Adventures With Your Children: This week…Build A Fire

It’s officially camping season!  But you don’t have to pack all the gear into your car and head for the mountains to build a fire.  Get a few bricks from your local hardware store, make a circle in your back yard, and create a place where children’s imaginations flourish.  A fire attracts bugs, burning wood creates a wonderful display of colors, the stars fill the night sky, and nature provides the ambiance.  When the flames start to rise, so will your child’s eyebrows.

Think of all the wonderful things you can do around a fire…make s’mores, have a picnic, bundle up next to your little one, and tell stories.  You see, the fire will be the center of attention, which will take the pressure off you to be the hero for the moment, but as the night goes along, you will take center stage again.  Tell a wonderful story and have your child chime in with plot twists.  Hand out goodies and treats, while mimicking the strangest voice you can muster.  Play hide and seek in the dark.

Your child already wants to go outside.  Everybody loves a fire.  Who can resist chocolate and lemonade while the moon is glowing?  This adventure begins with the spark of a match and continues into a world of adventure.

Adventures With Your Children--Give 3 Things and Ask of 3 Things.

Children can easily fall victim to routine; they get home from school and expect to do their homework, get to watch a favorite show, play with their toys, get ready for bed, and fall asleep.  So, when they ask for something that usually happens several times a week, it probably doesn’t inspire them.  This week, let’s work on that inspiration and motivation by first giving three things and then doing three things.

Giving can be easy, simple, cheap, or elaborate and expensive.  If your child absolutely loves The Bubble guppies, then you can give your child your presence and attention.  Sit on the floor with them and interact while the show is on.  They will probably explain to you each character and what they find fascinating about the show.  By the end of the show, I promise your child will be more interested in The Bubble Guppies, then if you were in the kitchen washing dishes and they were alone.

Now, your child sees that you gave them something, and it’s your turn to ask for something—out of the ordinary.  Get the real bubbles out and go into the back yard.  Ask your child to join you and start the adventure.  Who can blow the biggest bubble?  Where are the bubbles going when they soar off to the neighbor’s yard?  What happens to the bubble when it pops?

After your initial request, you child might begin to imagine doing different things—out of their usual routine—and it’s now your chance to shine.  Be ready to grant their next request because it could include going to the park to blow bubbles this time.

By giving something simple and asking for something simple, you will show your child that you are genuinely interested in their perspective, their imagination, their world.  When you step into that world, you become larger than life…and the real adventure begins.

Adventures With Your Children--Powerful Crayons!

This week…Colors unlock your child’s imagination.

Your child may be six months old or thirty-five, but there is a magical wand that needs to be placed in their hand—a crayon.  The littlest ones may try to color their teeth, a six year old tries to stay in the lines, a ten year old recreates intelligence, a sixteen year old expresses beauty, a twenty-five year old conveys their emotions, and forty year olds colors laughter.  Crayons express imaginations on many different levels.

The selection of the picture doesn’t matter…it’s what happens when the mind starts racing to create something special.  A purple unicorn, orange sun, blue grass, and pink bunny doesn’t make sense, but the words coming out of your child’s mouth while this is happening will bring so much understanding to your soul.

“Daddy, the lion is brown, but he has red hair because you have red hair.  He can run fast, just like you, and he likes to give hugs.”  “Mommy, the princess has a pretty dress like you.  Her favorite food is macaroni and cheese and chocolate ice cream, just like me.”

I promise you, it doesn’t matter if the lines are crossed, colors mixed, or pages wrinkled, the outcome is simply beautiful.  Conversations come easier with a crayon in hand.  Fond memories surface and aspirations unfold.  If you really want to know what’s going on in your child’s life, take fifteen minutes, lay out the crayons, and start coloring with your them.  An adventure is waiting in your child’s mind…and you are the main character.

Adventures With Your Children

This week…Story Time With Your Children

There are plenty of books, conferences, shows (both radio and television), and lesson plans out there for men and women who aspire to be great parents.  They can have different aspects, advice, agendas, and outcomes, but one thing they have in common is quality time with the child.  The Adventures of Bubba and Sissy is going to run with that commonality.

Week One is for story time.  This week, pick out seven different books and set aside time to read one each day.  Devote yourself to this time.  Turn off your phone, computer, and television and simply read.  Don’t let the words of the book fall flat from your lips; discover each page, critique the pictures, and let your child express themselves through their imaginations.

When you’re finished reading the book, let the real adventure begin.  Run to the living room and play out the roles of the characters in your chosen book.  Let your child dictate the outcome of the real adventure.  Interact with their imagination and let your own imagination join their world.  Leave behind skepticism and realistic outcomes and delve into the world of your child’s imagination.  Transport yourself back to childhood and become your child’s best friend.

I assure you that quality time in reality will transcend into your child’s dreams.  You already are their hero, so it’s time to become their super-hero.  Remember, a child is constantly analyzing the world’s input and making decisions that you may never know about.  Become the beacon of positive light to their souls.

This week, read…let life become an adventure…starting today.