Creating a Creative Family Time

 Families today are just busy. We’re busy with housework, homework, and work from the office. We have volunteered ourselves right into no time for our family. Add to that soccer games, ballet lessons, gym, and scouts. Now we’re just plain running on empty. So how do you carve out quality time for connecting with your family? Simple. Pencil it in on your calendar. Treat it like every other appointment. Schedule it and be there. Don’t allow other issues to bump your schedule. No need to hem-haw and feel guilty. If the boss asks you to work late, say, "I can’t Tom. I already have another appointment for this evening. It’s been on the calendar for a couple weeks.

. Many games are long, too long for a quick play right before bed. Do what my family did. My son begged us to play monopoly many times. Finally, we started the game one night and played for about 45 minutes. When it was time to stop, we recorded notes about each person’s position. We bundled up each person’s money and property separately and put everything away. The next Saturday night, out came the game. Our son set it up while my husband put our toddlers to bed and I popped popcorn. The progressive Monopoly game lasted for about a month and a half! Our son had almost as much fun setting up the game each week as he did clobbering his parents with more money and property.

. One night each week, talk with your kids about an important character trait—kindness, honesty, responsibility, loyalty, etc. Read a picture book dealing with these values, discuss a Bible verse, sing a song, or play a game that reinforces your topic of the day. Put together a quick group craft to help the kids understand. You can hang the craft on the refrigerator so everyone in the family remembers the lesson. Finally, finish the activity with a dessert.

. In a household with several children, sometimes splitting up can allow individual time for each child. Send one child grocery shopping with Mom, while Dad plays with the others. Doesn’t sound like fun for the kid at the store? Well, it will be when you allow them the privilege to choose some of the items. Grocery store time can mean that child has the power to choose the family cereal for the week, select the after school snacks, and pick the fruit. You can even go so far as to allow your young shopper the opportunity to decide one the menu for dinner, talk about the ingredients, and find them at the store. Everyone wins here. Your child learns shopping techniques, you get a helper, and you both get to spend sometime together.

 We can all find family time when we treat our family with as much importance as the clients at the office. Be creative. Family time doesn’t have to be everyone mesmerized in front of the television. Have fun at your next family time.