A home is more than just a house. This may seem like a simple saying, but there is some serious depth to it. A home is essentially a family and all of the safety, comfort, strength and sense of self that comes from that family. A sense of home provides so many memories and learning experiences for both children and parents within the family. In fact, a family unit truly is the first and most crucial impact on every human being’s life. People respond to and build the building blocks of their lives upon familial quirks and routines subconsciously for their entire lives. This is why home and family are both extremely important parts of life for anyone. If you have been wanting to spend more time with your family and do fun and creative activities together, then here are some fun ideas to bring everyone together.
Have a Pool Day
In the summer or early spring, most community pools open up. You can celebrate the new season by packing a lunch, getting everyone’s swimsuits together, making sure everyone is wearing sunscreen and loading up on a weekend to go visit the pool together. Your kids can spend time with you and they can make new neighborhood friends, all while getting Vitamin D from the sun and absolutely priceless memories of summer fun. If you do not have a community pool and have been thinking about putting a pool in in your backyard, this would be a great time to do it. You can even bring your kids along for the journey and look into inground pool cost together, talk to the workers and have them show your kids the complicated but cool process that goes into building a pool!
Take a Hike Together
Being in nature can be healing. If you and your family are going through a stressful time, there is no better medicine than to put on some hiking shoes, grab some water and snacks and head out to a local hiking trail together. You can all walk through the woods together and take some deep, clear breaths as you chat about everything and nothing. Hiking is a great way to casually spend time together, spend time in nature and get to know each other even better.
Have a Game Night
Game nights are a great way to forge some family bonds in the competitive fire of board game time. If you don’t have some board games at home, you can find some at a local store for pretty fair prices. These board games are truly an investment because if your family enjoys board game night, then you can make it a weekly tradition! You can even place little bets on who wins at which game, such as relieving the winner of their weekly chores or letting them pick dinner that night.
Camp in Your Backyard
This activity, of course, involves a backyard. If you live in a place where you do not have a backyard, then you can find your nearest campground and carry out this activity there. If you do have a backyard, this activity is a little but easier because you can throw a campout together with whatever you have. Wait for a clear and temperate night, grab some blankets, some pillows and whatever else you need to make a sleeping pad for the family. You can all stay up a little late with flashlights, or even build a small campfire if this is allowed in your neighborhood telling campfire stories, making s’mores and doing other fun camp-style activities!
Learn a New Skill Together
Have you ever used a compass? Maybe you have always wanted to know how to knit a sweater, or build a bird house. This means that you and your kids can learn a new useful and fun skill together! Doing something that requires an outcome can also make this fun activity last months, or even years. You can all learn how to knit together and practice a few times a week, then promise to make each other sweaters for Christmas. Or, you can all learn how to navigate using a compass and then take a hike and try to test your skills. You can build birdhouses and then journal about the birds that visit each of your houses and learn together about the scientific names of each animal.
Family time is crucial to a developing child, and even to fully grown parents! Spending time together doing things that are fun and allow everyone involved to grow as an individual while also creating bonds as a family unit will forge a stronger sense of identity and comfort for everyone involved. Try doing one, any or even all of these fun activities with your family and see just how much stronger your family’s bond becomes.
