10 Things to do with the Family During a Shelter in Place Order
With a shelter in place order still being enforced, families may be running out of things to do. The time is growing short for the order to be lifted and we are headed quickly towards returning to a regular routine. However, as many know those last couple of weeks could drag on without distractions.
Number 10 is a have a back-yard camp out. Go all out and limit trips to the house to bathroom breaks and getting items that must be kept cold in the fridge. This is camping old school. No electronic devices. Radios are permitted. Singing and talking around a camp fire can create some fantastic memories.
Number 9 Camping may not be your families thing. How about an evening around the fire pit? You can still have some of the finer points of camping but without the discomfort of sleeping in a tent. Have hot cocoa, roast marsh mellows and tell stories or memories about your heritage.
Number 8 Cook a meal as a family. I am not talking about opening a box of mac and cheese. I am talking about looking up a recipe that you have not cooked before. The more intricate the better. Stews or braising recipes can be fun and time consuming, giving your family ample time to connect, talk and build a memory they will remember for years to come.
Number 7 Build a scrap book. Have everyone take about an hour, going through things and bring their ideas and items to the session. As you build the scrap book you will naturally talk about the ideas and what they mean to each of you.
Number 6 Photo album viewing. Similar to scrap booking except you will relive the memories as everyone sees photos that remind them of a certain special time. You would be surprised how many great memories made were once forgotten till looking at the photo album. This could be an online photo album as well. I suggest cast the media to your tv if you have the technology which is built into most new phones and tv’s.
Number 5 Yard work. I know you will probably hate me for suggesting it. But good old fashion elbow grease applied to yard work is a great way to bond. I know this first hand and is one of my wife’s favorite things to do together. Just keep in mind that this is suppose to create a bonding experience and not so much about just knocking out some yard work. So, Dad, settle down and just enjoy the family time.
Number 4 Movie night. But do it up right. Turn the lights off. Turn the a/c up till it’s a fridge. Snuggle under one big blanket and put on scary movie. Popcorn is mandatory. Candy and soda are optional but highly recommended.
Number 3 Game night. Pull out all those old board games collecting dust. To make it more exciting, divide up into teams or sides and create a game.. Olympics. Each game one earns points with a set amount of games or points till the winner is declared. Loser cooks breakfast for everyone the next morning. I would include puzzles as well.
Number 2 Arts and crafts time. Different people are good at different things and excel better at different arts. Some ideas: finger painting, hand puppets out of socks, drawing, even photography. If you have the items like construction paper, glitter, glue, map pencils and markers the mind can create some interesting art. Something a lot of people over look now but was a basic requirement in art class is paper mâché. Most have the tools. You just need flour, water and old newspapers. Hopefully, you should have a bunch of old Olney Enterprise newspapers laying around. There are a ton of ideas on Pinterest and other online sources.
Number 1 For me the most important activity of all, Bible study. There is a vast amount of material to choose from. Think about what the family members have been wrestling with or worried about lately. Online searches can greatly help to find what books and verses to address the issues you want to help your family with. Biblestudytools. com is my go-to when I have trouble thinking of the book or verse that best helps my situation. Be sure to open the study time with a prayer. Make sure to give everyone a chance to read. Set aside time for questions and discussion. Lastly do a prayer circle to close. Each person gets a turn to pray with the last person closing the prayer.
Hopefully some of these ideas will help you get through the last days of the shelter in place. These ideas are good even if you’re not in lock down as well. Keep your time filled with activities and your quiet times filled with prayer and before you know it, your routine will be back to normal. Later, you will look back at this time as the time your family grew closer and created memories to last a lifetime.