Many parents are concerned about how much time their families spend on computers and mobile devices. The flip side of that is that many of those games and activities can be a great way to share time with your kids. “Promising your personal time at least one day out of the week will help members in your family gain a sense of self worth. Children that have guardians that take the time with them, begin to assign value to their family time. Children that do not have a sense of family values are more likely to be influenced by friends that do not necessarily have their best interests at heart,” reports Andrea Miranda from CBS Houston. And along with technology, crafting and cooking have also become popular when it comes to family bonding, which means that the concept of ‘family time’ has never been more creative and fun.
Here are 10 ways to have fun as a family NOW.
1. Go on a Geocaching Treasure Hunt
Geocaching is a real-world, outdoor treasure-hunting game that uses GPS-enabled devices. Players navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates and then attempt to find the geocache (container) hidden at that location. Visit the Geocaching site for details and rules about how the game is played.
2. Make a Scrapbook
The advent of Smartphones and photo sharing and printing apps makes great-looking scrapbooks easy and fun to do. Simply take photos—of nature, still lives and one another—print them out and make an album or scrapbook. Get creative: you can also include notes, poems, stories, stickers and any other decorations that will make the book uniquely yours.
3. Co-Chef!
Yes you can have too many cooks in the kitchen, and cooking is a wonderful way to bond and at once be productive. Why not spend a rainy afternoon making a Chocolate-Banana Refrigerator Cake? The rewards are sweet, no matter how you slice it.
4. Wii are Family!
Instead of sitting around the TV, why not introduce a weekly Wii night for the family, where members can take turns leading by choosing which game to play. Wii’s intuitive gaming is enhanced by your own body’s movements and is designed to get the entire family up and off the couch for truly memorable gaming sessions.
5. Have a Backyard Staycation
The simple act of creating a mini campsite out in the backyard will thrill your kids, and might even help to budge parents from the rhythm of their daily monotony. Tell ghost stories, cozy up in sleeping bags, and of course, don’t forget to make some Classic S’Mores.
Read Related: Indoor Family Fun That’s Really Fun!
6. Be Stars
Who says you have to be a Hollywood celebrity to get airtime? Get your producer hat on and dare to make a family movie or video, which you can later post to YouTube. You never know, right?
7. Make it a Movie Night
Rally the gang and host a double-feature movie night right in your living room. Do whatever you can to make the kids feel like they’re “at the movies,” by turning down the lights, making a bowl of popcorn and a batch of Speedy Trail Mix to munch on.
8. Space Out
Nothing is more empowering than learning and knowledge, so consider joining the NASA Kids’ Club and learn about space together.
9. Be Fashion Forward
Tap into your inner fashionistas by designing t-shirts with iron-on transfer paper or fabric paint. These are great gift ideas, so think about birthdays or events coming up where you don’t want to show up empty-handed.
10. Learn a Language Together
By accomplishing something as rewarding as learning a language together, you not only get the benefits of knowing more than one language, but you also give yourself a wonderful reason to visit one of the places where said language is spoken. Double plus!
Editor’s Note: This post is brought to you by HoneyMaid, and their efforts to showcase the many facets of modern American family life.
