6. Plant a garden.
Bring a little life to your home and plant a garden! You can do this outside if it’s warm enough, or inside if you need some brightness in your gloomy days. Pant some seeds and watch them grow together as a family.
7. Cook your own food.
When life gets busy, it’s easy to find yourself eating out of a brown paper bag more often than we’d like to admit. If suddenly you find yourself grounded, spending time at home, make dinner time a family effort. Cook together—teach your kids how to make your favorite meal. Teach them how to make their favorite meal. Get creative with whatever is in your cabinets, or find a new recipe to try making together.
8. Play with your kids.
Another no-brainer, but when the days get busy and the schedules pile up, it can be weeks before we realize we haven’t played baseball in the front yard with our kids in a while. Get on your hands and knees, build the fort, play with the barbies, give each other makeovers, have wrestling matches…just do play time together as a family. If you’re stuck at home, there’s no better time to put the laundry down and have a little fun.
9. Read to your kids.
Go beyond bedtime. Turn off Netflix, put away the devices, cuddle up in a chair or on the couch and read to your kids. If they’re old enough, have your kids read to you. Pick your favorite books and read to each other. Have one person read and another act out the story. Spend time in the WORD with your kids. Model for them how to read scripture and talk to Jesus.
If suddenly you find yourself stuck inside, read together as a family.
10. Walk or play with your dog for longer than 20 minutes.
It’s easy to let the dog out the back door and give them a few minutes to “entertain themselves” in the yard. But why not make playing with the dog a family event? Grab a frisbee, throw a ball, or go on a walk and create something to do around the four-legged member of your family.
Being stuck at home doesn’t have to be bad. It just might give you the gift of time, and could save the American family. Don’t waste the gift.
