Does quality time count if it’s with the family in the car to and from soccer practice, school and gymnastics? Feel like you’ve lost your spouse to business conferences and long days at the office? It’s easy to lose touch with your family in such a busy world. Make time for each other by doing fun family-bonding activities that will remind everyone what a vast world it is and how much fun you can have in it with your kin.
Take a Hike
Pack up the car and get out into the great wide open to explore nature and teach your kids about the earth through hiking, fishing and exploring. Finding a campground is easy if you contact your county’s parks and recreation website. You can find upcoming events like coordinated hikes and nature walks with guides who can point out the local flora and fauna along the way. If you only have enough time for a day trip, pack up a picnic and enjoy a nice outdoor lunch. Plus, getting active improves everyone’s quality of life and establishes healthy habits.
Play
There will be no shortage of fun and bonding over a good-intentioned Pictionary competition. Your tween will ditch the negativity once in the heat of battle. Mix up family game night with new and old games. Try more modern games like Scene It, Cranium and Apples to Apples and old classics like Trivia Pursuit, Monopoly and Sorry. Order pizza and serve rootbeer floats to bring out everyone’s inner child and get the kids looking forward to next month’s game night.
Cook
Whether you get the family together to whip up a hearty Italian feast or simply to bake a cake, having family time in the kitchen teaches necessary skills to both boys and girls. With more and more men getting involved in dinner preparations, it’s the perfect bonding night in the room most people gather in — the kitchen. Assign each family member a task (prepare salad, make meatballs, set table) and once it all comes together everyone can bask in the satisfaction and enjoy a delicious home-cooked meal.
When eating dinner together go around the table answering the questions, “What’s the best thing that happened to you today?” And, “What challenged you today?” to open lines of communication.
Laugh
What’s more hilarious than funny baby and silly animal videos? Not much. Sit down with the kids to watch “America’s Funniest Home Videos” or search online for good videos and pictures by visiting sites such as National Geographic Wild’s YouTube channel, BBC One and Ellen’s website. Plan ahead your online map so you won’t find some video surprises your kids aren’t quite ready to see at their age.
To get you started, here are a couple videos that will make everyone in the family think that these are funny pics and videos.
