What Children Want
Ideas that will help you incorporate quality time with your children in your daily routine:
1. Give them a task to do when you are working in the kitchen. If you are cooking, have them help by handing you the items you need. Children love to do the mixing and stiring. Small children can help by allowing them to give you pre-measured ingredients to add to the mixing bowl. They can also be "in charge" of holding the mixing spoons and handing the proper spoons, utensils or ingrediants to you. Hint: Make sure you have a sturdy step stool so that they can safely reach the counter. Fill the sink with warm soapy water and let them wash the unbreakable dishes or have them help load the dishwasher. If you are cleaning up, let them hold the dust pan while sweeping. If your children cannot help, have them sit at the table or counter and draw, color or listen to music while you are working. Remember to interact with them by showing them what you are doing while complimenting their accomplishments.
2. When working in the yard, let your child help. If they are too little or cannot do the job at hand, let them play in a sandbox or wading pool while you are close by. Children love the attention they receive when you simply watch and interact in their play.
3. Eat meals together at the table! There is little interaction when meals are eaten in front of the television. Children need to learn to communicate and talk about their day and share their feelings.
4. Have a bedtime routine. Begin bedtime 1/2 hour before lights out. Use the time to share the favorite part of their day. Read a story together and spend a few minutes talking about things that may be causing anxiety, ie: new school, tests, family changes, moving, new friends, etc. Spend a few minutes thanking God for their day and praying for important people in their lives as well as safety and peaceful rest.
5. Have a weekly devotion time with as many members of your family you can get together. Talk about feelings and discuss issues your family is having. Pray and ask God for His help and guidance.
6. Give your children age-appropriate responsiblity and offer help if needed. Interact with your children to make sure they follow through with the task you have given them. This should not be a chore that causes stress and continual confrontation. The purpose is to teach and spend time together while doing routine chores around your home.
a) Let your children be in charge of the recycling. Talk about the environment and let them collect the trash throughout the house on trash day.
b) Taking care of a pet teaches responsibility. If your child is given this responsiblity make sure they follow through with the feeding and caring for your pet. You may need to remind them to feed or give the pet water, but make sure they are the one who does it.
c) Help your children develop a daily routine of picking up their room. Whether or not you choose to help, be involved in the direction and praise a job well done.
7. You may choose to have a special family night. This could be as simple as "Pizza Monday," "Friday Game Night,"or "Sundae Sunday." Work your weekly schedule around incorportating quality time for your family in your weekly routine.
8. Involve your children in the weekly grocery shopping or trip to the department store. It may be easier to get a sitter or go to the store at night after the kids are asleep, but it is possible to make a family learning experience out of each trip. Let your children write the grocery list. Talk to them about preparing balanced meals and help them understand the value of a dollar.
9. Homework! This may be challenging for many parents, however this is an important area to share time with your children. Show interest in what is happening at school and what they are learning. If you do not have school age children, choose a time during the day where you could color a picture or do a craft.
10. Exercise. Make family fitness a priority and do fun activities together. Take a nature walk with your kids. Go to the park, walk the dog, bike, or roller skate. There are many inexpensive fitness dvds that could prove to be fun and challenging.
11. Try to schedule a special activity monthly. Watch the community paper for special events that are inexpensive such as community fairs, library movie night, vacation Bible schools, special church events, Sunday schools, etc.
The most important word to remember is TOGETHER! Take the TOGETHER TEST. For one week, mark the calendar with the number of hours your family is together in each day. Be intentional about increasing the time you spend together with your children. It is as simple as bringing them into the same room you are in while doing daily activities.
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