Family is important, but often it is difficult to spend as much time with them as you want. Days are busy, and most adults have numerous responsibilities, including stressful jobs. These factors make it difficult to keep up with all the family nuances and facets. However, the thing is, even if you are busy, as long as you can maximize the effectiveness of the time that you do have, you will be able to keep an eye on family’s mental and emotional health as well as their physical health. To help you find ways to do this, here are a few tips.
Daily heart to hearts
Spend a little time each day emotionally connecting with your children (and spouse, if you have one). One of the best ways to do this with the kids is at their bedtime.
As you are tucking them away at night, sit with them individually and ask them how they are. Really listen to the answers, ask them about the school, and any other questions you see as pertinent. If you do this every day, you are far more likely to notice any emotional changes and try and work out the issue before it becomes a significant issue.
If your child makes you promise to do or not do something, do your best to keep your promises, building trust and stability in your relationship. If you can stay emotionally connected with your children, this is one of the single most important things you can do.
Play games
Playing games and being silly is something that every parent ought to do more of with the little ones. Show your children and your partner how to have some fun (or more of it!).
Have a giggle with the kids, play with their toys, get them something new like a LOL Surprise doll, and play make-believe. The more creative3 you can be, the more laughs you can have the better your relationship can be.
You will bond more too. It is the small things that count, and playtime is an essential part of that.
Cook and eat together
If you want to instill positive eating habits in your children, cooking together and having sit-down meals is a must. First, have some fun looking up recipes and teaching them about healthy foods.
When you are in the supermarket, allow them to choose a few vegetables and go home and find some recipes that include them. This is a great way to learn more about vegetables and how to cook. You and your partner, if you have one, will likely learn a thing or two, as well!
When it comes to the meals, ensure that everyone puts down their smartphones and you sit together, all present. Maybe it is an idea to have some conversation topics ready to maximize time.
If you have a meal together every day, this can act as an anchor for the family, creating a routine together. It is a way of strengthening bonds and ensuring that everyone is developing healthy eating habits too.
Top photo: Toddler and mother spend quality time together. Image by Renáta Adrienn Uri from Pixabay
Hi Christy, my family always have dinner together with no cell phones. I published the Sir Chocolate books to encourage parents to bake and cook with their children.
Your book series has a wonderful family focus, Robbie!
Thank you, that is what we aim for 💖
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I love this post Christy! Dinnertime was always that talk time for our family. It was amazing to us how many of our kids’ friends had never eaten dinner at a table with the whole family. One really wonders!
Dinnertime conversations are the best! Good food, good talks 🤗