Family- a word symbolizing love, warmth, togetherness and emotional security. We learn to love and share from our family; we learn to help and respect others from our family. One’s immediate family has always been the basic source of learning and security. Our surroundings and environment do certainly mould our personality, but it is the family values and ethics that ultimately always dominates.
A happy satisfied person is always invariably from a happy family background.
Therefore it is very important to bond as a family, whatever be our professional aims and ambitions. Nothing is more important than the family.
It is all the more important to make efforts for an emotionally satisfied family in today’s world, because now we mostly have nuclear families. The support of the joint family is missing and so the entire responsibility of building and sustaining a happy, satisfied family is on the young parents.
When both parents are working, conscious efforts have to be made to make the most of whatever time you get to spend with the kids. Expensive gifts can never compensate for the loving company the little ones expect from you. You need to connect with them emotionally. There are several simple ways to bond with your child during the time you get to be with her and thereby enrich her family life.
Tips to bond with your child
- Fix your time for work and play- Set out a family time for every day or week-ends, when your only aim is to have fun with the kids.
- Family meal time- Make it a point to have dinner together everyday. Share the day’s experience with each other on the dinner table.
- Watch your kid’s favorite cartoon programs with him.
- Go out for a fun movie together.
- Plan a family picnic or visit to places like planetarium, museums, parks etc. on weekends.
- Visit your relatives often, so that the children can know and bond with the entire family.
- Play outdoor games, board games or video games with the kids.
- Go for walks together.
- Explore unknown places with the kids. The adventure excites them, as they learn about new things as well as how to keep themselves safe in unknown circumstances.
- Story time- Snuggle up together in the bed and enjoy reading stories together.
- After dinner fun- Bedtime does not always mean story time. Idle gossip, jokes, pillow fights on the bed relaxes our mind and the kids go to sleep happy mood.
- Involve the kids in your Sunday routine- Bathe the pets and do the cleaning and gardening together.
- Explore Art- Visit exhibitions, fairs, theatre, music and dance programs with the kids. Expose the kids to the world of art and nature.
- Periodic vacations- Go on long trips with the family to explore new places. Going far away from home helps you forget your professional works and worries. Not only can you relax and enjoy, you also get time to observe your kids and understand them more. Even the train journey you do to reach the destination can become a memorable part of life, when you play, share and laugh together.
- Get creative- Take up origami, art and craft and create beautiful interesting things together.
- Make friends with and visit your child’s friend’s family during holidays.
Plan for the kids and also let them decide what they want to do with you. Whatever you do take time out from your work and play with the kids as friends and not as mentors. Caretakers, hobby classes, gifts, nothing can replace the time you spend with your kids.
The simple fun you share with the little ones while dressing them up for school and waving them goodbye on the school bus, has a lot more meaning for the child than the material gifts.
Children accept and adjust to the lifestyle they are put into from childhood without even realizing what they are missing. But unconsciously and without any fault of their own they get emotionally detached from the family. As they grow they start searching for company and comfort outside their home. Home becomes just a shelter and parents, just providers! The child may respect you and obey you, but he will not share his joys and sorrows with you. And that is certainly a painful situation for parents, when you know your child is in trouble, but you don’t know how and why!
Only by attending Parent –teacher –meetings does not make you a parent. You need to spend time with your child and assure her always of your unconditional love and concern. Children find emotional security in the loving authority of parents. The cushion of love, friendship and guidance that you give your child gives them the strength to face and explore the world outside.
Even when kids grow up and move out, the happy childhood memories and all the morals and ethics you taught them, keeps them glued to you as well as their own family. You pass on the legacy of a loving family to your off springs. And certainly there’s no other joy in the world greater than the joy of seeing your kids grow up and settle down happily! So grab any and every opportunity to be with and enjoy with the kids. Explore and discover life together.
An emotionally happy family makes a truly happy world!
