In an age where people stay constantly connected to one another though cellphone, tablets, laptops and social media, the family unit still seems to consistently struggle to become something strong and unbreakable. In fact, most families are bonding less, despite the ease of finding things to do with one another. Spending time as a family is incredibly important when attempting to become a strong family unit. It doesn’t always have to be something extravagant and over the top. It can be as simple as one night together every other week.
Communicating Through Art
Staying in for a nice quiet night at home is a great way to open up the door for communication and learn more about one another. When was the last time that you found out what was going on in your family’s life? Find an art project that you can all do together, and then spend time doing that art project as a way to talk about different things going on. Communication is incredibly important in the family unit, and this is a great way to ignite it.
Use Technology to Your Advantage
Just because technology often keeps people apart, doesn’t mean that it can’t also do some good for your family. The great thing about the rise of all these gadgets is the ease in which people can bond over similar interests. For example, if everyone in your family likes watching the television show Lost, then you can stream Lost from your computer or TV and spend time together watching it.
Attend a Sporting Event
Getting out of the house and going somewhere is also a great way to spend time together as a family. Buy tickets and go watch a sporting event that you’re all interested in. It can be as simple as going to the nearby college and watching a football game, or as extravagant as going to the Super Bowl together. Spending time together outside of the home is a great way to learn more about one another and create great memories that will last a lifetime.
Don’t fall victim to losing your family because you never spent enough time with them. Disconnect with everyone else and start connecting with your family from time to time. This means more than reading their Facebook updates or Tweets every day. Actually do things together and start conversing. Beat the status quo and be a family that loves and cares about one another.
We love to play games as a family and reenact the Civil War. Being a family and being away from the computers, television, etc is so important.
We often incorporate technology into our family night. We play Wii games together sometimes, or watch movies on Netflix. I really love to watch movies that I watched as a kid with my kids…Lots of fun. Now when the weather warms back up Family Night will be outside. I can’t wait.
These are great ideas! I try to spend one night a week with the hubby, where we don’t get on the internet, and just play board games.