Birds and the Bees...

So, it seems like this week a lot of my classes are going hand in hand with each other, which is pretty awesome if you ask me! So we have gone from talking about marriage and intimacy to talking to your children (or future children) about intimacy.

To be honest, I was intrigued as to how we were going to talk about this in class and what we would and would not discuss. We talked about someways that you could "mess" up your kids if you don't talk to them about this important stuff. Some of the concerns on how you could mess up were:

• Not talking about it period.
• Emphasize the sin aspect of sex before marriage. Now, I think it is important for children to know what it is immoral to do so before marriage but they need to know the why. I think that is what gets left out a lot of the time. 
• If you focus on the "sin" and how horrible sex before marriage is, those who unfortunately are raped or sexually abused can feel used and dirty even though it was not their fault. 

Here are some of the reasons we talked about as to why it is important to have this talk with your children:

• It helps you develop a connection to your children
• You can help them understand why intimacy is sacred and reserved for marriage
• It teaches your children respect for themselves and others

I think in today's world it is so important to talk to your children at an appropriate age about sex and their bodies. I was talking to a friend at work about this and she brought up the fact that when her parents asked her if she knew a lot already about the birds and bees she said yes...because she thought they were talking about actual birds and bees and not boys and girls and sex. Luckily her parents continued to talk to her about it even though she told them she knew. So, be careful in how you word things to your children...they might take it a totally different way! 

I am betting that it can be a pretty daunting task to talk to your child about sex today, espeically when it is everywhere and so they learn about it at such an early age. Luckily we are not left hanging to do this alone. Between you, your spouse, and Heavenly Father it can be done. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has even come out with a manual to guide parents on when to talk to their children about certain things. Granted, this manual was made in the 80's so I assume you can use your better judgement and the influence of the spirit to make adjustments when needed.You can find it here!

I can go on and on as to why it is important to talk to your kids and be open with them. There are so many misconceptions that can take place when a child is trying to understand something so sacred as sex and having children...if you don't talk to them pretty soon they will have their own definition of sex and where babies come from!