.

week 3: family culture.

This week in class we discussed cultures and how to keep the ones we like in our future family. When we hear the word "culture" we tend to think of a certain race and the things they do that no one else does. Did you know that each family has their own culture? Ive never thought about it like that, but after having discussions in class I was able to identify the culture in my family. As I have grown up I have noticed certain things that my parents instilled in me and my siblings. Some of those are: hard work, expression of love, importance of family time, and good education. These are just some of the values that were prominent in my home, and they are some that I want to carry over to my future family. Traditions also fall into your family culture, how you celebrate certain holidays and what you do as a family on those days. In my family, for Thanksgiving, we make a special kind of turkey that my great grandpa came up with many years ago. That is something I hope to continue when I have a family of my own, to honor my great grandfather and to keep the family tradition alive. Think about the traditions and culture in your family now, how are you going to keep them in your future family?

week 2: better together.

This week in class we discussed four specific theories that apply to families and somewhat explains why situations are the way they are. The main one that I want to talk about is the systems theory, this suggests that the whole family is better than an individual on their own. This theory is so true! There are five people in my family and I know that we are better together as opposed to separate. We accomplish more and we create unity by working together as a unit. For example, if we all work together to keep the house clean then it will stay cleaner than if just one person was working by themselves to keep it clean. Now that example is probably very common in most households. 
When a family is united they are strong and they depend on each other for support and acceptance. Thats the way it should be, with unconditional love and absolute acceptance the family is stronger than anything else in this world. It creates a feeling of safety and security, something that each of us look for almost daily. When our families are united as one, and not separate, we have more power than we could ever imagine.

week 1: where'd all the babies go?

This week in class my mind was opened to new information and startling statistics regarding the family. In our world today, there are more babies being born in cohabited households and to single mothers and less babies being born into complete family units. The view on the family has been altered over the years, with its sacredness decreasing dramatically. In the world today marriage is being delayed, the average ages to marry are 26 for women and 28 for men. This is the statistic that has the most influence on all the other trends occurring regarding the family. Because marriage is being delayed the number of people living alone is increasing, unwed mothers are more common, and the number of children born is slowly decreasing. As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, we are commanded to get married and have children, in that order. If we follow those instructions we are promised countless blessings and eternal happiness. An apostle of the church, Elder L. Tom Perry once said, "Family is the center of life." If we center our lives around creating a functional and happy family unit, we will have greater happiness. Think about your family. What would you be without them? Life just wouldn't be the same. Families are essential to happiness in this life.