Homefront Kids 8
Preparing for Marriage
ABOUT THIS UNIT
Main Ideas
1) Preparation for marriage begins long before engagement. Decisions made as a youth/young parent will absolutely affect your marriage and your future children.
2) The skills focused on during marriage preparation courses will also augment and strengthen those who are already married.
3) We do young people a disservice when married individuals aren’t willing to share the joys and the challenges of marriage. Of course, speak about marriage positively, but also communicate that inevitable challenges can be over come and marriage is very much worth the effort.
Activities
1) Discuss what qualities or traits you think are important for marriage and in a spouse. Talk about how you can develop those traits.
2) Make a personal budget. Learn about how to budget and adhere to your budget for a week.
3) Practice empathy. Look around you and at how people are feeling. Think how you would feel if that happened to you. Discuss how to help those around you using empathy.
Daily Resources
Short daily resources for discussing Homefront topics with your children.
Click to expand the daily resource you want to view.
DO NOT USE; THIS IS HIDDEN
Resource 1: Getting to Know You
Making and keeping a friend is a key to successful marriage.
Parents:
Questions to Ask When Preparing for Marriage
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Family:
Making and Keeping Friends
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Discuss:
How does feeling comfortable with meeting and getting better acquainted with people help you in finding the right person to marry?
Resource 2: Understanding Your Love Language
Resource 3: Keeping a Marriage Strong for 58 Years
Is love really “all you need?”
Parents:
The 7 Principles For Making Marriage Work by John Gottman – Relationship Advice
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Family:
Lee Brice – Love Like Crazy
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Discuss:
Is “love” all that is required for a happy and successful marriage? What traits can I work on, today, to ensure my successful marriage in the future?
Resource 4: Forgiveness Is Important to Healthy Relationships
Resource 5: When the Bones are Good
Choosing well: Get the basics right and a marriage will weather most of life’s storms.
Parents:
Redefining expectations within your marriage
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Family:
The Bones – Maren Morris lyrics
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Discuss:
What are the basics, or bones, of a friendship, a healthy relationship or the person you’re going to marry? How do you create a “good foundation” for a future relationship when you choose friends or someone to date?
Resource 6: Understanding Each Other
Resource 7: Express How You Feel
Resource 8: Empathy in Relationships
Resource 9: Resolving Life’s Conflicts
Resource 10: Learning to Budget
Review
Role Play #1
Role Play #1
Scenario:
Your friend is excited to get married because she says she will have her happily ever after, and be at the end of her troubles. What would you say to her?
Response:
Talking Points: “Happily ever after” is not by chance, it is by choice. It takes work. It involves the decision to choose to cherish your spouse every day, especially when you don’t feel like it.
Role Play #2
Role Play #2
Scenario:
An acquaintance says that in relationships it’s best to solve all problems before you go to bed. How would you respond?
Response:
Talking Point: If communication gets heated, take a step back, take a break to calm down, and reapproach the topic later. This shows respect for your spouse and allows the conversation to remain rational.
Reflect
Reflect
Parents:
Review some additional Homefront Project articles/videos from the Marriage Prep unit.
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Family:
- What did you learn?
- Which of the marriage prep tools in this unit will you work on?
- Why do you think working on these skills now will better prepare you for marriage?
- With whom can you share or teach what you learned?
Discuss:
Which was your favorite resource day? Why?
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