Extravagant Family Events

Why Family Events Have Become Bigger Than Ever

By
Relationship Advice Expert April Masini

I've been getting invited to a lot of parties lately that are absolutely extravagant. I swear, children's parties that have to cost a small fortune and weddings that are out of control. Usually, I go to the events just to spend time with my family and catch up with everyone. I don't need the backyard to be turned into a jungle safari. Why do people feel the need to make family events such an extravagance?

Sincerely,

Out of Control Parties

Dear Out of Control Parties,

There are 3 reasons why family events have become bigger than ever:

1. Families are extended now, in ways that they never were before. Very few families do not have a divorce, a remarriage, step-children or some other complexity that most families didn't used to have.

2. People have more events in their lives than ever before. Don't even talk to me about marriages -- most married people are married more than once these days which means serial weddings! And each time brides, and often grooms, too, want to do it differently, and differently often means bigger!

3. Then there's the new mantra, "More, more, more!" that's taken over where "Keeping up the Jones'" left off. It's not enough to have a home beautifully decorated, a body perfectly coiffed, and a multi-racial family with the right number of biological children to adopted children super-scheduled with college career counselors on board before the kid hits the age of pre-school admissions. We've co-opted our yards and turned them into extended living space, so complete with outdoor furniture and cushions, cabanas, Restoration Hardware "tents", outdoor rugs (yes, home grown and mown grass is no longer enough for your barefeet in the back yard), outdoor lamps, outdoor heaters (can outdoor air conditioners be far behind??) and outdoor kitchens.

Our bathrooms now house televisions and telephones. Look out Fido -- what used to be your home is going to be outfitted with satellite television and fiber optic internet hookups before long. Note to Fido: Demand doggie spa weekend to keep up with stress of dysfunctional pet owner/pet relationships as a result of invasion of your yard with their housing!

Then there's the weddings, graduations, and other family events that have taken extreme to the extreme.

April Masini -- nicknamed "the new millennium's Dear Abby" by the media, is author of the best-selling books Date Out Of Your League and Think & Date Like A Man, the two (just released) step-by-step dating and relationship manuals, Ideas for a Fun Date and Romantic Date Ideas, and the critically acclaimed dating and relationship online magazine www.AskApril.com.

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