“The family that plays together, stays together”.
Well in my book this works. And what better time to enjoy the family then summer time.
Relax and hang out by a pool, or go to the beach.
Backyard treats and sprinklers for fun. The simple things in life are priceless.
What happened to slimipicity?
So in case you need a refresher course here are some steps you should take to enjoy your family. I call it FAMILY 101
“First turn off your own cell phone and don’t check e-mail when spending time with your kids,” says Alanna Levine, M.D., a pediatrician in Tappan, New York. Great idea. Yes, leave the 21st century behind. Focus only on what they are doing not what the rest of the world is doing.
Make no agenda. Play everything by ear. Let the chips fall as they may. If it rains, play indoors. Never lock yourself into any program. I learned that. I never promised my kids anything, we just went with the flow. Surprise them.
Head to the beach. Wow, how much fun it was to take my kids to the beach. OK, taking home sand was never that much fun, but I never regretted a single pebble.
Little Adventures work. Just a day in the park is an adventure to a little one. Swings, slides, monkey bars, and let us not forget the sand pit. OK, forget the sand pit…
Tradition. Every summer we had special places that we had to be. The Fourth of July and Memorial Day were always spent at friends of the family and there we enjoyed a great bbq. Families gathered for the day, and we would always turn down any other invite. We made this a tradition.
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Games. Prepare yourself for those rainy days. Get the game boards out. I especially enjoyed Hungry, Hungry, Hippo, Parcheesi, or even Monopoly, to mention a few, fun games to play with the whole family. As they got older cards did the trick. TV was enjoyed at the end of the night.
I think we all long for the ‘simple old days’. The one thing I can pretty much guarantee, if you spend time with your family when they are little, you will be spending time with them when they are grown. So make family first and the rest will just fall into place.
mb