Family

This week’s discussion was on divorce and stepfamilies, as well as the effects and some of the challenges associated with blending families that have been broken. Whether a family separated because of tragedy or not, I am not trying to say that family groups that have gone their separate ways are bad by using the word broken. I am using it to clearly identify the change in a family that occurs in the case of divorce or death. Divorce is not what any of us want to go through and yet it is something people choose even when going into marriage. They never thought they would be the person who would make that decision. The unfortunate thing about many divorces is that the two individuals to divorce each other will often regret it years later. When looking back they say that they could have and wished they would have saved their marriage instead of opting for divorce. Something that we as a class mentioned early in the class was the idea of not walking into marriage with divorce as a plan ...

This week’s discussion was on parenting and the impotence of parents being there for their kids. Children want to get their way, but that does not mean that they won’t appreciate it when their parents don’t let them have everything they think they need. There are several ways that parents can help their children grow up to be good members of society. By creating boundaries that protect their children, but also giving them chances to make choices, grow, and feel like an important valued member of their family. Creating boundaries to protect children is important because they are not fully developed individuals yet. Things that can seem ok to them could be something that is harmful, but they just don’t have the skills to recognize it as such. It is important to know that the boundaries we make for toddlers will be different from the ones that we give to teens. This is not only because teens are at a point in their lives where they want to practice the skills that they have been learning...

This week’s discussion was the importance of fathers and the critical role they play in the home and family, and how our understanding of their importance to family life is being lost over time. The change in how families work and experience has changed over the years. Fathers play a bigger role in families than is often discussed or fully understood. Fatherhood is not often thought of as supremely important, and as time moves on our comprehension of the supreme importance of fatherhood is decreasing. Fathers are role models for their sons. They show them through example by what they say and do in differing circumstances how to be the best they can be. The example of a father can show young men how to treat women in a respectful way. The presence of a father in the home gives their sons something to expire to grow up to be like. Fathers are not only important for their sons, but for their daughters as well. If a father is in the home daughters can feel supported, loved, and safe. Whil...