It’s proven that families that spend a lot of time together are happier, and children have higher self-esteem. Additionally, children have better problem-solving, academic, and communication skills.
Parents know and understand their children better. Also, the children are better behaved, learn essential parenting skills and conflict resolution strategies.
Spending time together as a family is an intentional plan, sometimes not very easy to implement. Here are ways to make your family spend more time together.
Have Meals Together
Aim to have at least one family meal every day and choose a more relaxed time, probably in the evening when everyone is at home. If you have limited time, even having a delicious snack together for a few minutes can significantly improve your relationship.
If some family members get home late, have the main meal, wait for them to arrive, and have dessert together. A delicious option is a vanilla bavarian cream dessert you’ll all enjoy as you share the day’s events.
Prepare a Meal Together
Do you love experimenting with new recipes? Choose times when everyone is free and relaxed to try a new dish making the whole experience fun. Alternatively, you can make it a tradition to cook your favorite family meal together, making it more meaningful. Weekends and holidays are excellent times to try out new recipes together.
Share House Responsibilities
Responsibilities always don’t sound fun but sharing or doing them together can be enjoyable. Cleaning, revamping, moving the furniture, de-cluttering, or cleaning the yard are some of the activities you can do together as you share stories, make fun and enjoy each other’s company.
Help the Children with their School Work
Children become more confident when you encourage them to do their homework. The best way to do this is by taking time off to be with them when doing their homework. You’ll also learn what’s going on in their life, their progress in school, their weaknesses, and strong points.
Children will also find it easier to share their school experiences, any challenges and fears they’re facing. Also, encourage the children to take up hobbies and follow up on their progress. When you can, accompany them to the training or practice events.
Keep the Phones Away
It’s pointless to arrange for family time, but everyone is on their phone or watching their favorite show on TV. Make sure that there are no distractions and you are all participating in the family discussions or tasks. Lead by example by not bringing your phone to the table or answering phone calls unless necessary.
Also, don’t bring office work home unless you have designated times to attend to the tasks when the family doesn’t need your attention. For instance, when it’s family dinner time, don’t answer work-related phone calls or have the meal while checking out work reports.
Create Time for Outdoor Activities
You don’t need a lot of money to enjoy outdoor family time. Play some outdoor games such as football, hide and seek or go for a walk, swimming or an adventure. You can also picnic at a nearby park and prepare delicious snacks to eat as you enjoy each other’s company.
When financially able, plan a family vacation and include activities that everyone will enjoy, creating memories to bring back home.
Plan Charity Events
Planning charity events together will make everyone happy. You can arrange to donate clothes to an orphanage, spend time at a nursing home, or volunteer at a charity. As you encourage acts of kindness, children will learn to be more accommodative, kinder, and less self-centered even as they grow older.
They’ll also have another experience of life they probably wouldn’t have in a typical setup, enabling them to appreciate what they have, such as a loving and caring family.
Exercise Together
What better way to teach children the importance of healthy living than working out together? You’ll have fun trying out different exercise routines such as jogging, swimming, weightlifting, or playing outdoor games.
It’s a double win as you’ll all stay healthy and spend quality time together. Children will also adapt to the lifestyle keeping the routine even when they grow older.
Read a Book Together
If you have young kids, reading a book for them will not only expand their creativity and knowledge but will instill a reading culture. You’ll also bond more and look forward to family reading time. For older children, let everyone read the book for the entire family or discuss the topics each one has read.
As you will realize, there are many fun ways to bring your family together, keeping the bond strong.
