Family time is vital, though. A happy family life can help individuals overcome all kinds of adversity, and the quality of your family relationships impacts your overall happiness. It’s not that hard to find just a little time, on a regular basis, to do these eight things.
Getting the whole family together to simply talk to each other doesn’t sound like a huge challenge, but it can be. Devices are on. The TV is on. Some teenagers text a parent in the kitchen from their bedroom, rather than going down for a real life chat. People don’t talk as much as they used to.
Find time to sit down and talk as a family. You can call it a family meeting, or you can call it pizza night. It doesn’t matter, as long as you’re all there.
Maybe we don’t talk as much as we used to because we don’t eat together as much as we used to, but there’s evidence that family dinner is linked to several positive outcomes for your children.
Work around everyone’s schedule as often as you can, so the whole family sits down to eat together.
The more time you carve out together as a family, the more funny memories and in-jokes you create. Even the things that don’t seem at all funny at the time may seem hilarious in a few months or years.
Create the opportunity to have fun together as a family: All of you. It’s tough if you have a lot of kids with a wide age range, but your toddler can make your teen laugh, and vice versa. Family time should be fun time.
I’m a homeschooling mom, so of course I’m a fan of learning together. But a learning experience doesn’t have to be formal. Have fun going to a child-friendly museum or a science center. Learn to grow vegetables, or build a tree house together. Schedule a regular family bible study or read-aloud session, or watch a documentary that appeals to the whole family.
Is there a game or sport the whole family loves to play together? Whether it’s a board game, a physical activity or a simple water balloon fight on a summer evening, play is bonding and beneficial for your family relationships, at any age.
