Most family activities are extremely overpriced and a day out can often end up costing a small fortune. The cost of entry, snacks, car parking, and the occasional treat on the journey home can add up quickly.
But there are lots of memories and times together that don’t have to cost anything. Children remember having fun with their families more than they remember expensive days out.
I have listed 5 ways to have quality family time without breaking the bank.
1. Turn an Ordinary Walk Into an Adventure
Turn a boring walk around the neighborhood into a family adventure. Even simple activities can be made more interesting with a few twists. Set up a short scavenger hunt before you leave for the walk and give your kids various items to search for.
Make a short list of things for them to find on the walk (e.g. a red door, a bird’s nest, a yellow flower, a cloud that looks like something). You can choose things for them to collect as well (e.g. fallen leaves).
Younger children can look for items such as fallen leaves to collect and even count how many dogs they see. Older children can even take photos to show off their finds.
The unexpected can bring the most joy, and often it’s something that hasn’t been planned for. As you amble along you might notice a tiny snail making its way across the sidewalk and everyone will crouch down for a better look.
You will need to bring some water but apart from that this activity is very cost effective and fun for all the family. Let the kids decide which way to go at each cross roads.
Cost: Free.
2. Have a Living Room Campout
There is no need to head off to a campsite or to invest in lots of equipment to have a camping night.
After having reorganized the living room and equipped it with plenty of soft cushions, throw blankets, chairs and a lamp, build a very cozy “camping” hideaway by piling up bedsheets between chairs to form a four-walled “tent”. Bring some Flashlights and a big pile of pillows to rest on.
Allow each of your children to contribute to setting up their camp. For example, one could spread out the sleeping bags while another chooses snacks or reads a bed time story.
As you imagine building a tent like this within your living room, bear in mind that the roof collapses within the first few minutes and it’s quite a lot of fun to rebuild!
Turn out the main lights and have lots of fun making up your own stories to read to each other. Use flashlights and make amazing shadow pictures on the walls.
An indoor picnic will make a lovely pre-bedtime treat – remember to shake the crumbs out of the blankets before you go to bed!
Cost: Free if you use what you already have.
3. Make Dinner a Family Challenge
There’s no need for a complicated recipe and unusual kitchen items when you are planning to cook a meal together as a family.
Choose something you would normally be cooking for a family dinner. homemade pizzas, sandwiches, tacos and even pancakes can all be used for a family cooking challenge.
These jobs can vary depending on the child’s age and ability. Very young children can wash greens or spread cheese between two slices of bread. Older children can measure out ingredients, help to prepare ingredients, or even make their own food under close supervision.
Get creative by having a “funniest pizza face” contest using tomato slices, olives and peppers to create crazy and unusual faces and designs to put on your pizzas.
Things will get messy. Flour will be spilled on the countertops, a few toppings will fall to the floor, and perhaps someone will have eaten half of the cheese before it has even been put in the pan.
This activity won’t necessarily result in the perfect meal but it’s great fun sitting down and eating a meal that everyone in the family has contributed to.
Cost: Your usual grocery budget.
4. Explore Your Local Library
Libraries are so much more than just a stack of books.
This is far more than a collection of books and most libraries now have a variety of different things going on for children, such as story time, crafts, board games and more often than not, free and then to attend for the community.
An adventure to a library does not have to mean more books to read.
Let each child pick out a different book. Try to choose something a bit outside of the norm for each child. Look for space adventures, animals, mysteries, etc. Variety is the name of the game here!
Create a cozy reading corner at home and have the children take turns reading their favorite parts from the book that they chose. The younger children can explain the pictures in the book, while the older children can read the pages aloud to the rest of the family.
You can also check their calendar to see if they are hosting any activities, author readings or even events where you can borrow games, puzzles or even tickets to local events for free.
Cost: Usually free.
5. Plan a Backyard or Park Olympics
Be creative – have an “Olympics” of games that you can set up in your backyard or at a nearby park.
Using items you already have around the house, set up a series of simple competitions to test their skills. For example, fill a laundry basket with socks and see who can throw them in, tie their legs together for a three-legged race, or even try to balance a beanbag on their head and see how long they can manage to balance before falling over.
No yard? Take it to a park!
Kids have great ideas for “Games.” They can create a stack of books and try to knock them over. You can play Musical Chairs, with Parental supervision, of course. Set up a target using a variety of items such as pool noodles, hula hoops and sidewalk cones. Have kids take turns trying to toss a beanbag into the target.
Keep it light-hearted and award them with silly titles such as, ‘Best Victory Dance’ or ‘Most Creative Attempt’.
Cool – end with cool drinks and have a family photo of the champions!
Cost: Free.
The Best Part Doesn’t Cost Anything
You don’t have to fill your weekends with expensive days out to give your children a great childhood.
No special events or activities needed to have quality time with kids. A simple blanket fort, a walk with no particular destination in mind or even a messy dinner can become a treasured memory for your kids.
Just remember to pick one of these activities and put down your phone for the afternoon. The rest will take care of itself, and you will make some wonderful memories with your kids.