MAKING TIME FOR FAMILY

April 6, 2010 in Uncategorized

Teaching values takes time—a scarce commodity for many parents today. “Our increasingly competitive economy is creating an environment where Mom and Dad are spending longer hours at work and fewer hours with their children,” observes Gary Hill, Ph.D., director of Clinical Services at The Family Institute at Northwestern University.
What’s a parent to do? “You need to make time to be with your kids and make the time you have with them really count,” Dr. Hill urges. “Talk with them about what’s right and wrong, and what constitutes good behavior and what doesn’t.”
“Don’t let yourself get so busy that you stop having ‘real’ conversations with your kids,” urges Dr. Hill. It sounds cliché, but children do grow up very fast. Depending on their age, you may have them living in your home for just five or 10 more years. “You need to use the time you have with your kids very wisely,” concludes Dr. Hill. “Make sure you build time into your schedule for consistent, quality, face time with your kids—while they’re still kids.”

Here are a few tips to get you started with making time for family activities:
PLANNING Family Time – use a billboard to display daily, weekly and monthly schedules and activities for Family Time; this will help you to turn vague promises into specific commitments!
Family Time INDOORS – do things together indoors, e.g. board games, maintaining the family photo album or scrapbook, etc. Check out some cool board games… http://www.thefamilytimestore.com/custom.em?pid=789200
Family Time OUTDOORS – do things together outdoors, e.g. play ball games, fly kites, hike, camp, etc. To get you started this SPRING, buy tents, camping and hiking gear… http://www.thefamilytimestore.com/custom.em?pid=789202
Family Time MEMORIES – take digital photos of your Family Time so you can look back at them and remember the good times you’ve had! Check out digital video/still cameras… http://www.thefamilytimestore.com/custom.em?pid=789204