Family. These are the people who love us the most. They are also the people who drive us crazy. Spouses, children, parents, cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and everyone else in the family should be special to us, though. Here are 15 quotes about families only parents will get.

15 Quotes About Families That Only Parents Will Understand

1. “We are a noisy and blessed little family” ~Nancy E. Turner

Looking at your family, you probably see a lot of different personalities and situations in front of you. It can seem so complicated. However, it’s best to look at your family in more simple terms. You may be a little noisy and messy at times. However, ultimately, you and everyone else in your family is blessed to have each other.

2. “All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” ~Leo Tolstoy

Quotes about families tend to remind us that not all families are perfect and happy. When you look at happy families, they seem so similar. Everyone is smiling and doting on each other. There’s support when necessary. All in all, it’s something that can be made with a cookie-cutter. Most of these cookie-cutter images probably aren’t the actual story.

People in “unhappy” families are unique. People have different problems and struggles. The characters aren’t perfect. These unhappy moments in a family can be what makes a person (and the family as a whole) special.

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3. “There is no doubt that it is around the family and the home that all the greatest virtues, the most dominating virtues of human, are created, strengthened and maintained.” ~ Winston S. Churchill

People learn virtues in the home. It starts at a young age when parents encourage children to be polite, brave, hardworking, and ambitious. Some people may learn virtues by watching parents who show them what not to do. Whatever the case, we develop from the things we learned and saw at home in our younger years.

4. “One day, you will do things for me that you hate. That is what it means to be family.” ~ Jonathan Safran Foer

You are supposed to do things for your family. You may need to cook dinner for them, help them with homework, visit them in the nursing home, or attend a ballet recital. It doesn’t matter if you hate ballet or hate math, you do these things for your family despite the fact you don’t necessarily want to do it. Sure, you could be doing something you enjoy doing. However, you would miss out on time with your family members. Because you get to spend time with your family, these tasks become much more tolerable.

5. “The real loneliness is living among all these kind people who only ask one to pretend!” ~ Edith Wharton

The world may ask you to be someone or something that you aren’t. Your family is unit the group of people who know who you really are. Even if your family doesn’t necessarily approve, they know who you are. You can take the mask you wear in the world off- at least temporarily.

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6. “When everything goes to hell, the people who stand by you without flinching — they are your family.” ~ Jim Butcher

Everyone goes through difficult times in life. When this happens, many of us will lean on others to help get us through. Most of us will turn to people in our family during these hard times. However, a family doesn’t only refer to blood. You may have a family who isn’t a blood relative. The people who help you when you need it are also family to you.

7. “We share our craziness, our neuroses, our little bit of screwed-up-ness that comes from our family. We share it. And it feels like love.” ~ Patrick Ness

Quotes about families remind us that love and family aren’t necessarily about showing the best parts of ourselves. It’s about the parts of us that aren’t always so lovable. These are the parts of ourselves that we don’t show everybody. Being able to show our worst selves and still be loved, that’s family.

8. “The way you help heal the world is you start with your own family.” ~ Mother Teresa

Quotes about families generally talk about the people in the family. However, Mother Teresa reminds us that there is more out there in the world. Some people have a mission to change the world for the better. If anyone expects to change the world for the better, they need to start in their own homes by being kind to the people in their lives. Visit family members and help them first. This will teach a person how to help other people in the world when the opportunity arises.

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9. “Families break up when they get hints you don’t intend and miss hints that you do.” ~ Robert Frost

Communication is extremely important in a family. People sometimes make assumptions or read others wrong. Don’t rely on hints. Take the time to communicate properly to avoid problems in the family. When there is a miscommunication, it’s a good idea to clear things up immediately instead of letting things fester.

10. “After a good dinner, one can forgive anybody, even one’s own relations.” ~ Oscar Wilde

Regardless of your family’s cultural background, everyone knows that food is a big part of family gatherings and family in general. People bond by cooking in the kitchen. Cultural traditions are passed on as well as special family recipes. When the food is on the table and everyone is laughing, the bad moments and arguments tend to fall to the side.

11. “You are born into your family, and your family is born into you. No returns. No exchanges.” ~ Elizabeth Berg

You can’t pick your family. You can’t pick the people who gave birth to you or the people you conceive. However, you can pick how you handle your family. You can pick to love them and forgive them for their mistakes just like others have done the same for you. While you can’t choose your family, you sure can choose to be happy and feel blessed with the family you have.

12. “Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city.” ~ George Burns

Let’s face it- family can be overbearing and frustrating at times. You don’t necessarily want to see them every single day. Many quotes about families are humorous, but there’s always a bit of truth to jokes, isn’t there? We all love our families dearly, but that doesn’t mean we want them to live next door. Part of being a loving family is allowing family members to explore the world on their own. Just make sure everyone comes together when it is necessary.

13. “The family exists for many reasons, but its most basic function may be to draw together after a member dies.” ~ Stephen King

Inevitably, a family member will eventually die. While tragic, this can actually bring a family closer together. Only other members of the family can fully understand who that person was and just how important the loved one was to you. They are the ones who will be able to offer the best support. You can all come together to celebrate their life and tell stories about times when they were alive. When the emotions do hit, you will be able to lean on each other.

14. “If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance.” ~ George Bernard Shaw

Every family has secrets and embarrassing history. It’s important to realize that this is true of absolutely every single family. You shouldn’t worry about these skeletons in the family closet. In fact, it could be best to be upfront and lighthearted about all of those skeletons. Set a plate for the skeletons at the dinner table and take control. When you take control over these things, you will be surprised to learn just how unimportant those skeletons really are. Just make sure you don’t insult or offend anyone while dealing with the skeletons before you turn into one of those skeletons, too.

15. “I know family comes first, but shouldn’t that mean after breakfast?” ~ Jeff Lindsay

We need to wake up every day and take care of our families. However, we need to take care of ourselves first. It’s okay to wake up and eat breakfast or have a cup of coffee before tending to everyone else. Enjoy this little moment of solace before the noise starts filling up your home and your head. These couple of moments may be your only peace of the day if you have children.

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Final Thoughts on Enjoying Quotes About Families

These quotes about family show us that, while family can be annoying at times, we should all consider ourselves lucky to have the family we have. Feel blessed to have parents who are still alive and children. Some people aren’t lucky enough to have a family.