Tips For Gathering And Supporting Family

The month of December includes several holidays, including Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, and Solstice. Many people enjoy gathering together to celebrate with members of their families during these holiday celebrations. For best results, follow these tips for gathering and supporting family members. Plan Gatherings Around The Most Vulnerable Family Members CNBC News reported advice from Dr. Katrine Wallace, an epidemiologist at the University of Illinois Chicago. Her number one piece of advice is to plan gatherings around the most vulnerable family members. Vulnerable communities include people who are immunocompromised, children, and elderly people. Dr. Wallace listed the following examples of how … Continue reading

How to Unplug Your Kids And Encourage Family Communication

Want to have a better relationship with your kids and teens? Do you find it hard to get their attention when they are staring at a screen? Here are some tips for parents who want to unplug their kids and encourage communication. Limit Screen Time The goal is to place limits on when and where your child or teen can use their computer, tablet, or smartphone. The goal is not to remove those devices from your kids forever. A reasonable amount of screen time can be stimulating and sometimes even educational. Parents need to pick their battles with this one. … Continue reading

Tips for First Time Hosts of Thanksgiving Dinner

Thanksgiving is celebrated with family. It always includes a big dinner with tons of food. This can be overwhelming for first time hosts of Thanksgiving dinner. Don’t panic! Try these tips to help calm your nerves and make your first hosting a successful one. There are two things that can make a person who is hosting Thanksgiving dinner nervous. One is that the guests are going to expect specific foods that are made exactly the way that mom or grandma used to make. Their big expectations can be hard to live up to. The other difficulty, of course, is that … Continue reading

The Family Dinner Project Promotes Family Unity

Does your family sit down together every night for dinner? Many families are in the habit of parking themselves in front of the TV as they eat dinner. Those families are missing out on a great opportunity to connect with each other. The Family Dinner Project has some excellent advice about why eating dinner together as a family is so important. The About Page at The Family Dinner Project has an summary of why families really need to have dinner together. It says: Over the past 15 years, research has shown what parents have known for a long time: Sharing … Continue reading

Lunch and a Movie and a Dinner, Too

On Saturday, we got to experience something my kids had been looking forward to for weeks: the second Despicable Me movie. My youngest choose it as his birthday outing. Normally, we let them choose between going out to eat or going to a movie. Nine times out of ten, they choose the movie. We had planned, as we usually do, to take in the movie at the local movie theater for the matinée showing, which is the least expensive way to do it. Instead, though a misunderstanding with some friends, we wound up driving 45 minutes away to a movie … Continue reading

Senator Rubio Resigns to Spend More Time With Family

California Senator Michael Rubio, a Democrat, has resigned his position. The main purpose for doing so appears to be an interest in being able to spend more time with his family. He and his wife have two daughters, one of whom has Down Syndrome. The former Senator has taken a job with Chevron. I imagine that it would be quite difficult to be a Senator and to find a way to balance that with family life. I am certain that parents, of any profession, face that same challenge. However, when a parent who is not a public figure changes jobs … Continue reading

5 Free Family Activities You Can Do Today

Forget buying the latest video game or springing for a couple of hours at one of those indoor kids activity places. Instead, try one of the following free family activities that you can do today. Zero cost but lots of fun. 1. Go for a Hike…Literally Being outdoors in nature instantly calms you and raises your spirits. Studies have proven it over and over again. Plus kids really do thrive on fresh air and exercise. A hike, or even just a walk in the park, can be an activity that the whole family can enjoy. Plus, it is free. Bonus … Continue reading

Favorite Family Restaurant Deals

Family-friendly and affordable should go hand in hand when it comes to restaurants, but that is not always the case. Anyone who has ever blinked twice at the cost of a plate of chicken nuggets would agree. Before you spend your family budget on eating out with the kids, check out the following favorite family restaurant deals. 1. Ruby’s Diner Ruby’s Diner offers several menu choices for kids for a reasonable price, and each kids’ meal includes a small ice cream cone for desert. Steer clean of the macaroni and cheese, which comes out of a box, and instead choose … Continue reading

Tips for a Budget-Friendly Family Vacation

When the thought of taking your family out to dinner makes you cringe because of the expense, it is hard to contemplate taking everyone along for an actual vacation. Even though money concerns may make it seem as though you will never get away, you do have options, a number of them in fact. Here are some ways that you can stretch your vacation budget. 1. Look for the budget airline hubs Although airfare prices seem to be rising, there are a number of airline hubs that tend to have the cheapest airfare tickets. Some places are just less expensive … Continue reading

Thanksgiving Is For Family Fun

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and that means family time. For the genealogist in the family, it is a great time to hear family stories, both new and old, get the group together for some family photographs, and as always, listen for new family history facts that you can include in your research. You are probably even going to enjoy some of your family’s favorite recipes. This Thanksgiving, our Thanksgiving table will have something on it that is not usually a part of our menu. Because of where Thanksgiving ended up on the calendar this year, my son’s birthday cake will be … Continue reading