This led me to think about the inevitable rainy days and inclement weather that lay ahead. Aha, soon a topic for September's column was conceived. I'd like to share ideas for indoor family activities, which will hopefully inspire your family to continue enjoying quality time together-even if the summer is over. Additionally, with the children soon immersing themselves in school and after-school activities, every spare second counts. These activities will form lifelong memories and perhaps your children will be motivated to continue the traditions with their own families. While the benefits of quality time are obvious, some of the other bonuses may not be. Therefore, I've included some you may not have considered.
Enjoy a Power Outage
Or at least pretend. Some of our children's fondest early memories were the times when the power went out. Without electricity, we were not tempted to stare at the television, play video games, or surf the Internet. Instead, we bonded while enjoying real laughter, not the canned laughter of TV audiences.
Once a month, stage a "No Power Night." Turn off the phones, answering machine, lights, and other electrical or battery-operated distractions. Light a fire in the fireplace or use an outdoor stove on the patio. Roast marshmallows, share spooky stories, or sing silly songs. Light dozens of candles and make wall shadows--play a form of charades, seeing who can guess the others' shapes first. Read a story by candlelight. Reminisce over old photo albums. Play an acoustic guitar.
Bonus: You may discover that you can do without passive entertainment and prefer instead to spend quality time together. If nothing else, the family may become more selective when choosing their entertainment. Although your older children may balk-if only for the sake of appearance-it may become one of their most cherished times...having your undivided attention.
Host a Game Night
Drag out all those old board games-you know, the ones you never have time for-or invest in some new ones. Take turns selecting a game to play and award small prizes to the winners. Be flexible if little ones would rather work on a jigsaw puzzle or play with blocks or other toys. If someone selects a game that is too difficult for small children, play in teams, letting them help make decisions. For example, my four-year-old likes to help me play Monopoly with her older brothers. She rolls the dice for me, moves around the board, and gives her opinion on "purchases." She has been able to learn the basic idea of the game and takes pride in playing "big kid" games.
