As a parent, you know better than anyone how busy life can get. Juggling the kids, a job, as well as all your errands and tasks can become a bit much. Before you know it, life can feel like it’s getting away from you, and you may start to feel like you’re missing out on that important time with the kids. Although the responsibilities are important, finding ways for spending more quality time with your kids is great for everyone’s mental health, and it allows everyone to have a little fun together.
If you’ve made the decision to actively spend more time with the kids in 2021 but are struggling to achieve it, here are four tips that can help.
Simple tips for spending more quality time with your kids:
Pen it into the Schedule
As you probably already know, any meeting not on a schedule may not get done. You have a calendar of meetings at work to make sure that you find time for important clients and colleagues, you pencil in play dates in the calendar with other parents, why not block out a slot before dinner or on a weekend to dedicate top spending quality time with your kids?
The first and number one step to dedicating time with your kids is to stop putting off the quality time. It’s easy to let it slip down the priority list, especially when your to-do list is huge. However, if you keep pushing it down the list, it may not ever happen. It’s time to start prioritizing quality time with the kids, which may mean you pen it into the schedule and block off that time.
Play a Sport Together
For kids who love watching, playing, and following sports, this is a natural way to spend time together and bond. You can play a sport with them, which shows that you are taking an active interest in the hobbies and activities they love and feel passionate about. But you need to be sure that you actually are engaging, and that you are playing, rather than just watching from the sidelines.
A great sport to play together is baseball, as this one can be played pretty much anywhere from your own backyard, to the local park, on the beach, or any other place that offers enough space. You can even make a big deal out of shopping for the equipment as a family. For younger baseball players you can make it a bonding event to gift them with their first real glove, which may even be their introduction to the sport.
Other sports you can easily play together and with minimal equipment include tennis, soccer or basketball (you’ll need a net at home or one nearby that you can access).
Enroll in a Class with Your Child
Now, maybe sports aren’t your child’s thing, and if that’s the case, it may make more sense to enroll in a class together. If they have a passion for cooking, painting, drawing, computer coding, photography, and so forth, these all make for an excellent opportunity. There are usually plenty of local classes to be found, so it’s just a matter of choosing one that appeals to your child.
Set up a Daily Ritual
Here’s a tip that can seem a little less daunting to pick up, as it doesn’t have to be a huge time commitment. For busy parents, this can be an excellent opportunity to get in that daily dose of bonding. Figure out a daily ritual that you and your child can do together each and every day. For many parents, this could be the bedtime routine. Maybe you read your child a story (ideal if they are younger), or perhaps you take 10-15 minutes before the end of each day to discuss their day, maybe you go for an after dinner walk together each night – whatever works for you and your child.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are a number of ways in which you can start to spend more quality time with your kids and bond. If you have multiple kids, make sure that at least some of that quality time is one-on-one time so that the two of you can make the most of the experience.