Loving Family Bonds

The one area where we should always be extravagant is in expressing and showing love to our family members. A month when we celebrate love is also a great time to strengthen our family relationships. Try these ideas:

• Involve everyone in some decision making. Hold a family pray-and-plan or bring up one decision at dinner every few weeks. This helps members feel accepted and valued. That gives them a sense of belonging.
• Plan some family theme nights such as a country of the world. Start with countries of your ancestry. Try different foods from that country, explore facts, customs, and traditions. Play a game related to the country. This helps your family accept and celebrate people around the world and to appreciate their heritage.
• Invest time with family by scheduling family nights or stay-cations. This shows you cherish members, gives them attention, and shows they are worth your time.
• Connect with God as a family through prayer, reading the Bible, and doing family devotions. This helps assure children of eternity, builds a faith connection, and shows that faith is important.
• Do chores and volunteer as a family. Be sure to show approval of effort and successes. This builds confidence and affirms that each person has something to contribute.
• Be generous with hugs and cuddles to fill everyone’s need for affection.
• Be involved in one another’s interests. Do a show and tell weekly to celebrate individual interests. Encourage passions and hobbies by doing field trips or activities related to those interests. That shows you support one another.

These build a foundation for growing lasting relationships and build memories that keep you connected even when children grow and leave home.

By: Karen Whiting loves family gatherings and helping moms grow family bonds. Her newest book is Growing a Mother’s Heart: Devotions of Faith, Hope, and Love from Mothers Past, Present, and Future.

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