How To Have A Successful Family

Do you feel disconnected from your partner or your children? If you do, you're not alone. Relationships take work and many times they are more strained when there are children involved and our different views on parenting are revealed. We've become a society of disconnection.
We hear in the news stories of children and youth rebelling in a way that shows no regard for society, their parents or even themselves. A peer culture has taken over and parents are struggling to regain control.
It seems as though children aren't the same as we remember being. For me, that is certainly the case. It seems that the youth of today are less innocent, less afraid of getting into trouble and appear bored when away from their friends or technology.
Parenting, as well, appears to have changed. Parents seem or act as confident as our parents were and many times we think we're doing a terrible job. We love our children just the same, but we seem to be afraid of alienating them so we become their friends instead of their parents.
In a blended family parenting becomes even more challenging and stressful. Some parents want to be the "favourite" so our demands or expectations of children are lower, which creates two different sets of rules for children to follow depending on which household they happen to be in. Now a days it's more common for both parents to work and therefore less time is devoted to our partners and children.

It's ironic that we live in a time when so much more is known about relationships and child development than ever before, but we seem to have more problems than ever before. Why? Because we've lost the attachment relationship with our children and have given it over to their peers.
It's never too late to reconnect because the very essence of a child has not changed. They have not become less dependent or more resistant despite what we see and hear. What has changed is the culture or the world, if you will, in which we raise our children. The parent/child attachment does not receive the support it deserves once our children begin school, make friends and move through life. We are looked at as overprotective parents and told to go against our instincts.
It always amazes me when I hear a parent, quite proudly, tell me about all the activities their child/children are involved in. Sometimes as many as four or five. Between school, playdates, after school activities, television and video games, when do parents and children spend time together? No wonder children grow up more attached to their friends than their families.

It's time to reconnect and return to the basic values of what family is, no matter our circumstances. How do we do that? Well, we can begin by cutting back on the extracurricular activities our children participate in and spend the time with them. Plan more time together as a family and participate with them in the activities that interest them. If at all possible, find a way to cut back on work hours. I remember the days when my mom was home when I got home from school.

Just as important if not more so, is the relationship between the parents. Do we make it a priority to set aside quality time for ourselves? If not, we need to plan an evening out and do it regularly. The key to reconnecting is to begin simply by spending time together. We need to sit down and figure out how many hours we spend with our partner and our children. We all need to make the effort.

Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/home-and-family-articles/how-to-have-a-successful-family-1411922.html