2021 was really something! Whew!
I had so many plans and so many ideas for me and my family that just didn’t come true! Lord!
I had so many things that I wanted to do with my kids but EVERYTHING was up in the air because of COVID!
I was really excited about our ventures and excursions and it all came to a halt.
Unfortunately, we didn’t have a backup plan... like at all. However, when I stop and think about all that we accomplished this year on lockdown.. I realized that 2021 wasn’t all that bad.
We got creative and found so many jewels this year when we started to count our blessings!
We had a chance to really grow as a family and to bond together like never before.. We were in quarantine and made the best of the time as much as we could.
2022 is upon us so as we celebrate, party and prepare for 2022, I believe that there are ways that we can plan ahead — Prepare for the unexpected and create a bucket list for this year no matter what is happening in our world!
We can do lots of fun things and I want to share some of our ideas those with you!
Creating a bucket list doesn’t have to be hard! Actually the more simple it is, the better.
It’s all about doing something fun and different once a month for the whole year... together!
This bucket list is something that should be really simple for you guys to do and commit to making happen once a month.
With a little preparation and aligning of schedules (if you are busy like my family and I are) you will have a whole year worth of fun activities to remember the year by!
But by all means, don’t hold back for my sake! This bucket list can be extravagant and over the top if you’d like it to be!
You can go ahead mix it up!
The goal here is really to take time to soak in the goodness of the year with the ones you love.
What a way to ring in the new year together!
What better way to do this than creating a bucket list that you all can agree on together?!
When the clock strikes 12 you will have a plan for what you will cross off each month of the year and you'll also have those memories to last a lifetime!
Below is a list of family fun ideas to get your mind turning. I hope this list can be a place of reference for you to enjoy your own family fun nights! And even more than a place of reference, I hope it will be a springboard for you to think up many more ideas uniquely suited to your own family!
This list is meant to offer simple ideas. If it gets too complicated, the chances of the family night happening dwindle significantly.
Many of these ideas can be used alone, but it’s also fun to combine a few. Often we will do a short family devotional, followed by a board game. We might have a pillow fight or watch a movie.
I have kids in different stages of life so I have to mix mine up a bit to be fair. You should do what works for you and your kiddos but make sure that you set aside time once a month to do cross things off the list.
1. Have a Family Devotional
Simply reading and discussing a bible story is enough. When our kids were younger, we would read from the Bible and then have the kids act out the story. It was a fun way for them to connect
with the story, acting it out seemed to help them remember it too!
2. Play a Board Game (or card game like UNO. .)
Some of our favorites:
Qwirkle
Settlers of Catan
Risk
Clue
Blokus
Card games
Dominoes
Pictionary
Wildcraft: A Herbal Learning Adventure Game
Ticket to Ride
Games for kids under 5 years old:
(Some of these games have small parts and are not intended for children under 3 years of age. Check appropriately).
Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel
Chutes and Ladders
Hi-Ho Cherry-O
3. Camp Out in the Living Room
You might not get much sleep, but you’ll make a lot of memories. Drag out the sleeping bags and set them up in the living room. Have some snacks, tell stories, play a few card games, and call it a night.
4. Camp in the Backyard
Want to go one step further than a camp out in the living room? Head to the backyard! Set up the tent, roast marshmallows (if possible) and generally have a good time pretending you are n the wilderness.
5. Listen to an Audio Book Together
My family has enjoyed listening to a few awesome audiobooks together. The kids usually get out some paper and draw pictures while they listen.
Sometimes William will help Lyric write or toss a ball back and forth with Power while the book plays.
6. Have a Family Art Creation Day
A family creation day is a great way to get creative together as a family. You can draw individually (but together) or work on a family project. Take the canvas masterpiece and hang it on your walls prominently!
7. Have a Cooking Night
This one is pretty simple: get in the kitchen together.
Have a pizza-making party, where all the ingredients are on the tables and everyone gets to create their own pizza. Decorate cupcakes, bake cookies or try creating an international dish, or perhaps bake up something you’ve read about in one of the stories you’ve been reading (For example, if you’ve been reading Paddington Bear, learn how to make scones and marmalade!).
8. Have a Movie night
This is straight forward, I know. BUT, how often do you actually sit down and watch a movie WITH your kids? I know I often use the time they are watching a movie to get things done. I tend to distract them so that I can get a few minutes to myself (judge yourself haha)
But, wow, do they ever love it when I snuggle up with them and actually pay attention (and not mess around on my phone or the computer).
Movie nights are pretty common but you can get creative for this bucket list item!
9. Outreach Night
Spend a night working on ways to reach out to your community or the world-at-large. With so much happening in the world, everyone can use some Christmas cheer.
Some ideas:
create a care package to send to a missionary
make care packages for the homeless
write letters to those in the military
write letters to people who need encouragement
visit a nursing home
make blankets for critically ill children
For Christmas, we had an outreach night and we all went and loved on our displaced community and homeless.
This was something that we do often but now that the littles are getting bigger, it's even more memorable!
10. Have a rummage sale!
Everyone is always wearing my clothes or someone is always getting their toys taken by another sibling! Make a fun day out of pricing your items and then selling them to a family member! Freedom has the most money in the house and she can't wait to buy up Honour's old toys. They LOVE this!
11. Hang Out around the Fire Pit
Fire pits have a tendency to add a happy atmosphere and fun to any gathering (and a little stress if you are the mother of young children – just keeping it here!).
Roast hot dogs and marshmallows, sing songs, tell stories, have a discussion, plan a trip.
Anything goes. Pass the time and lean in!
12. Have a Craft Night
Similar to the family art night , a craft night is a great way to get creative together.
To make it easy, go to the craft store and buy some packages of craft kits, that way the crafts are ready to go!
Headbands are really easy!
I personally enjoy making things that are useful, rather than stuff that creates more clutter.
Keepsake crafts, like this canvas handprint wall set, are fun too.