Children and Parenting

It’s important to discuss whether you want children, and how many you’d each like to have. Often people assume that their future spouse want children, so they don’t discuss this prior to marriage. Then, down the line, they’re surprised to find out that their spouse doesn’t want children or wants a different number of children. Also, it’s a good idea to discuss if you’re open to adoption, in the event that you’re unable to have children naturally.

Similarly, assuming you both want children, it’s important to discuss how you think children should be raised. For example, will one parent stay home to raise the children or will you arrange child care so both parents can work? It’s also a good idea to discuss whether you’d prefer to send your children to public or private school. Each person’s views on children and parenting can obviously cause issues in a marriage, so it’s best to discuss children before getting married.