This OpEd piece hits the nail right on the head - Put your marriage before your kids
A few interesting passages from the article,
"Child-centered families create anxious, exhausted parents and demanding, entitled kids who act out."
"Most of us would never dream that putting our children before
our marriage could be a flight response. We often believe we just
don't have time for our spouse. But the truth is, we often feel
more love for our kids than for our spouse. When two parents drift
apart from each other, often one parent will drift closer to the
kids."
"[Sic] parents convince ourselves that putting our kids first is child-friendly, but we make two main mistakes by doing so.
First, it becomes harder to respect and enforce the boundaries that shape a child's character, so he simply badgers his parents until he gets his way. Future bosses and spouses may not be so patient with this behavior.
Second, we put tremendous pressure on our children to fulfill
our emotional needs, which may lead to the child acting out. "
What is your opinion on placing your child before your
marriage? Do people even realize that's what they are doing
and wonder why the marriage is so strained after the children are
grown and leave the house?
