I have been such a stress case lately, you guys. We’ve been the kind of busy where I’m writing down to dos in 10 minute increments so, heaven forbid, there is not a minute wasted. It’s okay long-term because I know it’s not going to last forever, and we have really amazing things happening in our lives right now that also happen to be totally time-consuming. The main issue is I feel terrible because I’ve been pretty much asking my kids to raise themselves these couple of weeks (“Why would you cook the bouillabaisse on high, Bennett?!?!?).

And, because I’m running around, I’m constantly handing the kids things to distract them but not really connecting with them, which is making them irritable and attention-seeking, which makes me feel like I’m going crazy because all I need to do is make one phone call without screaming in the background, which makes them feel even more ignored and crazy and the cycle gets worse and worse.

It suddenly hit me the other day. Um, I actually write a blog about easy ways to have fun with kids so maybe it’s time to walk the talk?! The thing is, I don’t think kids need a ton of attention, but they do need high-quality, highly-concentrated attention. It’s like when your husband comes home from work and really listens to you talk about your day and suddenly the thrown milk and Target melt-down seem funny rather than sob-worthy. If he only half-listens, you start chronicling all the ways your life is harder than his and before you know it you’re in a full-blown tantrum mode (not that I know anything about this).

Once your love meter is back up to full, you don’t need to throw tantrums to feel seen. Plus, it’s fun to have giggle and laugh with your kids, and it’s the world’s best reminder of what’s really important.

So, I’ve put together a bunch of mind-blowingly, easy ways to have fun with your kids. Most of them you’ll probably be like “duh”, that’s so simple. But there are a couple (my never-fails high five trick, an indoor snowball fight, and a twist on 20 Questions) that should probably come with a Fun Warning because they’re so hilarious your kids are going to lose their minds (I’m not tooting my own horn here – you pull the high-five one at a party and tell me you’re not the most popular parent there).

None of them take more than a couple of minutes, but they’ll be such awesome minutes that your kids will feel well-loved and independent, and you’ll feel like the rock star parent that you are. They work extra-well while waiting for food in a restaurant, times when you have people coming over and still need to put on make-up, and when you need to write an important email without extra hands on the keyboard.

I’ve been testing them out these past couple of days and they work! Not completely, of course. I mean, they’re kids and they have A LOT of immediate needs (WHERE IS MY THOMAS?!?), but I feel like we’re back on the fun track where I’m getting a kick out of them rather than seeing them as a impediment to getting things checked off my list (it was only one day, but, man, it was a long day).

You can download it here and if you do end up doing any of the activities, I would pretty much die to see them. Just tag them #easyfunHF on Instagram and watch me scream with joy. Or add your own and watch us all scream for joy. Also, if any ideas don’t make sense, please let me know! I want this to be a valuable tool you can pull out when you need a quick idea for fun.

So let’s go make make some kids happy! And then get things done! Or sit and read a magazine! (All right, I’ll stop it with the crazy talk.)

xx. Kara

Links:

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