HOW YOU CAN BOND WITH YOUR KIDS duringTHE HOLIDAYS
School days can be quite stressful and I look forward to the summer holidays when I can sleep till my eyes open automatically, without an alarm ringing in my head. I can avoid the yelling and rushing in the mornings and can step out of bed with calm nerves. Comfortably, in my pyjamas, I can serve breakfast and lunch and finish my work. Do you understand, why this is a luxury, too?
I do not have anything against the various summer camps available, but I find the day-time ones equally stressful. For months, I am forced to get out of bed early in the mornings, forced to think what to prepare for breakfast and pack for snack box and forced to dress up so I look decent enough while dropping my kids to school. So, personally, I feel that my kids and I need a break from all this. Basically, I just want to erase the morning chaos for a while because I am not a morning person.
Summer holidays fun
My mother once told me that she never had the opportunity of spending the summer holidays with us. I loved that she used the word ‘opportunity’ and being an opportunist myself, I vowed to be with my kids, for her too, as much as I could. Plus, tomorrow, when my children are older and have their own lives, I don’t want to regret the times that I could have spent with them and did not. So, this is how I try my best to bond with the kids, while keeping them busy, happy and routine free, during the summer holidays.
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Homework sheets: Back in the Gulf, because the summer holidays came in the midst of the academic year, we had plenty of homework to get done before we got back to school. Here, just so that the kids don’t forget their basics and to help them develop a good hand at writing, I make them do a page of cursive writing, besides an activity page or worksheet. No burden at all.
Swimming is a good stress buster
Sports activities: Tiring them with a sports activity is a must. If they are small, two hours in a play park is good too. Some sports activities, we indulge in, are swimming, tennis, badminton, cycling, etc. Which activity is your child interested in?
Story time: Reading is important because it develops our thoughts and gives us endless knowledge while keeping our minds active. Teaching young children to read helps them to learn and listen. I love reading too so I save some time for story time which can also turn into an interactive session with toddlers. Following in my footsteps, my older one faithfully reads one book a day.
Game time: Game time can be on anytime, from the time they wake up until the time they have to sleep. There are many mothers who go out of their way and prepare organic games themselves. That is awesome too, but I’m not one of them so I resort to the store-bought games like Uno, Scrabble, Snakes and Ladders, Chess, Dobble, etc. My daughter hates to lose so she continues to play until she wins. And no, I don’t just let her win just because she is ‘small’. According to me, she needs to learn how to handle defeat. Indoor games is probably the most easiest activity where you can bond with your kids without any stress.
Indoor activities with toddlers
Did you know that your kitchen is the best classroom?
Indoor activity time: Sometimes, the siblings are left to play with each other. Other times, while the little one sleeps, my daughter and I paint. This enhances our creative skills while keeping the house mess-free. We also try and create some gorgeous hairstyles on her. When our toddler is awake, all three of us spend an hour dancing or, when I’m exhausted, playing ‘Simple Simon’. House chores come under this category too. They love helping me hang the clothes to dry, or mixing something in the kitchen. Play-dates and sleepovers are also a great way for them to indulge in various indoor activities.
Family screen time
Screen time: I agree that watching the ‘idiot box’ for a long time is not good for the eyes but now-a-days there are loads of educative cartoons on it. Dora the Explorer has taught my child Spanish numbers and ideas on how to follow a path. Baby TV has educated my children in a number of ways, so, limited device time has proven to be beneficial to us. Read more here.
Evening walks with kids
Evening walks: Nothing is more memorable than going on long leisure walks with your parents, so, why not make those memories for our children, too? Besides, walking, in fresh air, is very important as it improves your overall health and strengthens your muscles. I try to go for my evening walks, with the kids, as much as possible.
Day trip to Lepakshi
Beach time with kids
Travelling to places: Travelling with your children during the holidays is a great thing because they become smarter, feel happier and get a different kind of exposure. I read somewhere that there can be improvements in a child’s attention and concentration levels even if they spent twenty minutes with nature. Try and do a day trip, if not an international one, so that they are aware of the various places they visit. . Take them to a beach. A family trip to the beach enhances collaboration between children, calms them down and injects some fun into their world. Read here about our trip with the kids to THAILAND!
Shopping with kids
Mall visits: Whenever possible, I drive the kids to a mall or a play zone close by. I try and avoid going on weekends because it is overcrowded. Weekdays are the best if you want to enjoy the mall or play zone facilities to the maximum and not worry about losing your child in the crowd. Plus the kids have plenty of space to walk freely while shopping or window shopping.
