Believe It or Not: 51 Percent of Couples Love Their In-Laws
iStockphoto.com/SolStock
At some point in the history of weddings and marriage, the concept of in-laws took on a negative connotation. Blame it on movies that dramatize family relationships or the fact that uniting two families is bound to come with a few legitimate challenges, but we’ve been made to believe that it’s rare for a person to have a good relationship with their in-laws—and that’s simply not the case.
The wedding registry site Zola recently spoke to 650 engaged and just-married couples and found that 51 percent of them (54 percent of engaged couples and 48 percent of newly married ones) love their in-laws just as much as their own parents. The question was included in a survey about the holiday season and how couples split their time between each of their families. Here’s what else they found:
- 88 percent of couples spent the holidays together before marriage; of these couples, 70 percent celebrated together within the first year of a relationship and 17 percent within the first two months of dating.
- 83 percent of couples split the holidays 50/50 between their family and their S.O.’s family.
- 60 percent alternate by holiday, spending Thanksgiving with one side and Christmas/Hanukkah with the other side.
- 15 percent alternate by year and spend the whole holiday season with one side of the family.
- 13 percent of couples plan to host the holidays for both sides of the family.
- Only 4 percent of all couples said they need to have an emergency exit strategy in place should their in-laws drive them crazy.
Have you and your S.O. discussed how you’re going to spend the holidays this year?
Getting married? Start and end your wedding planning journey with Philadelphia Weddings' guide to the best wedding vendors in the city.
