4 Ways to Spend Quality Family Time Together
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Pampers at Sam’s Club. The opinions and text are all mine.
Mom life is crazy. Running around from one activity to the next. Trying to keep everyone fed and clothed while simultaneously keeping the house stocked with essentials and spending quality family time together isn’t easy.
In 2017 we finally got into our groove after moving to Colorado in 2016. We figured out how to get to the mall without a GPS, and how to fit six people and a dog in a three bedroom apartment and not hurt each other.
Towards to the end of 2017, I finally felt like I could breathe again. It was time.
Time to take back control of the chaos that is family life with four kids. To give back the title Hot Mess Mama, because that will no longer define me. 2018 is the year of peace and organization.
But how? In my reflection of 2017, I realized that life felt more chaotic when we were running all over the place without clear goals. We might have physically been together as family but we were distracted with life and work. It was when we were spending quality family time together that our kids seemed to listen better. There were less attitudes from all parties, and we genuinely had fun together.
Here are five ways to calm the chaos that is life with kids and spend more intentional time together.
4 Ways to Spend Quality Family Time Together
1. Be intentional with the time you spend with your family. Whether it’s a day trip to Garden of the Gods, watching a sunset at Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, or driving through Rocky Mountain National Park, putting away the phone and focusing on your family will reap huge rewards.
2. Stock up to save money as well as reducing the trips to the grocery store. As moms, we spend a lot of time in the car. A LOT of time. Save money on gas and stop wasting time by stocking up on essentials while you’re already at the store.
This can include essentials such toilet paper, paper towels, toothbrushes and toothpaste, shampoo and conditioner, dish soap, baking soda, along with diapers and wipes. Sit down and make a list of everything that you use in a day. What about a week? See which items aren’t perishable and stock up the next time they are on sale.
For example, right now, you can get an instant $10 off when you buy 2 Pampers products at Sam’s Club, making it easy to keep your babies comfortable and dry. Our favorites are Pampers Swaddlers because they have the wet strip that tells you when baby is wet. When they start moving and grooving, Pampers Cruisers are our go-to diapers. They have yet to fail us even after the biggest of messes. Pampers Sensitive Baby Wipes are our favorite wipes. We keep wipes in the car, in my purse, and in several places throughout the house. They are great for diaper changes as well as to clean up other messes throughout the day.Stock up now and save money later.
3. Implement a family movie night at least once a month. My favorite is to have everyone get ready for bed – teeth brushed, pajamas on, go potty. Everything. Instead of sending everyone to their bed though, I send them to the couch and we watch a movie. Sometimes, we all pile in my bed and have a “sleepover” where they return to their beds at the end of the movie. They LOVE the surprise movies and we’re creating memories.
4. Read books together with your kids. Whether it be before bed or listening to audiobooks in the car, read books together. They don’t all have to be picture books. Right now we’re reading the Chronicles of Narnia book series and Matilda. We recently bought The Magic Treehouse books on CD, along with Little House on the Prairie books on CD. There is something magical that happens when you read together. It opens doors to communication that you didn’t think was possible. Reading helps calm our kids before bed and gives their bodies time to rest during the day as they listen to the stories.
Do you have a resolution to spend more quality time together this year? Maybe you want to find peace in the chaos. The key to any resolution is to keep it simple. When we overthink resolutions, we complicate them and then they become unattainable. Keep it simple and you’re more likely to follow through and reach your goals.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Pampers at Sam’s Club. The opinions and text are all mine.