Read How to plan activities with your kids.
Learning Activity kits
Learning activity kits: There are several learning activity kits in the market today. Intellikit, Flintobox and the like. We have used the former and were quite happy with what we got to know my little one wasn’t aware of. He speaks a lot but I realized that he did not know how to count so began teaching him with the learning activities and worksheets available in the kit.
Everyone has their own views on how we should bring up children and how much of time they should spend with them. I’m a mother of young children, so perhaps the above works for similar mothers like me. I mean it is way easier to play and dance with the younger children than with the older ones unless you have built that kind of rapport with them. If you know someone who would benefit from the above pointers, do share it with them. Or if you have some more points that I can add up here, please do mention it in the comments below. Cheers and have a happy holiday!
Little Chef
#LetsBlogwithPri is a Blog Train hosted by Prisha Lalwani, Author at Mummasaurus. I wholeheartedly thank Shreya Gautam, Author at Four Tiny Feet, for introducing me in her blog about how we can get vacation ready. Also, I would like to introduce Gayatri Deshmukh, Author at MotherlyMess. Do read her blog on how to get your kids to sleep.
Hosted By :Prisha Lalwani Mummasaurus.com IG: @mummasaurus1 FB: /mummasaurus1
30 Comments
With the current scenario of lockdown these tips are going to prove really helpful for parents.
This is great! It is a great time to bond and there is so much to do… You have covered all the interesting activities
Activities and doing some household work is what we prefer and my nephew loves doing at home
such nice tips you have mentioned. Right now we are bonding over cooking and puzzles!!! And I am also running out of ideas!!
These are some really good ideas. I think we as a family engage in almost all the ideas, playing, dancing, gardening together. I haven’t enrolled my son yet in any summer camp though.
Loved the post Cindy, very heartfelt and equally enriching buddy
What a lovely captures of your family in the pictures. Yes bond gets stronger when we play with our kids, I too dance with kids that is so much fun.
Some great tips to let the little ones enjoy themselves and learn too.It all depends on whether we can lead by example too.
Keeping them as entertained as possible staying at home. Kids are also cooperating.
We tarvel a lot for summer, but once back home I try to fit in atleast one meaningful activity in the week. It could be visit to the aquarium, grwoing a green patch or similar! Loved your tips, esp using the intellekit box! Definately somethinh I want to explore
It’s important to balance the playing and learning activities especially during holidays. These tips gives Proper approach in dealing with it
In my childhood, I never miss attending a summer camp and now I always make sure my kids attend too, so that they learn something new and interesting.
I don’t believe in planning activities for vacations. It’s a new day and a new thing everyday. Indoor or outdoor, time spent with kids just for fun is the best.
Your suggestions are on point, Cindy! Also, great pics as usual. Another helpful post.
great list and I agree being creative is best way to spend time with kids. I do crafting with my girls and we three always had a great time together while doing this.
Hey such cool activities to do together with your kids. Craft, art or even Sharing screen time together. Awaiting the Summer Holidays now.
We began with the summer holidays on 6th March this year due to covid19. Where do you live?
Good time to reshare your post because we find ourselves in the midst of finding ways to keep our kids engaged at home. I am trying to engage my older one in books, given him household chores and encouraging him to write some stories 🙂
I like to keep summer break a combination of fun and studies. Kids work hard year round and they follow a certain routine. Summer break is the time for them and us to relax.
We do baking, spend time at the library events, park picnics etc.
[…] course, there are other ways you can bond with your kids during normal holidays but I thought one or two hours a day for screen time, during these covid19 days, should not be […]
My little one loves Dora too, loved reading this post. I agree spending quality time with kids is really important and like you mentioned there are so many options we can choose from. Beautiful pictures 🙂
Thanks dear!
That’s amazing cindy.. I think you have covered everything extensively..
Thanks Shreya!
It iS’nt enough that we tell our children that we love them. We need to put our love into action every day to for them to feel it. Great ideas cindy. 👍👍
Very infor.ative post cindy. Just what was needed for planning their vacay. Like you, i too believe in keeping it slow during the summer holidays. No alarms, no racing to catch up on things. When it comes to summer camps, i prefer keeping the kids at home than taking them out for summer camps in this scorching heat. They need to rest too and enjoy the day, which they cant during the school days.
Glad we think alike! High five!
I too love spending time with my kids crafting or painting together. More bonding and fun.
Very true!
What you said about summer camps is so true.. I am glad I am not the only one who thinks like that.. They are more of a punishment for me.. Apart from that, you have covered interesting activities… Good luck!!