With all of the kids out of the house we have plenty of time that was once used on attending concerts, banquets, races, plays, hosting teenagers at our house, etc. that is now available for whatever. It’s really easy to just sit and watch T.V., or do some other unproductive thing. So Scott and I decided to create a list of things that we could do together. We call it “mandatory fun”. That title came from an experience one of our daughters had. She was a counselor for a youth camp for several summers and one of the counselors she worked with would title an activity, which was actually enjoyable, that everyone had to do “mandatory fun”. It’s become a term that we started using in our family. Years ago, I thought we should all go on a bike ride. Not everyone was excited to go but I declared it to be “mandatory fun” and off we went. And guess what?! We had fun! “Mandatory fun” may start out as something you don’t want to do but it gets you away from the norm and in the end, more often than not, you DO have fun – hence the name “mandatory fun”. It pushes you to try something new or something you used to do or something you don’t want to do but someone else does. It might get you out of the house or perhaps it gets you to spend time with friends you haven’t seen in a while. In short, it makes for a more interesting, creative, active, adventurous, and FUN life.
Here are some of our current “Mandatory Fun” items.
- Woodworking
- Piano/Flute duet
- Art
- Puzzles
- Research random topics/Kahn Academy
- Service
- Nature ID
- Ding Dong ditching
- Baking/Food
- Research a city and then go
- Sports
- Book club
So what are you waiting for?! Make a list or even just be spontaneous. Get out there and have some fun-even if it is mandatory!
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