Children learn how to form their future relationships that they will have in life by how they observe the relationships around them when they are young.  If they are able to see what a healthy relationship is from a young age then they will likely imitate the behaviors that they learn as a small child.

If children are given a negative example of how to treat a partner and are surrounded by unhealthy patterns then this does nothing but set them up for potentially damaging future relationships.  It’s important to try to be the best example that you can be with your partner.  Here are some of the best ways to display a healthy marriage for your children.

Don’t Argue Publicly

You should save your arguments with your partner for behind closed doors.  You may be tempted to argue over appliances breaking down, or whether one of your forgot to take the garbage out, but these sort of petty arguments should be avoided.

Try to save any sort of disputes for adult time.  Your children don’t have to be given the impression that conflicts don’t arise, as this isn’t realistic, however, the bickering should be kept to a minimum.  Try to walk into another room or wait until the children are somewhere else.

Display Affection

One common misconception that parents have is that they shouldn’t display affection in front of their children out of fear that it is somehow inappropriate.  However, this couldn’t be further from the truth.  Displays of affection such as cuddling, kisses or hugging are healthy examples of affection between a couple and will show your children what two partners do who love each other.

In addition to showing affection to each other, feel free to also hug your children and show them that you love them as well through physical affection like cuddles and kisses.

Always Play On The Same Team

Sometimes you may disagree with the parenting decisions of your partner and may want to veto a decision that they make.  However, it is beneficial to avoid disagreeing with your partner in front of the kids.  This shows that you and your spouse aren’t on the same team and may encourage the children trying to play both sides.

When a child senses that you and your partner aren’t on the same team then this creates a divide in their foundation.  Always try to function as an entity together rather than falling into patterns like good cop bad cop. This will pay off in the long run and show them that a marriage is all about sticking together.  Supporting each other and each other’s decisions is important for a healthy relationship, even though you may not always agree you should be supportive and consider their point of view.