There are moments when the hustle and bustle of life gets so overwhelming that losing track of the days and time can happen all too easily. If you have suddenly realized that your last family day was too long ago, what are some fun family-friendly activities to recharge your closeness with your partner and kids?
Get Away For the Weekend
Sometimes it’s as easy as packing up the car, loading equipment into your car and taking off for a long weekend. These kinds of trips are nice because they are a mini-vacation; you get away but not too far and spend a lot less money than a traditional vacation. Take a Friday off work, pull the kids out of school for the day and hit the road.
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Be tourists in your city. Book a hotel downtown and do all the things that you have never done even as a resident of the area. Eat at locally-famous restaurants, visit tourist spots and take pictures in front of landmarks.
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Do you have mountains or an ocean nearby? Pick a national park and spend the weekend camping. Whether camping or glamping is more your thing, there’s no wrong way to enjoy your time together. Kids love the novelty of spending time in the woods and it’s nice to unplug and be away for even a day or two.
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When was the last time you and the family spent time with the grandparents? Trek it to Grandma and Grandpa’s house and be treated to home-baked cookies and hugs while the kids spend quality time getting spoiled. This can also be a great time to take advantage of an evening and have a date night with your partner.
Enjoy the Season
As the days grow shorter and the air gets chillier, spending quality time with your family is made easy since there are so many seasonal activities to enjoy. Make it a goal to try and do something fall-related every weekend to make the most of the season.
Visit the pumpkin patch. Even though the pumpkin patch is typically for doing exactly what it sounds like, many farms will offer more than just pumpkin-picking services. Often they are geared for younger children and families, including things like hayrides, petting zoos, and playgrounds. Pumpkin patch visits are fun, nostalgic and make great memories.
Have a backyard bonfire. Cold weather is the perfect time to snuggle with the ones you love best and have an intimate evening together under the stars. Toast marshmallows, drink cider and enjoy one another’s company. Saftery first! Check to see if there are fire codes that you need to adhere to before just torching stuff in your backyard.
Pick apples. The apples start blooming and ripening in the fall and farms will oftentimes have more supply than demand. Visit a local apple orchard and spend an afternoon picking apples. When you get home, look over apple-related recipes for things like pies, fritters, and turnovers and bake something together.
Get Moving Outside
Cold weather can mean added time indoors, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Tell everyone to put their phones and video games down for a day as you and the family get outside and get your blood pumping again.
Have a game a touch football. You don’t have to be Russel Wilson to enjoy tossing around the ol’ pigskin. On a day that is not pouring down rain, gather your kids and some of their friends and organize a game of touch football in the park. It might surprise you just how much fun you will end up having, even if everyone comes home sweaty and covered in mud. It’s all part of the experience.
Take a nature hike. Some people grumble at the idea of walking for fun, but making a game out of it can make the experience exciting and memorable for all. For example, who can find the biggest maple leaf on the trail? The most pinecones? Your kids will have so much fun arguing over who found what that they won’t even notice how far they’ve walked.
Go skating. Depending on the time of the year you might be able to go ice skating, but this is a great activity for kids and adults too; it forces you to use muscles that you might not use regularly, and it teaches gross motor skills like balance and standing upright on unsteady ground. Plus, it’s just plain fun to slide around on ice or a polished wood floor!
Spending time with your family should be one of the most important things in life, but it’s easy to lose track of how much time you’ve missed recently thanks to the busyness of life. These ideas will help you get back in touch with the people you love and spend some well-planned quality time with them.
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