Tag Archives: family time

How to Make Family Meals Important, Even When you Don’t Have Time!

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Research tells us having family meals is one of the best things families can do together. They serve as a great way to strengthen bonds. The family dinner table is a place to come together and discuss ideas, talk about our day, open up to find support, and laugh. These days, however, family meals have become more rare and less the norm. With busy kids and parents working late, it can be difficult to get everyone together at the same time, in the same place. Even when it is possible, it’s often rushed so we can move on to the next important thing. What we fail to realize is we’re moving on from the important thing. These are the things … More…

It’s Okay to Say No: Guard Your Family Time!

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If you’re like me, most days you feel like you’re being pulled in ten different directions. I am constantly having to decide what to do and when (which is why I love my planner). There are so many things that need my attention! From household chores, to work, to family time, to maintaining this blog…there just aren’t enough hours in the day to do it all. That’s why it’s really important if this is what your life feels like, that you guard your family time. Guard your family time with one magic word. In my house, family time is number one. If I don’t make a conscious effort to protect it, it could easily be consumed by everything else. That’s … More…

Why You Need to Plan Family Nights (Plus Ideas!)

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These days, families are really busy. So busy sometimes that family time doesn’t get to just happen organically. That’s why it’s so important to plan family nights regularly. Whether it’s because mom works late, the kids have sports events, or Dad works the night shift, there are tons of things that interfere with our time together as a family. And that time together is critical! Plan family nights to create memories and bonds that last a lifetime. The days are long, but the years are short. I don’t know who said this, but damn is that true. Who among us hasn’t spent the day praying for bedtime to come swiftly so we can put the monsters we love to bed … More…

10 Ways to Celebrate Valentine’s Day as a Family

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I love celebrating the holidays with family. There is no better way to celebrate the holidays than with the people I love. That’s why today I’m sharing 10 fun ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day as a family! Previously I shared 5 ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day with kids as well as 7 ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day with your spouse. But this time, I thought it’d be fun to give family friendly ways to celebrate all together! It’s great to spend a little time alone as a couple, as well as a little one on one time with the kids for holidays like Valentine’s Day. The day is all about love and one on one time allows us to give … More…

Create quality family time with one simple change

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We all know family time is important. Everyone struggles to find a balance in life between work and home, personal time and couple time, and time with the kids. There’s no one that is immune from this struggle! Most of us respond by trying to increase the quantity of family time. But what we would all benefit most from is ensuring that the time we spend together is quality family time. There are lots of ways to increase the quality of our family time. One way is to find engaging activities to do together. Another is to use our time together to connect with others through special projects. The best way is to remove what distracts us from our family … More…

Why a 5k is the Best Way to be Active as a Family

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There are two things that I am constantly trying to do more of. One is finding ways to be more active that don’t suck. The other is finding fun things to do as a family that don’t cost an arm and a leg, like our movie nights. My favorite combined way to complete both of these, and help us be active as a family is to participate in a local 5k race! There are tons of ways to be active as a family, but participating in a 5k is my favorite for lots of reasons. We try to do at least one every year. This August, we’re participating in the Hank Aaron State Trail 5k in Milwaukee. We’ve done this … More…

Cheap Outdoor Summer Activities for the Whole Family

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I live in a Midwestern state that experiences far more cold, snowy weather than warm. And although I have plenty of ideas for things to do in Winter, it’s mostly for inside. Naturally, I feel extra compelled to make the most of the time I can spend outdoors once Summer comes. I am constantly looking for cheap, outdoor summer activities to get my family out of the house. It is also my goal to come up with ideas that don’t cost a ton. Cause as much as I’d love to spend all summer at theme and water parks, Mama’s got bills to pay. So that’s not happening. And since you’re here, I’m assuming you feel the same way. To help … More…