I know scheduling 10 great PLAYDATES for parents and their kids is a lot easier said than done and even when I get that time in; my son is a bit hard to impress.
It feels like it is increasingly getting that much tougher for us parents to compete for our kids' attention having to keep up with the excitement of a fast-paced movie or television show for their affections.
And of course it takes a bit of coaxing to get your kid away from their electronic devices- especially girls and their iPad minis- but in those moments where you're together- sharing an activity and being present in the moment- well- at least for me- those are the precious minutes I cherish.
I recently took a routine car ride with my 16 year old and we had such a touching conversation- it was an opportunity for me to bond with him on an organic level- there was nothing forced or artificial about it.
And– we listened to the radio and he just started talking…about what high school is like this year. how he really feels about the pressures-how difficult it is to navigate what often feels like a minefield when to comes to this current pandemic and yes I even got some insider info about a girl.
And so if you are looking for some great ways to bond with a kid in your life here are 10 fab ways to spend time hangin' with your kid-or HAVING A PLAYDATE.
For the record these 10 great PLAYDATES for parents and their kids are TOTALLY Swoonworthy and includes a step by step recipe for chocolate haystacks!
1. Get in the kitchen and make these Chocolate Haystacks!
Kitchen utensils you will need:
cookie sheet
parchment paper
medium pot
soup spoon
Ingredients you will need!
7-8 ounes of chocolate.
2-3 handfuls of thin pretzel sticks
Directions:
- Line the cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Place entire bag of chocolate chips into a pot.
- Turn the heat to low.Melt the chocolate, stirring the whole time.
- Remove pot from heat once chocolate is completely melted.
- Break pretzel sticks in half and add them to the pot.
- stir to coat the pretzels with the melted chocolate.
- Scoop out spoonfuls of the mixture. Place the “haystacks” on the prepared cookie sheet.
- Place into refrigeratoe for 15020 minutes until the choclate has hardened.
- ENJOY your Chocolate Haystacks!
Check out this pics below for the step by step process!
2. Train for an athletic event as families…a 5k run, a sprint triathlon, and a walkathon.
3. A trip to a museum, complete with a scavenger hunt (list one abstract painting, what painting had the greenest leaves, write down four artists whose names you might name your own children, etc.)
4. Take a ceramic painting class, and paint your upcoming holiday gifts.
5. Watch non-mainstream movies (or stream them), then discuss them afterwards, asking questions like: What is the worldview of the director? Which character is most like you and why? What kind of world does this movie represent?
6. Take dance classes together, something way out of your comfort zone: salsa, hip hop, square dancing, etc.
7. Discover new parks together, driving outside your city to find new, unexplored places.
8. Go letterboxing. (There are trails throughout the US that have letterboxes.)
9. Volunteer together. Work at a local library, thrift store, or food pantry.
10. Spend a year planning an affordable, yet fun, vacation together. Each family can take on one aspect of the vacation: food, travel, hotel, outings, etc.
Most important of all-have fun!
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