How To Get A Mexican Family To Like You

So you’re dating a Mexican woman and things have gone pretty well so far. They’ve gone so well, in fact, that you’re about to meet her family. Here’s the thing, you don‘t actually know how to get a Mexican family to like you.

Now you’re probably thinking to yourself that you can wing it and hope for the best. You couldn’t be more wrong. Winging it is not going to help you. Sure, it’d help to be loose and relaxed. But it would also help to have a plan of action ready for when you actually meet them.

Get pious

God, glory, and gold. Those three words are a historical shorthand for the motivations behind the European explorers who colonized territories outside of Europe and Spain was no different. It acquired territory and spread its religion throughout that territory.

And they were pretty effective at it.

So much so that Latin America, Mexico included, is predominantly Catholic.

And they take their religion very seriously. If you want to get a Mexican family to like you, you need to present yourself as a pious man, preferably a Catholic one, but piety, in general, is appreciated.

If you’re a non-believer, do not try to debate anyone. That’s going to make you come across as belligerent and isn’t going to endear you to her family. Belligerence will win you zero brownie points.

Get the dad to like you

You know the story; girl meets boy, girl takes the boy home to meet her family, and girl’s dad takes an immediate dislike to the boy for deigning to date his little girl. It’s something of a cliché. But, cliché as it may be, it’s also very much a reality that you’ll have to contend with. There’s a better than zero chance that her dad will not think that you’re good enough to date his little girl.

If you want to win over a Mexican family, you need to get the dad to like you. Mexico is pretty patriarchal, so the father is the head of the family. You win him over, your work is basically done.

But in order to win him over, you’re going to need to show him that you’re good enough to date his daughter. Prove that your feelings are real and that you’re not just stringing his little girl along and that you actually want to be with her for the right reasons.

Win the mom over

While the father is the head of the family, his wife’s opinion is still going to hold a lot of weight, so you’re going to have to win your girl’s mom over. You can do this by complimenting her. Mention that you see where your girlfriend gets her good looks from. Or maybe you can feign confusion, pretend that you think she looks more like your girlfriend’s sister than her mother.

Ply her mom with compliments. If you ingratiate yourself to her, she’ll convince her husband to give you a shot. You get her to like you, her husband won’t be far behind.

Also, remember the term besos. It’s a Spanish word that translates to kisses. It’s also the proper way to greet your girlfriend’s mom if you want to win her over and the proper way to greet her mom is with besos. Give her mom a peck on the cheek and you’ll have achieved step one of trying to win her over.

Another thing you need to remember is to eat everything. Don’t leave behind a morsel. Clean your plate and accept seconds when offered. A lot of Latina moms take pride in their cooking, so stroke their ego should the opportunity arise.

Also, offer to clean up at the end of the meal. You may not actually have to clean up, but just the act of offering will go a long way towards making her mom, and the rest of the family, like you. Actually, just go ahead and offer to help everyone with everything. They might decline, which means that you get brownie points for being helpful without having to lift so much as a finger.

But do remember to clean up after yourself. You’re a guest, so remember to be a good one.

Speak some Spanish

If you don’t already know some Spanish, then you best start learning some. Knowing the family’s native language is a great way to ingratiate yourself to them. Showing that you’re willing to go to such lengths to connect with them might make them want to reciprocate. If it does, then you’re in a good position to win over her family.

Pay special attention to elders

Multi-generational households are not uncommon in Mexico. So when you do meet your girlfriend’s family, you may also meet her grandparents. They may not be the absolute head of the family, but they will still be listened to and they will still be very valued members of the family.

The long kiss goodnight

Another thing you need to learn in order to get along with a Latino family is how to say goodbye at the end of the night. You might be used to saying good night and that’s that. But with Latino families, it’s a little more drawn out than that. You’re probably going to spend up to an hour saying goodbye at the end of the night because everyone will be so busy catching up with each other.

So learning how to say goodbye and goodnight with Latino families isn’t just about learning Spanish. It’s about learning how to draw out saying good night.

Family is an important part of a lot of societies. Family is generally where people first learn social skills and the bonds of blood are sometimes enough to supersede everything else. It can also supersede romantic feelings, no matter how strong those feelings might be.

So make sure that those familial bonds work against you. Win her family over and they won’t get in the way of your relationship. It may not be all smooth sailing, but it’d be one less thing to worry about.