Sometimes, indoor family time just works. The stars align and the powers that be decide that everyone is going to have a nice few hours together, perhaps playing games or watching a movie. At other times, however, family time can descend upon an unsuspecting household and cause untold misery and gloom. Before you know it, tempers and emotions begin to flare up through feelings of boredom and the perception of being in each other’s space. You need options. You need plans to fall back on in the event of finding your family at a loose end.
For Younger Children – Arts and Digital Crafts is Always a Winner
Children can’t get enough of technology. And, being that as a species we aren’t likely ever to colonise Mars without the technological innovations that will surely be brought about by humanity’s youth team, you may as well give in to the fact that tech is the future, and that teaching children how to use it instead of making them climb a tree isn’t always a bad way to spend a Sunday.
Top up your ink and let them print pictures (see ink cheap here). Fire up children’s YouTube and teach them how to search for videos that interest them – videos on how to make arts and crafts or bake cookies, for example, will always go down a storm. Once the child learns how to find out anything they want to know from the internet, you will have sown the seeds of self-learning.
For Older Children – Hobbies are the Best Route
Sharing a hobby with older children is just as much fun for the adults as it is for the children. Board games soon lose their appeal and playing quizzes together can quickly run out of steam, but a hobby that you can build on means that no two times will ever be the same. Learn to play music together. Learn a martial art together. Play a sport together. Make a list of meals you’d like to try and cook them together. You could embark on a series of home improvements or gardening. You could even start a social media channel together – this will require some ground work to decide a theme and get to grips with video or photo editing, but it’s all good fun and allows you to bond while seeing results from the time spent (you don’t get that from a game of Scrabble).
Ultimately, family time shouldn’t be forced. It only works when everyone is excited to be on board. Finding that exciting thing to share can take a few attempts, but when you find it, you will open the door to a whole new set of experiences together.
This is a collaborative post.