Pros and Cons of Having a Big Extended Family

You love where you came from and you enjoy having a big extended family to share your joys with; but sometimes it can get a bit overpowering and rowdy. Here are a few pros and cons that come with having “one big happy family”:

Pros-

1. Endless support

Life comes with accomplishments and failures, having a big family means endless support through the good and bad.

2. Big celebrations are always fun

No celebration is small. Birthdays and other celebrations are full of a lot of people, food, drinks and fun times.

3. There’s always tons of food

Whenever you and your family get together, there’s always mountains of food. There’s always leftovers to take home!

4. You’re used to competition

Your family is constantly playing games and getting overly competitive. There’s even a competition to who gets in line first for food and who has the best Halloween costume.

5. They will hate anyone who does you wrong

Once your family realizes someone did you wrong, they’re on the exile list. Whether it be frenemies or ex significant others, your family knows what they did and despises them just as much as you do.

6. Your cousins are your other siblings

You and your cousins grew up together and shared hand me downs. And they’ve always been there for you. They are basically your siblings.

7. You stick together

Through celebrations and sad times, you and your family always stick together. 

8. Holidays are always extra festive

Celebrating holidays is always over the top. You and your family always crowd at your grandma’s house for dinner, dessert and holiday festivities.  

Cons-

1. There’s no secrets

If you tell one person in your family, it’s almost a guarantee everyone else will hear about it within a week. Family gossip never ends.

2. You have to yell to get your point across/story heard

With everyone talking in their own conversations and debating politics, the dinner table gets a bit loud. Most of the time you have to speak up to get their attention.

3. There are never any quiet moments

There is no such thing as silence in your family. Between the talking and laughing of your relatives, it makes your ears ring. 

4. It’s always crowded

You constantly have to say “excuse me” to navigate around the large crowd that is your family.

5. They are never afraid to be honest

Your family is never afraid to throw their two cents in and tell you what they really think. They are always honest, maybe a bit too honest.

6. It takes 15 minutes to say goodbye

Time to make your rounds and say farewell to all of your family. You always have to have a mental checklist of who you still need to hug and kiss before you leave.

7. Introducing a S.O. brings a lot of pressure

Telling your new significant other about your family definitely makes them nervous. When they meet them for the first time, it’s a bit overwhelming.

8. You lose track of how many people there actually are 

When people ask how many people are in your extended family, you have to count it out on your fingers. You always tend to lose track and forget a few people.

9. When you get married your guest list will be seriously long

Want a small and intimate wedding? Not possible. You have to invite everyone in your family or else they will call you all offended.  

10. Your grandma calls you all of your cousins’ names

When your grandma calls your attention she calls you all of your cousins’ names before your own. Once you correct her she’ll say “Oh yeah, you know what I meant!”

11. Always having to sit at the kids table

You will be sitting at the “kids” table until you are married with your own kids, it’s inevitable.

No family is perfect. There will be falling outs, arguments and passionate debates. At the end of the day your big extended family is always there to pick you up when you’re down and tell you what you need to hear. 

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