Play Together, Stay Together

I can’t remember how many times I have heard, “A family that plays together stays together.” (Okay, I’ve also heard it put, “A family that prays together stays together,” too.) But just ask yourself these questions and apply them to my favorite question that I ask myself to determine if something is true: “If people of the world would do this, would the world be a better place to raise my family in?” If you can answer with an exclamation, “Yes!” Then, in my opinion, it’s a pretty good idea to try and apply the idea.

So, with the above in mind, consider playing with your children. Children are a great excuse “to play.” My mother is staying with me right now and she said yesterday when a few of my grandchildren were playing, “I wish I could be your grandchild. I want to play, too.” I told her she could play, too. And almost she cried, “I can’t. It’s too hard to get up and down.” Trust me, I know the years pass all too quickly. Soon, I will be in my mother’s position and my children will be in mine. But perhaps if I can take learning from what my mother said, I can stay younger by continuing to play with my grandchildren. Parents, you too can play with your children. Turn off the television. Turn of the video games (at least for a while) and test the benefits of playing (spending quality time) with your children. Kids talk when they play, and they don’t have to get your attention because they already have it if you’re playing with them. Some of my children still talk about the season of our lives when Jeff (my husband) devoted 1/2 hour every Sunday by playing with each child doing whatever they wanted to do. (Happy memories—not of what they played but that dad played with them.) I am sure you have many inside Board Games and card games. Play them often when outside weather encourages it. With Spring here may I suggest some outside activities: walks, hide and seek, croquet, badminton, tennis, basketball, any kind of ball, hopscotch, jump rope, roller skating, hiking, gardening, exploring, learning outdoor cooking skills, biking. You get the idea. Please, just spend lots of time with your children. I know you will never be sorry.