“In the end, kids won’t remember that fancy toy or game you bought them, they will remember the time you spent with them.”
-Kevin Heath
It’s the hustle and bustle of the holidays and sometimes I wish I could freeze time. If I could freeze time, I think I would take that long awaited nap I’ve been fantasizing about. When I woke up, I’d tackle the spring cleaning that is way overdue. After that I would feel like I’d be in the mood to focus on what’s most important, and that is my family. The truth is, no one’s invented or will ever invent a way to freeze time. This means it’s up to us as parents to not allow the beauty in life to pass us by.
I don’t want to wake up one day and realize my little princess is not putting on her latest dress up clothes, but instead trying on wedding dresses. I don’t want life to go by so fast that my 9-year-old is suddenly in college and I am left with regret over not spending enough time with her. With work, school, housework, and appointments, how do we fit in quality time with our kids? I have been thinking about this all year and realized that there are certain rituals that my kids and I need to start doing so that we can have that special time together even in the midst of life’s chaos.
Girl reading a book with her mom
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One thing we’ve started to do consistently is go to the library. We check out a giant bag full of books, and every night before bed each of them get to pick a few. We lay down on the bed and have story time as a family. I always use different voices for different characters and we talk about the story as we go along. This has created not only a bedtime routine, but quality family moments together.
Going on a spontaneous adventure.
Another thing I tried this year was being spontaneous. After church one Sunday, I picked up some snacks and told them we were going on a field trip. I drove them up to the mountains and let them get out and explore. This was awesome because it was unexpected, it was out in nature, and we took lots of pictures for us to remember what it was like to be “on top of the world”.
Family playing baseball
Something I need to work on is playing with my children. Often times, I feel that I’ve neglected this aspect because they have each other to play with and this gives me time to get things done around the house when they are upstairs involved in make-believe scenarios with their dolls. Instead of using this time to do more housework, I really want to make an effort to join in on their playtime. It doesn’t have to cost a ton of money to spend quality time with your kids.
Cupcakes made from scratch.
Finally, I want to try something new. I would like all of us to go do something we’ve never done before. This could mean another spontaneous adventure, or it could simply mean baking something as a family that we’ve never tried.
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The bottom line is that I have the desire to spend more time with my children. I’ve made a point to rearrange my January schedule at school to eliminate a class that will free up more time with them, and this New Year is my year to begin to invest time in my children. They won’t be little forever, and I want to cherish all the moments we have before they slip away.
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3 thoughts on “Mamalog: Spending Quality Time with Your Kids”
I can’t wait to hear from all of you and I want to wish you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR!
I find that the best way to spend time with my little one, is to try to be fully present in whatever activity we may be doing; playing, cooking, reading, outside adventures, etc. When I give my son my undivided attention, I realize how amazing the little moments are, and he seems to be fulfilled as well. When I am trying to multi-task, however, I have a hard time enjoying the time I am spending with him, and he often notices, as he will grab my face and make me look at him! Luckily, he is good about bringing me back to the present moment in times like those. To keep it interesting, we too try new adventures, such as a new recipe, a new park, new books, or even watching new movies together. But I notice his favorite time spent is usually when I sit down on the ground and play with him. There is a fine balance between all of the roles we play as adults, and I think we just try to do our best and be “good enough.” Being the perfect parent is impossible and unrealistic.
Kerrie you sound like an amazing mom, and I wish I could have experienced having a mother like you! My girls love it when I sit down and play with them. This Christmas, I purposely bought board games that we can play together as a family. We are going to take a stab at “Operation”, no pun intended! lol