Wednesday, November 14, 2012

10 Simple Ways To Make Your Child's Day

10 Simple Ways to Make Your Child's Day

Life. Errands. To-do lists. It's easy to get caught up in the day to day grind of being an adult and forget about stopping to take a look at the world through the eyes of your child. Or is that just me? I genuinely try to weave time for fun into our days, but sometimes the hectic days turn into hectic weeks. And then I'm left wondering where the time went and wishing I'd done things just a little bit different. It's that time again. Time for me to remind myself to slow down.

So in the spirit of reminding myself to slow down and say yes to the little things, I'm sharing a post I wrote that was originally published on Hands On As We Grow. Here's a few ideas for slowing down and making your kid's day.

Five things to do while running errands:


1. Jump over the cracks! (Both of you, it's more fun that way.)

2. Let them push all the buttons! (Elevators, debit card machines, coke machines)

3. Stop at the grocery store with the carousel even if you don't have shopping to do. (We do this and it's sacrificing five minutes time for some smiles and giggles. Well worth it.)

4. Take the time to stop and watch that trail of ants, find the perfect rock, or read every sign you see. (This is something we try to do everyday, but it can often get pushed to the side when we are in a hurry.)

5. Have coin races in the Children's Miracle Network donation bins. (I bring a bag of change for this purpose. We watch the coins spin round and round. We declare victors.)
make your childs day by having fun, saying yes, doing the little things

Five ideas for time spent at home:


1. Let them help make dinner. Let them pick dinner! (Yes, it might be more work for you, but they'll be thrilled to help. And you might get the added bonus of them eating better than usual.)

2. Play that board game before you make the phone call. (Most games don't take that long to play and making your child a priority will make them feel extra special.)

3. Read them one more book. (Or three!)

4. Is it going to make a mess? Say "yes" and help them make it! (Let them help you clean it up. That can be almost as much fun as making the mess. No, really.)

5. Plan an extra special bath. Instead of getting them out, add more warm water once the original water turns cold. (My son looks forward to bath time, but by that time, I'm often looking forward to bed time. This is always a favorite!)


These small things can make your child very happy. And the truth is, I'm always happier on the days I've done a few of these . Have you been feeling rushed? Set out to try a couple things from this list, or come up with a few of your own. 

What can you do to slow down and make your child extra happy?

{Did you enjoy this post? Subscribe to my feed or follow me on Facebook for future posts!}

21 comments:

  1. Just be careful with girls in a bathtub! My daughter used to get UTI's if she was in there for more then 5 minutes! Just friendly advice! :o)

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a beautiful post Joyce!
    I always have to remind myself to go slower, to go at my children's pace and to stop, listen and appreciate. It's so easy to have all those grown up thoughts and "must-do's" on your mind instead and to rush through the day. But it makes such a difference to the day if I am more playful and look at things that don't seem to be so interesting because I have seen them so many times before (like a trail of ants or how the water drips from a water spout).
    Thanks so much for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  3. This is fantastic! Great reminders! Thank you :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Such great reminders! It's so easy to get caught up in the busyness, especially with the holiday season.

    ReplyDelete
  5. What wonderful reminders! I love letting my kids pick dinner...it's usually really easy like Mac&Cheese or cereal!

    ReplyDelete
  6. These are great! Sometimes I forget about the little things! New follower! Thanks for visiting my blog!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I love this post. It relates very much with something I have been thinking a lot about lately -- how ordinary daily activities can become magical with our children if we just stop and pay attention. (Can you tell that there is a blog post stirring around in my head on this?)

    ReplyDelete
  8. What great tips! What wonderful memories you can make while doing simple and mostly free things.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I love this photo. Your son is soooo cute - and fortunate to have such a wonderful mom who realized the importance of playful activities and taking the time to enjoy his childhood. Great post!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Nice ideas, i also try to slow down and involve the kids in the daily tasks - shopping included. We even have game we play with the kids when we go shopping with them. You can read about it here: http://www.outnumbered.be/toys-apps-games/shopping-kids-game/

    ReplyDelete
  11. Thank you all so much. My "reply" feature is currently not working for me, but I wanted you all to know that I've read your comments and they mean a lot to me. Thank you so much.

    ReplyDelete
  12. I am a new Mom and this is one of the best things I have read. You sound like an amazing Mom. Thank you for taking the time to share with us...

    ReplyDelete
  13. Such a wonderful blog! Life comes at us fast, as they say, and sometimes we are too focused on the present moment. Although being in the present is a good thing, sometimes it's more important to take the focus out of the moment and simply have fun. Your tips will help us as adults as much as our children! Thanks for sharing and I will definitely pass them along to my readers and clients! Katherine

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thanks for this sweet post. My toddler is learning how to walk down stairs, and we have three flights at our apartment. It's forcing me to literally SLOW DOWN :) Have you read "Mitten Strings for God: Reflections for Mothers in a Hurry" by Katrina Kennison? It's a great book!

    ReplyDelete
  15. What a loving heart and a wonderful way of raising happy, caring kids. Enjoy every second you have, before you know it they'll be heading off to college, well equipped with the awesome memories they'll be taking with them :) Your children are blessed to have you.

    ReplyDelete
  16. My mom used to warm my socks in the dryer then come put them on me to wake me up in the morning... all the way into high school! I just needed to share that. Thanks for the other ideas. They made my day.

    ReplyDelete
  17. We put on fun music, dance, and sing along with hair brushes!!! I got the idea from the movie Step Mom. By far some of our best memories!

    ReplyDelete
  18. I try to remember to be a bit of bad influence now and then - teach them how to make that annoying armpit noise or a goofy joke or song - they love it, well boys do anyone,

    ReplyDelete
  19. This was amazing, and I look forward to doing these with my kids.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for reading! I'd love and appreciate your feedback. And if you enjoyed this post, please consider subscribing.