How to Spend Quality Time with Your Kids
Let’s face it. We live in a busy world. When spending time with your kids is something you find yourself struggling with, it doesn’t help when you’re stuck at work and you see an Instagram post of your best friend with their child at the zoo!
When looking for tips on how to spend time with kids, it’s imperative to understand that it’s not the ‘amount’ of time that you spend with them, but rather the ‘quality’, that makes all the difference. Read on to know all about how to spend quality time with your kid. The underlying essence in each tip is this: getting children to embrace only ‘high-quality’ time with their parents.
Tips to ensure Kids are Spending Quality Time with their Parents
There’s no need to feel guilty anymore, about working full time or going out for dinner with friends. You can do these, and still find yourself spending that invaluable ‘quality’ time with kids, with these stellar tips.
Have a daily ‘connect’ time with your child
Of course, the ideal way to do this would be face-to-face, but if you cannot, despair not. You can simply leave a note of encouragement by their toothbrush, or perhaps write an encouraging saying on a whiteboard in the house.
Shared Bath Time
This one’s for parents who want to know how to spend an equal amount of time with their kids. In case Daddy is feeling left out, it’s a great idea to have him spend time with his child by getting them to give them a bath on alternate days. This will ensure that not only does Daddy get his special bonding time with the baby, but that bath time will become something the baby will look forward to more than ever.
Tell them that you love them
Want to know how to spend quality time with your kid using only 3 words? Tell them ‘I love you’. Say it to them every single day and say it ‘like you mean it’! Tell them how much you mean to them in other words, too. Every single time you express how you feel for them, will make for quality time they will cherish.
Exciting bedtime routine
Kids spending time with parents these days might seem a thing of the past, given the digital age we live in. However, it need not be like that. That bedtime routine makes for a great time to sneak in some quality time with your kids. You could read the chapter of a book, or perhaps even do a bit of fun yoga together, before tucking them into bed.
Give them the power to choose
Want to spend quality time with your kids? The last thing you need to do is be a dictator who seeks to be in control all the time. Relinquish that sense of control. Give it to your children instead. Let them decide what they want to do with you, be it painting or playing in the park. When you do this, you not only empower your kids to make their own decisions, but possibly learn something about their interests that you didn’t know before.
Take pictures together
Taking selfies with your kids frequently will not only ensure you document the times you spend with them, but also elicit a whole lot of giggles. Note: This is perhaps one of those rare occasions when you are allowed to use a cellphone in front of your kids. And while you can do it, why not make it worth it by taking as many pictures as you can?
Celebrate achievements
At dinnertime (which in itself is a great way to spend quality time with your kids), ask your children about their day. Congratulate them for any achievements they might bring up. This is not limited to them garnering an ‘A’ in some test, or perhaps coming first in a race. It might be something as simple as stepping out of their comfort zone and trying something different. Or perhaps working hard on a project.
Play together
Playing with your children makes for one of the best possible ways to bond with them. When you play tag with them or perhaps shoot hoops, the thrill that results is unparalleled. Also, this doesn’t mean that you have to be involved in ‘active play’. For instance, when in the park, you could push your little one on a swing and when they are having fun doing it on their own, run a few rounds around the park yourself!
Plan a Fun Day Out
When you have more time than you normally do, why not take the fun outdoors? You could put together a picnic basket and camp outdoors with your kids, or simply go to the library and spend some time reading books together.
Cook Together
Does cooking feel like a chore to you? Try cooking with your kids. They can help you chop vegetables with a nylon knife, or simply help around the kitchen by getting you the things you need. This is a great way for kids to bond with their parents, and imbibe some invaluable life skills, too. Bonus: You will now enjoy cooking, too!
Game Night
Remember all those games you played as a child, like ‘Scrabble’? Believe it or not, but even children who are addicted to devices love playing games like these. Moreover, you will be truly amazed at how quickly time flies when you’re playing (and bonding) together.
Family Dance Party
One of the best ways to get your kids to embrace quality time with you, is by indulging in some crazy dancing fun. All you have to do is put on some music in the living room and ‘let loose’!
We at EuroKids are of the firm belief that spending quality time with your kids is the most effective way to show them that you care for them. That quality time is not only vital for their emotional and mental well-being, but also lays the foundation for a lasting parent-child bond.
