Fun might not seem like the obvious choice for a blog - it’s probably something many of us take for granted should just be part of life. But the reality is most of us can also identify with when life gets busy and stressful, and fun slips to the bottom of the agenda. Laughter increases our happy hormones, and reduces our stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. Fun is key to our well-being and definitely deserves to be a commitment we make to ourselves.
We might think that to restore a sense of fun to family life we have to make big, exciting plans, but sometimes the secret is actually to do the opposite of this and embrace the small moments. Parental guilt is real - especially today in the age of social media and so much awareness about parenting. We are often encouraged to think that fun means bigger and better, or that it means an activity that produces instagram worthy content and photos.
Yet, when we find new ways of thinking and remember that fun can be found in the small details of every day, in the journey, it can be transformative. We don’t have to plan big exciting (or costly) events and experiences to provide fun. It may be a cliche, but just as much fun can be found in a cardboard box as in the latest toy that the box contained.
One of the challenges can be that we get so swept up in daily life that we forget to include fun in the small moments. We can also get so focused on the task at hand - with the best of intentions - that we think this is what matters the most - we think that we have to get to the end of it, and that the outcome matters most.
One of the bonuses of having a child in our lives is that we have a reminder of how to be present, of how to enjoy the moment, and how to embrace pure joy without fear of judgement. They are experts at it, after all. They can take pleasure from the discovery of an ant on the pavement, from reading a book over and over again, from digging in sand for hours. They are experts at mindful moments because they focus on the process, on the moment, not on the end result.
Here are some tips for how we can remember to find the fun in the every day -
Create space for daily movement and ‘silly moments’ as a way of getting rid of cortisol by jumping, rolling, dancing, stretching, and running races.
Do a family brainstorm of the fun things you would like to do and next time you’re stuck for a plan, check the list for inspiration. You could have a box for free activities, another box for more costly ones or boxes for short or long activities. Fill each box with cards of ideas. Depending on finances and time, pick a card from the relevant box and you have a ready made idea.
Get creative with household chores into fun by making them a game or even turning them into a competition.
Introduce a regular family games night and hold family movie nights complete with popcorn and blankets to keep everyone cosy.
Make dinner time fun by having a weekly or monthly international dinner - pick a new culture or cuisine to cook and explore.
One of the biggest things we can do is to allow time and take our cues from the children - when they pause and enjoy the small things, we can challenge ourselves to forget everything else for just for a few minutes, and follow their lead of being truly in the moment.