Have you ever been in the nerve-wracking situation of meeting your girlfriend's parents for the first time? Afraid of what impression you will make? While parents' expectations of their daughter's significant other can vary widely from household to household and culture to culture, following these instructions will at least show a good faith effort on your part and increase your chances of being invited back for baked ziti dinner night.
Steps
- Find out as much as you can about the parents from your partner. What do they do for a living? Do you have any common interests? Have they been on holiday recently? Are there any subjects which are off limits? This gives you a heads up on conversation topics - and what to avoid.
- Anticipate the most difficult questions. You know what they are--about your future (i.e. career, financial stability), your commitment to their daughter (i.e. marriage), and your background (e.g. religion, education). Pretend that her parents already know that you just lost your job, that you can't afford an engagement ring or a house and probably won't be able to for several years, that you got arrested that one night, or whatever else you dread them asking about. Develop the most responsible, slick answer you can think of in advance. See Warnings below.