Photo by KOMUnews via Flickr Creative Commons.
It’s fair to say that my family has faced it’s share of stress lately. We have a lot going on, and we’re struggling to keep things as normal as possible for the children’s sake. So, Saturday evening we sat down with our 2 year old while his sister was visiting her grandparents. He immediately looked to me and told me that he wanted to play with his sister. “Emma’s at Grammy’s,” I told him, “Would you like Mommy and Daddy to play with you?” He looked at me with those big puppy dog eyes (which he was already struggling to keep open), and said, “Dat make me so happy!” Our hearts melted. Tears filled my husbands eyes, and of course, I cried like a baby. We dried up our tears, and the three of us read books and pushed trains on the couch. Within 30 minutes he was sound asleep, dreaming of his awesome night with Mommy and Daddy!
We as parents often struggle so hard to make our children happy that we forget just how easy it is! My guess is that at least 95% of us would look back to our childhoods and agree that our memories are not centered around material things, but the time we spent with family and friends. I’ve been thinking over the last couple of days of ways that I can offer my children more opportunities for these lasting memories. I’ve come up with a few.
- Visit a park for a walk or a picnic…leave the phones and travel video games at home or in the car!!!
- Family game night…without the tv! You’ll find you actually have a lot to talk about.
- Host a barbecue or informal dinner with another family or two. Hang out outside and allow yourself to breathe in the fresh air. Set up some outdoor games and include the kids.
- Cook a family dinner together. Again, leave the television off. However, we have fun dancing to loud music when we cook!
There are many ways to “reconnect” as a family. Remember what it’s all about. Life is too short. Take the time to appreciate the little things! Start now…not everyone will have a smart two year old to remind them!
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