Communications, meetings, councils

So this week was kinda cool. We talked about communication which is always a fun topic and we also talked about meetings and how we should conduct them and how the brethren conduct their meetings. That was my favorite part so I am just gonna talk about that to make sure I understand it and how it can be applied. So the brethren meet every Thursday together in the Temple. The start by getting there early of course and as each person comes in they greet them with love and compliments and praise and so on. Once every one is there, they begin the meeting with a prayer. Then they bring up their matters of business one by one and and discuss and solve each matter by a unanimous consensus that everyone agrees and feels that their choice is what the lord would have them do. Once their matters of business are over they end with a prayer and eat refreshments! So this is awesome on so many levels. We need to conduct our "meetings" or any other type of council with our families in a similar fashion. The place matters, the home can be as close to the temple as we can get so that's a good place to start. starting with compliments and expressions of love I feel is pretty important because we need to be in a good mood to effectively feel the spirit and be able to get along with everyone well enough to agree on everything. Opening with a prayer is important because we invite the spirit to be a member of our council and we are able to feel what is right. Coming to a common consensus is also important so that no one member feels that their opinion doesn't matter and everyone can feel connected. Closing with prayer is important because we can express our thanks to Heavenly Father for the things we had accomplished and of course bless the refreshments! And eating together is a pretty intimate thing. We eat around people that we are comfortable with and it is a sort of bonding experience and a time to talk with each other and get to know each other better! So yeah that's cool, but about all I have to say! I really liked this week!

Family Crises (plural of crisis)

So this week we talked about the crises that families go through and how they cope with them and how they effect development and stuff. It was actually pretty interesting. So all families will go through multiple crises and how we handle them will most likely determine how we will handle the next one. We talked about how a family can go from a crisis to worse off then they were before, the same as they were before, or better off than they were before depending on how they react and handle the situation. It's funny because I feel like this class always coincides somehow with my current parenting class. So in parenting we're talking about emotion coaching children and also how to do so through crises like divorce or separation. Families need to keep their communication open with each other and remember that it is okay to have feelings, even negative feelings. So if children know that it is okay to have and share feelings with their parents, they are better equip to problem solve and sooth themselves, thus they handle crises better! I can't wait to have babies so I can put all this new knowledge to use! oh yeah! and I'M GONNA BE AN AUNTY! :) So totally jealous of my sister-in-law but it's okay, there will still be a baby :) Anyway so that really all of my thoughts for this week!

Intimacy

So this week we talked about sex and intimacy and affairs and what to teach our children and when and all that. I have some pretty strong beliefs on this subject and sometimes they differ from others but that's ok. Since I am married I again felt like much of it didn't apply to me because well... I'm married. But there's definitely information that I would gladly share with others who are not married. We talked about affairs and friends and facebook and such and I feel like... I don't know, I disagree with somethings. I have an amazing relationship with my husband. We talk about everything, there's not a thing that I wouldn't tell him, I love him more than anything in the world. But I have friends! I have guy friends at that! unlike most people I am very good friends with all of the boys that I dated in high school. What can I say? I dated great guys so I made an effort to keep them as friends! I don't have a lot of contact with them but we are still great friends. Yes things are definitely different now, like we don't hug as much but I feel that it is okay to keep them as friends (as long as my husband feels the same, which luckily he does!) Anyway yeah that's just my idea. Anyway we also talked about teaching our children about sex and intimacy and all that. I want to teach my children probably a littler earlier than others, but that's just cause I don't want them getting false information from other sources. And I also want to make sure that my relationship with my children is good enough that they feel comfortable coming to me with questions about embarrassing things! I am their mother! I have the right answers! haha I'm always right! Anyway yeah, This week was fun but I don't really have anything else to say!

