Wrap up

The last week of the semester! Wow, that went by faster than any semester before I think, and it really is amazing how much I feel like I have learned. This week, we briefly covered the aging family which I will briefly touch on, but really, I want to summarize some of the things that I have learned and have found most valuable throughout the semester!

Boundaries within a family and between other families. This was Probably one of my favorite discussions and the most important to me. Growing up, my parents often confided in the children with many issues that they were going through. I saw how that made their relationship more difficult, and how that impacted our relationship with our parents. I knew even at a young age that this wasn’t how it was supposed to be so this lesson and seeing the visual of the man and the woman helped me see how a relationship should be. In addition to this, seeing how there are appropriate levels of entrance into the family unit was very interesting to me and I want to have a home that has a picket fence: firm but appropriate.

Understanding the 3 T’s of a relationship (Time, Togetherness, and Talk). I love this because I feel like it is a good and simple equation for creating a good environment for a relationship to grow. In addition to this I love how one of the points was togetherness. In my relationships I have seen how spending alone time together has made a huge difference, even in the other two portions of the equation. All three are key to getting to know each other on a level that will lead to a happy and secure marriage.

Understanding how to use “I feel” statements to communicate. This was also an important thing that I use and will continue to use. I struggle communicating my feelings, so using such a simple equation that is easy to remember has already helped me so much and I’m sure will continue to help me as communication becomes more and more important in my relationships.

Appreciating the role of a father in the home. I have always been grateful to grow up in a home with a mother and a father in my home, but it wasn’t until this class that I came to understand how important a father is. I thought it was very interesting how much a father and his presence impacts the behavior and future relationships of his children. This has helped me realize that I need to do my best to keep the father of my children in the home.

Teaching children with respect and the different ways to do that. I feel like this is one of the most important things that I took from the lesson about parenting. As true as it is that it is the parent’s responsibility to rear and raise their children, it is equally important for the parents to let their children grow and respect them. When the parents and the children are on the same side. When parents respect the children and allow them (within safe boundaries) to learn from natural consequences, children will learn and respect their parents as well.

Understanding the different roles and strengths of men and women. I loved this as gender has become such an important topic in our society. I loved learning about the different biological and physiological differences between men and women and how those differences are really strengths when it comes to marriage and family.

Realizing the different modes of communication. I thought it was so interesting learning how verbal communication is such a small part of communicating. I feel like I put such an emphasis on talking that I forget that there are many ways to communicate which is something that I will be able to use in the future.

Looking at all of these things, I think about how a family grows over the years. IT is amazing how we can be around people we are so different from and make such a beautiful thing as a loving family. Over the years we change and experience different things that help us to grow, and the family is often a key part in that growth. I am so grateful for my family and I look forward to growing and developing my own family in the future.