Make It a Fun Day

I can recall hearing my mother say, more than once, in her exasperated tone, “I can’t wait for you to be back in school!”  I am thankfully grateful to say that I never had that feeling.  That doesn’t mean that I never felt frustrated during summers when my little ones were home.  It is more a testament to the fact that I so enjoyed spending time with them that I even dreaded the beginning of a new school year.  If they were honest, my three would probably admit they couldn’t wait for school to begin to get away from me.

I do understand how it can be a difficult time when you are balancing a full-time job, child care, a spouse, meals, and on and on.  I would like to challenge you to schedule at least 15 minutes every day with each of your children.  It may sound crazy if you have two or more children, but I’d like to give you some fun, easy ways to fit it into your already busy day.

You likely give your child a bath each night.  This is especially important in the summer to be sure to remove any ticks, but also because they get really dirty and sweaty.  Because you know you must spend time giving a bath, why not close the door to the bathroom and bathe each child separately.  Bubble baths are fun and entertaining.  Add a few measuring cups and bowls, and find out how many ¼ cups it takes to fill a 1 cup measure.  Add some food color to the water, then change the color by adding a second one:  Red & blue = purple, blue & yellow = green, yellow & red = orange.  Talk about the changes.

Sit down with your child after he is ready for bed and have him pick out his favorite book to share.  If he wants, let him “read” it to you, and then you read it to him.  Ask questions.  Listen to him as he answers.  Tell him how much you love him and thank him for spending time with you.

If you are cooking, have your wee one “help” you.  She will enjoy putting napkins on the table for each diner, or tearing the lettuce for a salad.  If you are baking something, let her pour in the ingredients.  Name them.  Tell her how much of each is needed.  Use terms like stir, blend, mix, and pour.  Talk about how the mixture will change as it bakes.

Play dough is so much fun and most children love to involve themselves with it.  However, they also tend to know when we are just trying to “get them out of our hair” using a play dough session.  If your child seems to be getting tired of this art medium, try this:  First, play WITH him.  Second, add some new things (pompoms, pipe cleaners, popsicle sticks, feathers, birthday candles, etc.).  Third, enjoy!

Go for a short walk around the yard.  Look for a particular color, shape, size.  Talk about how the trees are different from how they were during winter.  Point out any critters you may see.  This is a good time to discuss the need to respect the environment.  Take with you a plastic bag to collect things that don’t belong in the yard.  Separate items that can be recycled from trash and dispose of each appropriately.

As you can see, there are lots of things you can do with a small child in just fifteen minutes.  While it may seem like a difficult thing to do, you will likely find that you go over the time line, and that’s a very good thing.  When we spend undivided time with our child, we typically find they are then more content to play alone.  Happy parenting!

© 2014 Brenda Holland-Robinson