Slow it down
My kids are constantly looking for something to do or looking for dad to be the Team Sprad Recreation Director.
- “Dad, will you take me fishing”
- “Dad, let’s go rock climbing”
- “Dad, can we go out to eat”
- “Dad, lets go snowboarding”
- “Dad, can we go to Six Flags”
- “Dad, let’s go get ice cream”
- “Dad, let’s ride dirt bikes”
- “Dad, can we watch a movie on Netflix or Redbox”
- “Dad, can we go to the pool”
I am learning that I have taught my kids that life should always be about rollercoasters, last second shots, big air, quadruple brownie hot fudge sundays with extra cherries and the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
The reality of life is that much of it is mundane, routine and even kind of boring. I am working to reverse this curse by boring my kids. Here is a few things I am trying to reverse the curse of high expectations in my kids…
- Eat at home more often
- Play more board games and legos
- Turn off the tv and spend time together doing nothing (wow…novel idea)
- Playing catch in the front yard
- Family bike ride around the neighborhood
- Spend a Fam Night at home
- Have a “stay-cation”, take a week off and hang around the house
- Create space for “creativity”…have your kids invent a product, business, write a book or____________________(fill in the blank)
- Spend time in God’s Word (give them stuff to read each night before they go to bed)
- Give them the family video cam, video editing software and let them create
- Re-arrange their room they way they want to
In my role as dad I have taught my kids that every moment in life should be chalked full of dirtbikes, going, fishing, cheer, staying busy, eating out, playing sports, skating, rock climbing, movies, swimming, hiking and biking just to name a few.
However, i am realizing that our role as parents is to train our kids that life is not always “a box of chocolates” or one big fun “roller coaster ride”. I believe that when we intentionally bore our kids, creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship will thrive!
What is 1 thing that you need to STOP doing & START doing to teach your kids contentedness in life?
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