Meet The Parents By Kristin Fomon

After meeting my brother’s new girlfriend, embarrassing him by showing her his baby pictures, eating a nice dinner, then finishing the night with a good fun game of Wii; I started to think about the actual meeting of the parents for the first time. There can be two potential scenarios… One, its awkward or two, it’s not awkward. Usually you aim for the “not awkward” scenario, but sometimes you don’t get so lucky.
Luckily, in the case of meeting my family, it wasn’t awkward at all for her, (thanks to my award-winning charm and amazing smile.) I asked questions about her life and coincidentally she played volleyball at Iowa, so we had a lot to talk about since I am interested in going to college for a sport as well. After she left, I started thinking of some dos and don’ts that come with the whole “I’m about to meet your family” business.
Four things that I found helpful when meeting the boyfriend’s family for the first time are:
Number one: You should try to shake their hands while being introduced. It makes you a lot friendlier and easier to talk to, where as a little nod and smile could freeze the conversation and make things start off uncomfortable leading to more awkwardness.
Number two: if you are eating with them, make sure you try everything but be honest. For example, if you aren’t a fan of mushrooms, you’re not a fan of mushrooms. No biggie. They can’t blame you for trying. Make a joke out of it if it starts to get silent, saying, “Wow my mom would be so surprised I tried this. I never eat her cooking because it never looks this good.” It’ll work every time!
Number three: Don’t stand there silently. You will come off as shy and unapproachable. Although I have not experienced the silence, I have had friends who have had this happen to them and trust me getting into a staring battle with your new boyfriend/girlfriend’s parents is not fun. First impressions mean everything. Why not start the night off with a little joke? For example, Q: How much does a polar bear weigh? (Give them time to answer) A: Enough to break the ice! Hi my name is [Your name here]
That joke will work every time!
Number four: Don’t be too personal unless you feel comfortable and they do to. Letting one rip in front of the parents doesn’t fly well. Especially not on the first little get together!
So, don’t stress out because honestly it’s not a big deal and if you let it freak you out, just remember you are bound to see these people again at some point. You wouldn’t want them to point out that awkward time so make them forget it with an unforgettable second impression. If that doesn’t work, third time’s a charm! Good luck. I mean if you ever see this poor guy/girl again with those impressions!