How often do you tell your family that you love them?

Stacey's thread got me thinking about love between family members. I don't know if my family's just weird or what, but we tell either other we love one another constantly. My husband and I say, "I love you" probably a half dozen times every day, and so do my mother (who lives with us, since she is 95 years old and widowed) as I. I've even heard my husband and mother tell each other that they love one another. Every time I talk to one of my kids on the phone, we say, "I love you," before we hang up. I say it less to my sister, but I do say it occasionally. Are we really that unusual?

I think with my family, it is taken as a given and only usually expressed on rare occasions. So I guess I don't say it a lot, but I don't doubt it to be true either. We're not really ones for emotional displays.

Nope, I'm the same way with my dad and son.

I tell my children constantly. Tim and I tell each other frequently, not quite every day. My mom and I tell each other on occassion. My dad and I on rare occassions. In fact, my dad and I have said more "I love you's" as adults than when I was a child. The first time I clearly remember my dad telling me he loved me was when I was 16 and we were both drunk. The second time was when I was 18 and getting on the bus to go to boot camp. There have been many more since, but he's never been a guy big on giving out "I love you's" to my brother and I. Some men are just like that I guess.

It's only like this within my immediate family. My extended family is amazing and they say
"I love you" constantly.

misanthropic_clown said:

I think with my family, it is taken as a given and only usually expressed on rare occasions. So I guess I don't say it a lot, but I don't doubt it to be true either. We're not really ones for emotional displays.

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We're not too much into physical displays of emotion, but verbally, we're just overboard. I guess it stems back to one time when I was a child and I heard a story (in church, I think) about a kid who had been really sassy with his mom when he left for school one day. As he approached home after school that afternoon, he saw an ambulance out in front of his house. His mom had died suddenly and he had to live with the idea that the last thing he said to her was mean. That's probably not a good reason to tell people you love them, but it really did have an impact on me. I just don't ever want to be in that position.

I don't even have a family. I was always astonished as a child at other families that seemed to all get along with each other. I never knew that.

Katzpur said:

We're not too much into physical displays of emotion, but verbally, we're just overboard.

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See, now Tim and I will tell each other somewhat frequently, and it's mostly me saying it and him saying it back, BUT we ARE big on the physical displays. There's pretty constant hugging, kissing, flirting, and what my mom calls "grabass" . We kiss goodnight, goodbye, and "just cuz". And we're always hugging each other and the kids. I guess we're just "touchy-feely" people that way.

With my father and my late mother, rarely if at all. They're not emotionally demonstrative. With my chosen family of friends and my girlfriend? On a pretty regular basis. Daily with my girlfriend, at least a couple of times a week with the others.

I tell my wife I love her each and every day. I find an appropriate time about once a week with the kids. I call my dad once a week and always tell him I love him at the end of the call. You cannot say, "I love you" too many times IMHO.

Katzpur said:

Are we really that unusual?

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Nope. We say it back and forth around here all the time (daily) too. All of my kids, both parents, some friends and the occasional acquaintance.

It's not unusual in my immediate family. I always say "I love you" to them.

I tell my family members that I love them whenever I can because I never know what is going to happen in the future and I want them to know how much they mean to me.


FBI

I tell my mom and sisters and Baggins that I love them all the time. I tell my grandma that I love her, but only because she says she loves me and I don't want to be rude. I think we both know that neither of us means it though. And then I cannot remember my dad or myself ever telling the other that we loved them.

Hey Kathryn,

Simple question, simple answer - Every time I see them .

ChrisP said:

Hey Kathryn,

Simple question, simple answer - Every time I see them .

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That's cool, Chris. Really. :yes:

I say it a lot..

More now that Im older.

But I like to write it too..Like in my kids lunch box..Just a note that says.."I love you have a great day"..."Mommy"..

I do think you can say it too much though.Like you should give the same sentiment but with different words..Or other words of "affirmation"..Which if you think about it ..is what the words "I love you " is saying..

Like "why" do you love me..

Does that make sense?

Love(tee hee)

Dallas

Here is a story..about really how "simple" but "complicated" I am..My husband could say those 3 words "I love you" every single day..every time he saw me..it didnt "mean" anything sometimes..like I wondered "why"...

One of my sweetest memories I'll never forget..We were at my little sisters house for 4th of July..she lived a little further out (more country)..There was this sound and a buzzing little critter that was as big as a bird(it seemed at the time) that appeared flying around our heads..My mother and sisters ..(and all the girls) went running and screaming..EEK !!!! What is that thing...Except for me...I was curious..(what da heck is dat?)

It landed on the screen door..I went to it..and Andy(my husband ) followed me..He said "thats a locust"..(please no religious implications of curses here)..I had never seen one..It was pretty..I picked it up in my hand..It buzzed so hard my whole hand was vibrating..I said look at it!!!!

My husband was laughing and he just blurted out!! Thats one of the reasons I love you so much..Your not like all the other girls..your not afraid to pick up a bug!!!

The previous 3,000 times he just said I "love you" could have been completely skipped.It was that one...that really told me something.

Love

Dallas

My wife and I say "I love you" several times a day. Besides that, I don't really say it to any other members of my family. Never really have - wasn't that kind of household.

almost never say i love you to my family because i feel its wrong to lie about that,
i appriciate there uniek personality after all these years but i don't love them