Ways to Make More Time for Your Family

Time, or the lack of it, drives many of us to live at a frantic pace. There is an enormous cost to being in a chaotic rush each day. This year, renew your commitment to begin family traditions which make room for you to experience the true joy of family life.

1. Practice making choices by limiting after school/work activities.
2. Use a family-oriented calendar system to track each family members schedule and important reference information.
3. Turn off the TV to allow more time for reading, talking, playing and learning.
4. Enjoy food and meals together by making dinner “an oasis in time,” without interruption.
5. Make a weekly meal mandatory for everyone in the family to share.
6. Claim a tree or outdoor area as a spot to visit regularly to read together.
7. Cook double the quantity needed to save or freeze half for another night.
8. Participate in outdoor activities as a family including picking apples, hiking or riding bikes.Get enough sleep to help you feel rested and calm.
9. Specify a night to spend at home to eat pizza, play games and talk.

“Parents fight a daily battle as they try not only to meet all their responsibilities for work, caregiving, and housework, but also to hold on to a few crumbs of time they call their own,” says Kerry Daly, professor at the University of Guelph, in his paper “It Keeps Getting Faster: Changing Patterns of Time in Families.” Time is your family’s most precious non-renewable resource. Make the most of this component that magically turns a collection of individuals into a stronger, more robust group of people.

In order to help parents fit a little extra family time into their hectic schedules, The Goddard School’s located in Marshallton and Exton, Pennsylvania host regular events at their school. Movie Nights, Grandparents Day Tea and a Summer Reading Club are just a few examples. These events allow for lots of opportunities for children and parents to come together in a family friendly environment to share some fun and create memories.

To learn more about The Goddard School’s philosophy or contextual learning curriculum, please visit their Exton or Marshallton locations on the web or call to speak directly with the on-site owners:

Click here for The Goddard School located in Exton, or call on-site owners Melissa Capodanno or Wendy Cohen at 610-363-6698.

Click here for The Goddard School located in Marshallton, or call on-site owners Wendy & Richie Cohen at 610-431-1330.

*Disclosure: This post sponsored by The Goddard School.

Love. Exciting and new? Well…. Maybe?

I’m really excited to be participating in a Valentine’s Day – themed talk tomorrow with The Motherhood. The discussion, sponsored by Dr. Oetker Ristorante pizza, will focus specifically on how to spend quality time with your loved ones (think romantic evenings at home, long walks, etc.). I know that, for me, the best gift anyone in my family could give me this Valentine’s Day is the gift of time. I’d love one of those little handmade coupon books from my kids that promised me more quality time with them like “free snuggle”, “hold your hand at the park”, etc!

Join us online for our discussion tomorrow at 1pm EST. All you need to do is click on the link below to participate! We’d love to hear your questions as well as your ideas on how to spend more quality time with your family in this age of fast paced living!

TALK DETAILS

Date: February 9th

Time: 1:00 pm EST

Link to the Talk: http://www.themotherhood.com/talk/show/id/62152

Hope to chat with you all tomorrow afternoon!

About Dr. Oetker: Dr. Oetker (urt–ker) is a fifth-generation family-run business headquartered in Bielefeld, Germany. Begun in 1891, it has grown into an international food business leader and a market leader in many of its product lines. In 1985, Dr. Oetker launched Ristorante frozen pizza in Germany with only two varieties. Today, Dr. Oetker is the market leader of frozen pizza in Europe and sells Ristorante in more than 30 countries – and Italy’s #1 frozen pizza is now available in your area, giving you Italian restaurant style pizza taste without paying restaurant style prices! Available varieties: Ristorante Speciale, Quattro Formaggi, Ristorante Spinaci, Ristorante Mozzarella, Ristorante Funghi and Ristorante Vegetale. To learn more about Dr. Oetker, visit www.oetker.us.