Week 13

It is hard to think about this being the last week! I have benefited from this class, and feel it has been a good learning experience.

My parents always stressed the importance of staying out of debt. They had accumulated about half a million in debt before going bankrupt and ending up having to learn how to get by. My husband and I try to be as thrifty as possible, and we have agreed that we will never buy a car that is less then 5 years old. We don't do credit cards(unless they are paid off right away) and try to save as much as possible for the future. My husbands parents live paycheck to paycheck, even though they make a good bit of money - they don't budget very well(in our opinions at least) though we don't know all of their bills, it just seems like it to us. We try to only have essentials and are careful with our money for the most part. We're getting better about it but its only been in the last year that we've really started looking to the future.

 I lived with in-laws for 6 years. It was extremely difficult. It is only now that we are getting to a point where we make our own rules and decisions and we don't have two other people dictating how things need to be. It was a controlling environment in the sense that they had difficult experiences and wanted to share that knowledge, but were rather pushy about teaching. I feel it is very important to have a good relationship with my in laws. They are a good insight into why my husband does what he does. Its also important for my children to have their grandparents in their lives.

 I liked the quote by Marvin J Ashton, "Certainly a now-married man should cleave unto his wife in faithfulness, protection, comfort, and total support, but in leaving father, mother, and other family members, it was never intended that they now be ignored, abandoned, shunned, or deserted. They are still family, a great source of strength, a refuge, a delight, and an eternal unit. Wise parents, whose children have left to start their own families, realize their family role still continues, not in a realm of domination, control, regulation, supervision, or imposition, but in love, concern, and encouragement."

I feel that family is important, both in creating your own branch and in connecting with the rest of our families. Our goal is to be sealed together with our families and having a good relationship with them in life is very important.