Getting married/Transitions

This week in class we talked about transitions in life and getting married and weddings and stuff. Sadly, I missed Thursday's class because my brother-in-law was in town for a short time. But I actually really liked the discussion on Tuesday, but that's probably because I just love weddings and marriage! :D It was interesting to talk about the things that happen cause since I am married I can definitely testify to those things. Since I did miss the end of the week I really don't have much to say, the reading was kind of boring for me (sorry!) so I guess I'll just leave you with that! :)

Preparing for Marriage/Dating

This week we talked about dating and selecting a life partner and such. My husband and I are a stereotypical homogeneous couple. We grew up within about 10 miles of each other, we are about the same height, he's about 2 years older than me,  we share religious commitments, etc. The readings that we have done in our book have been quite interesting actually but I feel like I could have benefited more from it before I got married (obviously). The research that is available is interesting and makes a lot of sense and really makes me want to warn people and help them. For example, cohabitation is so rampant in today's world and people think that it is necessary, good, important, preparation, etc. But couples that cohabit have so many disadvantages. If and when they actually marry, they are more likely to have problems and end up in divorce.  
We also talked about dating and that now days we are not following the steps to marriage. It goes dating, courtship, engagement, then marriage. A lot of people are just skipping some steps, adding others (like cohabiting) just sliding from one step to another instead of talking about the steps and determining each distinct movement from one step to another.
This just makes me want to tell everyone and help them do things right so that they can be happy like me! 

Anyway that's all I really have to say! 

Same-gender attraction/Gender Roles

This week we talked about gender roles and typical behaviors and homosexual tendencies etc. I feel like this topic is definitely one that needs to be approached sensitively. Although it is hard because some people don’t understand and when you try to help them understand they get offended and think that you are close-minded and bigoted.

So as i said in my discussion board post: This is how I feel. Say a person who identifies themselves as homosexual tells you that they were born that way. Who are you to tell them that they weren’t, how do you argue that they don't feel the way the feel? Yes, there is science and research that you could bring up and prove your point but in the end you will only offend them. My view is that heavenly father challenges each of us with different temptations. Some people are extremely tempted by drugs, some pornography, some same-gender attraction, some alcoholism, some laziness, etc! The problem with same-gender attraction is that society is trying very hard to make is moral (same with laziness, alcohol, sex in general, etc.). Now the tricky part is trying to convince others that that is the truth. I still have yet to be faced with an opportunity to do so (thank goodness) and I have yet to find a good way to do so.

In my own family I think gender roles are good to reinforce to my children. That doesn’t mean I am going to force them to behave as their gender dictates but rather love them and teach them correct principles. I'm not going to forbid my boys from playing with dolls, or forbid my girls from playing with cars but I will teach them correct principles so that they understand right from wrong. They will be able to make their own decisions with the foundation that they have gained in my home and in the church. 

I am so excited to have kids, I swear my baby fever gets worse and worse every day! Well, I'm sure that day will come soon enough! 

Cultures? Validity? Eternal Truths?

So this week we talked about cultures and flaws maybe in their practices and if some cultures or values are better or more right than another. It's kind of a political topic and it's hard because every one is so bent on being politically correct and accepting everyone and encouraging everyone to do whatever they want. And I think THAT is where our problem lies. There ARE eternal truths, actual morals really do exist and some things are wrong! I don't need to convince anyone that murder is wrong but we all know it is! The other wrong things have simply slipped out of mind and into some made  up grey area that may or may not be okay to most people. It's a simple fact that there are eternal truths. I am not a debater, I am not good with words so my trying to convince anyone of that would be a waste of time but I believe that with everything that I am. On another note, in class we talked about immigrant families and how hard their lives are and how immigrating has effected their family, their roles, and their culture. I kind of felt that the lecture was redundant because we read an article on the topic then came to class and didn't really learn anything. And this also was a politically charged topic and we didn't discuss any of the politics so I was kinda stewing all class. My husband is a PoliSci major so it's hard not to think about politics now. The whole topic was on illegal immigrants. So ya know I kinda was turned off by that in the first place. But all in all the whole cultural validity was an interesting topic. 
On a completely unrelated topic, I am having a TON of fun with that GenoPro program, it's funny I never that that I would be excited by genealogy or anything but this is seriously awesome! :D