Is there a problem with young people such as myself hanging out these days instead of going out on dates? The answer is , yes. Dating is essential to getting to know someone intimately enough to know if you should marry them. Although it is nice to hang out sometimes, I think we need to remember that going on dates is just, if not more, important. The three ways to know if it is a date is the three P's. If it's planned for, payed for, and you're paired off.

This week we talked about gender roles in the family, and how everyone plays a special part in helping the family become stable and reach its highest potential. Fathers are there are protectors and providers, while mothers are the nurturers and caregivers. Each person is born with these qualities, and once families join together as man and wife, that is when it reaches its full potential.

Does your social status affect the way you think? Does your culture? These are some things we discussed this past week. All in all I think it does, but I think your attitude and way of thinking affects far more. No matter where you come from you are in control of your actions and thoughts. Although some may be more privileged they may have problems that others do not have. Maybe their problem is pride, while others is money, which one is better? I believe it is better to be humble in the eternal perspective.

So this week we talked a lot of unspoken rules and family dynamics. One of the unspoken rules in my family is that if dad wants the tv, he gets it. It is his house and he is in charge. Also another unspoken rule is that we as children try to get along and love one another. If we fight, my parents get really upset. Respect is a really big deal in our family. You respect one another, and you in turn will get respect back. It's really important that you try to marry someone who has the same basic "rules" as you do.

Sorry I'm not very good at keeping up with this already, I'll work on it! I pinky promise:) One thing that I found super interesting this last week though when we were talking about trends was how people think that because divorce rates have gone down some, that that means less families are being broken up. This in fact is very false. The truth of it all is that cohabitation has gone up, and while these people may not be married, many of them have children together. Statistics show that the risk of the family being torn apart is more than doubled by the time that their child is of the age of 12. That is insane!! So even though divorce rates have gone down since the 80's, families are still being broken, and maybe even more than there were before.

Hey everyone! I'm Sidney Davis, and this is my third semester here at BYU-I. I'm really excited about this class, and I'm excited to read all of your blogs! It should be a good time!