by Andrew Calabrese
Summer is just around the corner, and it presents us parents with an incredible opportunity to invest more in our children. Because they are out of school, we can spend entire days with them! Here are some helpful thoughts as you endeavor to spend more time with your children this summer:
1. DISCONNECT FROM YOUR PHONE
In our highly digital and socially connected generation, parents are inadvertently ignoring their children more than ever. When you ignore your children, it communicates that you don’t love and value them. A June study by AVG Technologies surveyed more than 6,000 children, ages 8 to 13, from the United States, the Untied Kingdom, and several other countries. The survey discovered that fifty-four percent of the kids think their parents spend too much time on their phones. Fifty-two percent of moms and dads agreed with their children and worried that they were setting a bad example for their kids.
It can be hard to navigate this crazy connected world we find ourselves in, and remember that the digital universe can wait while we interact with those most important to us in the present moment. We as parents need to put down our cell phones and focus more on our kids. They are more important than the latest work email or what’s trending on Instagram or Facebook. Let’s make sure they know it.
2. SEIZE THE TEACHABLE MOMENTS
You don’t have to wait until your kids are teens to teach them life skills. Get a jump start on teaching practical lessons to your children right now— how to clean the house, how to manage their time and money, how to cook—the list could go on! The point is, nobody has more influence on your children than you. So, make time to seize the “teachable moments.”
3.REMEMBER, YOU ONLY GET ONE CHANCE TO RAISE THEM
I have two children, and I marvel at how fast they are growing. Time really flies! The truth is, you don’t really know how much time you will get to spend with your children. So, make the most of every opportunity you get and create happy memories with them. Your kids will never forget the spaghetti fights at the table, the trips to the zoo, the countless hours you played with them at the park, or any one-on-one time they had with you! This will create a bond that will last a lifetime. The more time you spend with your children the more opportunities there will be for happy memories to be created and cherished.
Again, this summer allows you more time to spend with them, and I hope you’ll make this summer the best it has ever been for your kids!
Activity Ideas to Do with Your Kids this Summer:
- Go to the park
- Play catch outside
- Go to the zoo / aquarium
- Go swimming
- Take a hike
- Go on a scavenger hunt
- Make a craft
- “Camp out” (in the living room)
- Fly a kite
- Take them to a Vacation Bible School
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