As a parent, do you ever find yourself at the end of the day wondering, “Did I connect with my kids today?”
I know I fed them, clothed them, taught them school all day and listened to their stories, but did I really connect? Is it just me that wonders this?
I tend to have a lot of grace for myself as a parent. I am not one to worry or pick apart my day. But there are definitely times when I think I could have engaged them more today.
Sometimes embarking on new behaviour can feel overwhelming and walking into your day overwhelmed is not helpful. I am a practical person that likes to break things down into manageable tasks that produce outcomes. Our goal here may be to establish heart connection but I believe it can be done with simple efforts throughout our day to engage our children in connecting moments.
I find it often easy to move around on autopilot and go throughout our day. But would happen if I changed what “autopilot” looked like? What if my “go to” was to look for the small things that would bring a smile to my child’s face and give us a moment of connection?
Here are some super simple things that I can add to my days and you to yours.
·If you’re walking past your kids – dance past them;
·Race to a tree or to the mailbox, etc.;
·Start a tickle fight;
·Pretend you’re hosting a cooking show while making lunch;
·Make up a secret handshake;
·Put a joke and a silly doodle in their lunch box;
·Have a car dance off on the way to school;
·Chase them up the stairs;
·Adopt the “smother mother” persona and hunt them down for cuddles;
·Randomly tell them something you like about them;
·Tell them you’re proud of them and for what;
·Ask them what they’re thankful for;
·Leave a gift on their pillow.
It only takes a moment to touch your child’s heart.
