Tag Archives: family relationships

Family Influence on Mental Health

I’ve been wondering and I’ve come to the conclusion that like so many other things in life, our mental health often represents our upbringing. I look at one side of my family. At my grandmother’s level of the family tree there were ten siblings. They were raised in a strong Catholic family, learned to help take care of one another (with ten of them, what more could you do), rely on one another, and be open and honest. Family was the focus of their lives. They had twelve people in a three bedroom house, so there was no choice but … Continue reading →

Adoption of Adults

Did you know that it is legal in all 50 U.S. states for one adult to adopt another? I didn’t! The most common reasons given for adults legally adopting other adults are: to make official a long-standing parent-child relationship, and/or to ensure that the adults involved will inherit from each other. (The state of Illinois specifically notes that an adopted person does not inherit from the adoptive parents if he/she was over 18 when adopted and had never resided with the adoptive parents before turning 18. This refers to adoptive parents who die without a will; of course adoptive parents … Continue reading →

Christmas Gifts to Stay in Touch: Using a Web Cam

If you have given your parents a web cam and you are wanting to find creative ways to stay in touch, you may need to create some events that will make the web cam moments more memorable. It is important to allow time just to talk as well. These suggestions are great to implement once the novelty of the web cam begins to wear off. 1) You can have your parents (the grandparents) conduct story times for your young children. This does take a little extra planning, but will be well worth the effort. The grandparents can send the books … Continue reading →

Family Time

Do you feel like the time you spend with your entire family is hectic, noisy and disorganized? When you have a large family or young children, or both, you may struggle to create the special spiritual moments that you want your children to experience. You may have a difficult time connecting to everyone in the room since they are all at different stages of development. If you have younger children you may want to adjust certain practices so that you can reach them more effectively. You may want to read the scriptures to your children from the scripture reader. If … Continue reading →

Preparing Kids for Aging Grandparents

Aging is a fact of life, but, that doesn’t make it any less challenging. Sure, it is one of those main, major realities that we have to learn to face and deal with–but while we are wrestling with our own aging issues, as parents, we also have to help our children learn how to cope with aging. Watching as grandparents get older, and perhaps get ill and die can be one of the most traumatic pieces of childhood. Children who are able to have close, affectionate relationships with grandparents have enriched lives. But, the closer they are, the more painful … Continue reading →

Balancing Your Marriage and Your In-Laws

In your marriage it can be difficult to handle the demands of your parents and siblings with that of your own family. This can be difficult because as Latter-day Saints we believe that families are eternal. When we are married, we leave behind our old family to form a new family. It is important to realize this as you make your decisions regarding your family involvement after marriage. One great way to stop hard feelings with the in-laws is to rotate when you see each family at the holidays. If you all live in the same area, you may go … Continue reading →

Family and Money

It is difficult to mix money and family. There may be times when someone in your family is in a tough financial situation and comes to you for help. Or you may simply decide you would like to help without being asked. Or you may be in a situation where you could use some help and one of your family members volunteers to help. The problem is that often loans or gifts come with emotional strings attached and so it can put everyone in an awkward situation. Here are a few guidelines: 1) If you want to loan someone the … Continue reading →

Family Unity

Families are a central part of the gospel. The family is the basic unit for the gospel, and all the activities in the church are supposed to support family unity. It can be difficult to build family unity in your own family. Here are some basic ways to help your family to be closer to each other and to form strong bonds. 1) Do the basics that the church leaders have counseled. This includes family prayer and scripture study and family home evening. These are great tools that will help to build family unity. 2) It is a good idea … Continue reading →

Report Says Teens Enjoy Hanging Out At Home

If you are the parent of a teen, there’s good news. A new study by research firm, The Zandl Group, shows a narrowing generation gap. Each year the group surveys teens in order to track trends. The latest survey shows that many teens actually enjoy hanging out at home with their parents. When surveyed 10 years ago, less than a quarter of teens listed “home” as their favorite place to be. When surveyed in 2006, nearly half of the teens listed “home”. “Family” was listed by one in four teens as being the most important thing about their day-to-day life, … Continue reading →

Five Topics to Cover in Your Family Council

The new year is a great time to reassess the way that your family is functioning. It is also a great time to reassign chores, and make sure that daily life is going the way that your family wants it to. A great way to do this is hold a family council. The first family council of the year may be longer than normal as you change and plan for the new year. After that you can hold shorter ones a regular basis to make sure that the plans are being met. Here are five things you may want to … Continue reading →