Ways to Build a Stronger Family Bond

Family is one of the most important things we have in this world. They are the ones who will have our backs in any situation, the people we can count on to help us out of a struggle, and the people who will love us no matter what. Families are a gift and many people may not realized that until it is too late. Even if your family is close and enjoys spending time together, there are most likely moments when your family doesn’t get along as much as you wish they did. Teens think parents and younger siblings are annoying, younger kids that their teenaged siblings are mean and grumpy. And parents wish their kids would just get along.

It can be hard to bring the family together, especially during the busy school year. But there are many simple things you can incorporate into your life to bring the family closer and help everyone bond. Creating a strong and loving family is every parent’s wish, but you have to put in the work to get your family to become closer.

At Resurrection Christian School, we believe that family is one of the most important things. While your blood-related family is important, we also build a family culture at our school, allowing everyone to feel welcome and respected. Our students are important to us and we know that their home lives matter so much more than anything else, which is why we encourage parents to spend quality time with their children and work to build and strengthen those important bonds.

In this blog, we are going to give you simple way to help build your families bond. These should be easy to incorporate into your lives, and even adding one should help to strengthen your family. Read on for more tips of building stronger bonds within your family.

Eat Dinner Together

We know that life is busy. Your kids are busy with homework and sports, you are busy with work and running your kiddos around town. It can be hard to find time to sit down together and enjoy dinner as a family. But surely, this is not the case every night. Make a point to eat dinner together at least once a week, but shoot for three or more nights. Dinner is a great time for families to bond. It is a time that allows you to catch up, ask about each others day, and simply talk. With so many busy schedules, this time spent together is generally very limited—which is why it is so important to spend dinner together.

Plan for a family dinner a few nights a week and let everyone know so that they do not make other plans. Make dinner or even order pizza and eat dinner at the kitchen table, not in from of the TV. The TV distracts for talking to your family and making those special connections. Eating dinner as a  family may not seem like it is super important, but it can make all the difference.

Stay Active Together

Not only is staying active important anyways, but staying active with your family is something fun that can help you bond over something else. Plus, staying active with your children can teach them to stay active and live a healthier life. According to PBS Parents, parents who eat healthy and exercise with their children regularly teach their children valuable lessons about staying healthy and active.

But we are talking about bonding, not teaching your kids how to be active. Getting outside on the weekends or after school to go on a bike ride, go for a walk, play a game of catch, or even shoot some hoops can be just another way to bond with your children. But try to do something your kids will enjoy. Forcing them to play catch when all they want to do is ride their bike around the neighborhood may cause them to avoid these outdoor family moments. Take your family hiking on weekends, head up to Rocky Mountain National Park, or go hang out at Horsetooth Reservoir (this will be easier in the summer). Colorado is a great place for outdoor adventures and your kids will love exploring the woods in our beautiful mountains.  

Don’t Always Force Family Time

While family time is always good, forcing your family to spend too much family time together may cause them to resent that time spent together. Let your kids have time to do their own things like hang out with friends, do their homework, or just spend time by themselves. Make a plan to have a family night once a week plus family dinners every few days and then let your kids have some time away from the family. Forcing your children, especially teens, to hang out with the family every night may backfire.

Give Them Options

While you shouldn’t force your kids to hang out every night, giving them options can help. Plan movie nights, game nights, after dinner walks, and other events throughout the week that your kids can either participate in or not. Giving them the option to do their own thing but planning fun family activities can help. When one of your kids joins in, the others will be likely to join in as well. Pretty soon, these optional family time activities will become popular in your household and your kids may start looking forward to them.

Plan Family Meetings

An article from Verywell Family mentions that family meetings are another good way to catch up and discuss other important family matters. These meetings can be scheduled or held randomly whenever a member of the family feels the need for one. Keep these meetings organized and make sure everyone gets a chance to talk if they want to. It is easy to go around the circle and have everyone say what they need to say and then talk about other issues as a family at the end.

These meetings are a great way to keep your family communicating and discuss different issues. They can help keep everyone in the loop and allow your kids to feel as though their voice is being heard. Talking as a family is a great way to bond and allow every member of the family to say whatever they feel necessary.

Volunteer as a Family

An article from the Huffington Post, states that volunteering has been scientifically proven to help people feel more socially connected. Volunteering with your family is a great way to give back to the community while also spending quality time with your family. Helping the community can also help your kiddos realize how lucky they are and how much they take for granted. These volunteer moment may make them appreciate their siblings and loving parents even more. Plus, giving back to the community and helping out those in need is a great way to spend your time and will leave your feeling great.

Let Your Children Pick

While you may plan some awesome game nights, letting your children pick what you do as a family can help them become more interested and excited about family time. Let one of your children pick something to do that week and the next week pick another kid. But you should also create some rules for this, like everyone has to do their siblings activity, it can’t be something that is overly expensive (perhaps make a price limit), and it has to be something the entire family can do. These rules can help keep all of the options fun and easy to do and help remind your children that they have to partake in the other kids choices.

Break The Rules

Now, we aren’t talking about majorly breaking the rules. But having a little fun is good for the family. Taking a day off together to go sledding or play in the freshly fallen snow is a great way to get the kids excited about family time. Taking snow days or personal days off of work and school will be a fun surprise for your kids and can make family bonding even more exciting.

There are many different ways to create a stronger family bond, spending time together and talking openly with your kiddos is a great place to start. Plan fun and different family activities, give your children options, and get everyone involved. Building a better bond among your family members may be tricky at times, but overtime, you can help create a family that is full of love, support, and respect for one another, and actually enjoy being around each other.

At Resurrection Christian School, we provide an environment that is just that—loving, supportive, and respectful. At our school, we believe that family is one of the most important things in this world. Your family is a gift and every member should realize that. Bring your family together and build a stronger bond with these simple and effective methods. Learn more about our school and what we believe in. Contact us today to get your questions answered.