6 Things NBC’s Parenthood Taught Me About Being An Actual Parent

The series finale of NBC’s Parenthood is tonight and I am already crying. For those of you who aren’t obsessed, Parenthood is a drama series that chronicles the lives of the Braverman family, which consists of Mr. and Mrs. Braverman, their 4 adult children, their spouses/significant others, and all of their kids, so there are plenty of story lines to follow and never a dull moment. I started watching it on Netflix when my first was a newborn during those seemingly endless days of feedings and I’ve been hooked on it ever since. My husband watches it too. Since it’s on towards the end of the week, we usually order takeout and make it a mini-date night. We call it our Weekly Cry, and this week – the final week – will be our biggest cry of all.

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One of my favorite things about Parenthood is how absolutely relatable it is. My family doesn’t look exactly like the Bravermans, but we still face a lot of the similar struggles and every week my husband and I end up pausing the show to have a conversation about something that happened that reminded us of what’s going on in our lives, our parenting style, how we interact with our own parents as adult children, or how we hope we’ll react to things that happen in the future. Here are 6 things Parenthood taught me about being an actual parent:

1. Every family has drama…and that’s okay.

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Shit happens. Families fight. People struggle. Getting a big group of people with diverse thoughts, opinions, and feelings on the same page is hard work. Even the beautiful, perfect television families have a hard time with it.

2. Kids are seriously hard.

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Your kids will never stop challenging you. Ever. There will always be another obstacle, another lesson, another uphill battle. It doesn’t matter, though, because they’re your kids and you will go through hell for them.

3. Siblings are the best people you will ever know.

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Who doesn’t love a giant Braverman dinner party? Or a dance party after something really dramatic happens? Or, really just anytime this family gets together. I mean, these folks have it down. I want to be a Braverman kid.

4. Marriage is a lifelong learning experience.

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If you think you and your partner will ever stop learning about each other, screwing up, fighting for each other, growing, or changing, think again. Every stage of life presents it’s own challenges, even in the golden years.

5. You have to let your family be who they are.

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The Braverman kids are a diverse bunch. Their personalities and lifestyles cover a wide spectrum, but everyone works really hard to meet each other where they are. They don’t try to force each other into molds or judge each other too harshly when someone makes a mistake. I didn’t have that growing up, so it was nice to see, even if it was just a fictional family.

6. No matter what, it’s all going to be okay.

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As long as you hold tight to the things that matter, you can get through anything. Hard things. Like when your favorite television show ends. Goodbye, Bravermans! I love you.

(Image via Twitter)

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