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Family Night Ideas |
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Looking for
some new and interesting family night ideas? Then be sure
to read through our list of ideas here as well as our
family time ideas on our blog. |
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Make Dinner Time Fun
Make family nights special by starting off with a great meal.
Add some fun to your family meals by playing
family dinner games.
Games add fun to the family dinner, open up family conversation,
breakup the monotony of family dinner, and encourage children to
eat their vegetables and drink their milk! |
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Family Game
Night
Games are a great way to bring the family together as well as
teach children how to be good winners and losers. Why not try
to set aside one night a week or month as family game night.
Some games you might want to try are
Family Fun Cranium
and
Whoonu.
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Create a Family Cookbook
Create a
family cookbook by asking
family members to send you copies of their favorite recipes. After the
family cookbooks have been
completed, you can give them as gifts on birthday's, Mother's
Day, or at Christmas or Hanukkah.
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Make a Family Mailbox
Kids
love getting mail and as long as the mail isn't bills, parents
love mail too. Add some zip to your family communications by
creating a
family mailbox. Great for
leaving messages of encouragement, love, and support for fellow
family members.
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American Idol
Do you have a family that loves to sing and dance? Then try
holding your own American Idol show. Pick one or two family
members to be the judges and let the rest compete to see who is
the next American Idol. To make the show more real, you may
want to try using a Karaoke Machine
or
Microphone.
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Charades
Acting more your style? Then try a fun game of
Charades.
Simply makeup charade ideas and write on a piece of paper.
Divide the family into teams and act away.
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Dinner and a
Movie
Love to cook? Then try spending an evening whipping up one of
your favorite meals together and finishing up with dessert and a
movie. Give each family member a job in the meal preparation,
so that everyone is
included. Need some suggestions for easy and quick family
meals? Then check out
FamilyFun's
Cookbook
or
FamilyFun
Recipe Finder.
Also check out
gradingthemovies.com,
kids-in-mind.com,
or Common
Sense Media
for a quick and easy way to check the appropriateness of a movie
for young eyes.
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Family Video and
Picture Night
Similar to our dinner and movie night, but rather than watch
Hollywood movies, why not spend an evening watching old family
videos or leafing through family photos. Kids love to see
themselves when they were babies or reminiscing about last years
family vacation. Also, don't forget your wedding video. Kids
really get a kick out of watching their parents tie the knot.
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Hiking, Biking,
and Exploring
How about an adventure into the outdoors? Take advantage of
some of the
great national parks
and
hiking trails
and spend your day hiking, exploring, and
picnicking.
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Family Totem
Pole
If you enjoy the outdoors, why not try making a family totem
pole. Using items you collect on your next nature or hiking
trip in addition to other supplies you might have around the
home, create a totem pole that represents the family. Make sure
every family member is represented.
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Volunteer
Together as a Family
Why not spend your family time helping others in need? Working
together as a family to help others in need can be an incredibly
powerful way of building family bonds and developing a great
sense of pride and fulfillment in all family members. Visit our
Family Giving
section for
great ideas on how to give to others in need.
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Family Banner
Making a family banner is a fun way for everyone to express
themselves and gives the family something to display and look at
everyday.
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Dinner with Mom
and Dad
Finding quality one on one time with each child can be very
difficult. One way of fitting this quality time in is to plan a
special breakfast or dinner out with each child either once a
week or once a month. Get a sitter for the other children and
just take one child at a time. This will give each child the
opportunity to spend just with you and feel special at the same
time.
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Surprise Lunch
Why not surprise your child for lunch one day at school? If
your school allows it, join the child for lunch in the cafeteria
or better yet pack a quick picnic lunch to share at a nearby
park. Don't tell them ahead of time you are coming. This makes
the lunch all the more special.
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Cousins Camp
If you are like many families, cousins often don't live close
enough to one another to see each other on a regular basis. To
foster the family ties, and keep cousins close, try organizing a
cousins camp where the
cousins get together either at one of the anut/uncle's home or
even better at Grandma and Grandad's for a few days of fun.
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Family
Newsletter
Give your family communication a whole new twist with a
Family
Newsletter. They are fun, educational, and more
importantly a great way to keep families connected.
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Backyard
Campouts
Backyard camp outs are a great way to get the camping experience
without the hassle of packing. Pitch your tent in the backyard
and roast your marshmallows over the coals of an inexpensive
charcoal grill. You can tell
ghost stories
,catch lightening bugs in a glass jar, and look for some of the
great
constellations
in the sky.
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Breakfast in the
Park
Beat the summer heat by having your outdoor fun early in the
morning. Pack a simple breakfast of muffins, yogurt, fruit, and
juice boxes/water, invite your closest friends and head to the
nearest park. Let the kids
run and play or if you prefer you can use the opportunity to
play some great
outdoor games.
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Breakfast Treat
I'm certainly not a "morning person," but my kids and I have
been taking a day or two a week and waking up a little bit
earlier to go out for breakfast before school starts. It
doesn't have to be any place special. We've really just enjoy
going to a local bagel shop and getting bagels.
The customers in the shop are usually business people picking up
large orders for their offices, or just people getting started
on their work day. They all seem to get a kick out of watching
the kids giggling and playing together. Smiles are plentiful
and it really sets a nice tone for the day.
Steve Capp is a father of
two and lives in Des Moines Iowa with his two kids and wife,
Krista.
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Family Vacation Jar
A
family vacation jar (or box) is a decorated jar used to save
for the next big adventure. Decorated with pictures and words of
places you want to visit or have visited, the jar becomes a
daily visual reminder of your dreams. |
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