10 ways to spend quality time with your kids

As mums we have never ending to do lists, which can leave us with very little time to spend with our kids, despite our best intentions.

However, time goes fast, and before we know it our kids won’t actually want to spend much time with us.

So, if you’d like to start spending quality time with your kids while you can, here are 10 ways that you can do so, and if you’re looking for even more ideas, here are 5 easy ways to spend quality time with your kids, so you can maximise your time with them.

Engage in conversation

If your kids are anything like mine, it can be really hard to start a conversation with them, which means that sometimes it’s best to engage in conversation when they’re in a talking mood.

Next time your child is talking to you about something, no matter what they’re talking about, use it as an opportunity to stop what you’re doing and really listen to what they’re saying.

Ask them questions, and answer their questions, then when you can subtly change the subject and start asking them questions about things you normally don’t get answers to, such as how was school, what’s your favourite school lunch, who did you play with today, etc.

Build on routines

Routines can be a way for us to get things moving, such as bedtime routines to get our kids into bed, or toothbrushing routines to get your toddler to brush their teeth.

Next time you’re about to start a routine, instead of rushing through it, you could try to turn it into quality time.

For example, you could sing songs to your toddler while they’re brushing their teeth to make them brush longer, and to spend some time with them.

Or you could use a bedtime routine with an older child to start a conversation, or find out what their favourite hobbies are.

Celebrate achievements

Celebrating achievements is a great way to spend quality time with your kids, as well as make them feel proud about what they’ve accomplished.

Some examples of this could be to start a back to school tradition where you take your child out for ice cream on their first day of school, or treat them to their favourite food if they’ve done something they used to be scared of.

Let them choose

Letting your child choose an activity they’d like to do with you during your quality time is a great way to let them know that you care about their opinions, plus it may even get you out of your comfort zone.

Feed the ducks

Feeing ducks is a great activity to do with younger children, and best of all it’s free.

Get out of the house

There are many things you can do out of the house when spending time with your kids, including visiting the library, a playground, museum, or zoo, or taking an art class, going bowling, or seeing a movie.

Have a family night

Spending quality time with your kids doesn’t have to be a one on one, or one to many activity, it can involve the whole family by having a family night.

Some things that you could do during a family night include watching family friendly movies, playing board games, or putting on a play.

Do some baking

Baking is something that many kids enjoy, which may be due to the mess they’re able to make, or if baking sweet treats, the fact they get to taste test along the way.

Although it’s messy, baking with kids is a great way to have some fun with them, as well as teach them some skills they’ll need when they’re older.

Travelling with kids

Travelling with kids is a culture enriching way of spending quality time with them, and it allows you to spend more time than you would with them normally because the demands of your normal day to day life aren’t present.

Start reading

Reading with your kids not only increases their imagination, but also allows you both to wind down, especially if done before bedtime.

Reading is something you can do with kids of any age, as you can read picture books to babies, read interactive books for 2 year olds or read chapter books for 6 year olds.

You could even visit a bookstore or library together so your kids can choose some books to read during your book reading sessions.

Spending quality time with your kids is a great way to build on the bonds you have with them, enhance their emotional and social skills, and make them feel appreciated and loved.

How do you spend quality time with your kids?