Spending Isn’t Caring
As parents who want to spend quality time with the kids, we sometimes imagine that quality family time involves making an investment in some expensive family trip to a remote location in Africa, or heading out together into the tropical rain-forests of South Asia where no man has gone before.
But the truth is that quality time with your kids can be as easy as playing a game or sharing a meal together. You don’t need to travel long distances or spend a lot of money on a vacation to have a great time bonding with your kids, and we’re gonna help you find some alternatives.
Here are a few less-expensive options for making great memories with your children no matter their age:
Staycation
You don’t need to go on a roadtrip or on a cruise to have a good time with your kids. Vacations with younger kids can be more stressful then fun when they are overtired and out of their routine. Family trips with older kids might be less bonding time and more everyone doing their own thing.
A staycation, staying at home with your family and having fun while forgoing the normal household chores, is a super inexpensive alternative to a regular vacation.
You don’t have to worry about travel or spending too much money and can focus on having quality time with your kids.
You can start your staycation with a delicious themed meal like a pizza or taco bar, or maybe something more exotic like build your own sushi. You can even decorate the kitchen or dining room with inexpensive decorations from a party store to really transport your family to Mexico, Japan, or another country.
After dinner is a great time to unplug from your devices and spend some quality time without the TV or tablet. You can play some fun games together as a family like cards, charades, Pictionary, or Twister. Your kids will be able to get out some of their energy while laughing and playing together as a family.
You can end the night camping out in the backyard. You can buy a decent fire pit at most big name and home improvement stores for relatively cheap, or find directions online to build your own simple pit. Roast marshmallows over the fire and snuggle up together in a tent while swapping stories late into the night. If weather doesn’t permit this, then have a family sleepover in the living room with sleeping bags and lots of pillows.
You can continue your staycation for the rest of the weekend or for a whole week of family fun with very little money spent.
Local Activities
No matter how small your town is, there are at least a few activities that you can do to spend quality time with your kids. If you live within an hour of a larger city, then your opportunities for family fun increase even more, without putting a ton of miles on your car or spending a huge amount of money. You can make great memories with your kids while bowling, ice skating, taking a class at the local art supply store, playing mini golf, visiting the town museum, or even just going to get ice cream together.
Outdoor Activities
Weather permitting, there are some easy ways to spend time with your family outdoors. Going on a nature walk and visiting a local farm or park can be a great time from your family to talk, laugh, and spend quality time with each other. For even more fun with your family, you can try geocaching. For this activity you need a GSP or cell phone to locate the coordinates of hidden boxes left by other geocachers. Your family needs to work together to find the box, which can contain anything from a log book to sign to little trinkets left by other explorers. If you’re family is they type, you can go and play some sports together, making teams and playing against each other in competitive fun. It’s also a great opportunity to teach the kids about winning, losing and playing fair.
Conclusion
Having fun with the kids doesn’t have to be a drain on your wallet. Just take the time to think of cheaper activities that are right for you and your family, and you’ll be glad for every moment spent with the kids.
