This week we moved on to learning about the wedding and the first kid.

We started off my talking about the proposal. We were asked to think about if the proposal mattered or not. I thought no, not really. But as we discussed it I came to see that the proposal is very important. Because they way you start the relationship off is the way it will continue. So if you don't have clarity in the proposal then the relationship will be lacking clarity all throughout. And we talked about the man asking the girls father for permission. Which has always bugged me. I figure that I am the he should be asking. I'm not owned by anyone, even though I love and respect my dad. But it is a good thing because you are acknowledging the parents, which sets up the relationship to start out on a good foot. Because the parents are more likely to let you do your own thing if you recognize their roles. And if doesn't have to be permission it can just be asking for support and letting them know your intentions. 
After all you don't just marry a person, you marry into a family.

Another thing that we discussed was the first child, and how marital satisfaction decreases after the first child. We talked about a number of reasons that this happens, but the part that I find interesting is how we can stop this from happening.
-The wife should involve the husband. let him feel the baby kick, help pick out the name, go to doctor appointments with her.
-The wife should not complain, by this I mean don't regret the baby because your miserable, remember that your love created this child
-planning ways to have the husband involved during the birth
-keep the couples mothers out of the delivery room

Then we focused on how there is a sacred part of having a child. It is a beautiful thing, and God wants to guide us and direct us. So always turn to him.
That applies into every aspect of life, but the decisions of who to marry and when to have children are especially important, and we need his guidance as we do.