Making Little Moments Matter: Family Fun Activities Plus Free Nature Hunt Download

This post was created in partnership with Kinder Joy.

Social media tends to focus on the big moments – the Instagram worthy shots. But the truth is that those grand photos don’t fill us up. In fact, life is primarily made up of the quiet moments. On any given Sunday, people don’t worry about perfect lighting or picture comment counts. We worry about how many times we tell our children that we love them. We worry about whether or not we’ve spent enough time together as a family. These are the real things that matter. In these moments, true bonding occurs. We laugh. We giggle. We build forts and play hide and seek… and no-one else gets to see because these memories belong to us. My husband and I even make it a point to take each individual child out separately and surprise them with special treats to show just how much we care.

If you are looking for ways to create special memories with each of your children, I have some ideas to help you get started. One on one time doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. It just needs to have all of your attention and an open heart.

Making Little Moments Matter: Family Fun Activities

Individual child dates are essential. As a family of five, I know that my children crave that one-on-one attention. Here are some ideas that we frequently love to enjoy with the kids throughout the year.

Nature Scavenger Hunt:

When the weather is on your side, print out a nature scavenger hunt list and head outside as fast as you can. I love to include a sweet treat right away as an extra bonus for my kids.

Kinder Joy is such a great way for moms to surprise their children with something they love. When I am gearing up for a nature walk, I usually place one of the Kinder Joy eggs someplace easy for my children to find them – like right on my banister.   Of course, it gets them absolutely excited about our fun adventure. We don’t usually open it up right away. It’s more of a reward at the end of our journey! Before we check out the fun toy and sweet treat inside, Caleb and I have a lot of things to check off our scavenger list. Squirrels, birds, and flowers – oh my! Just knowing that we have a Kinder Joy in our pocket for the end of our trail truly adds to the excitement. Super fun!

Click here to download your own Nature Scavenger Hunt file.

Surprise your child with a Kinder Joy right at the start in front of your house to gear them up for the special time you two are about to spend together.

Plant Some Plants In The Backyard:

We love to allow the kids to leave their mark on everything that we do. Our backyard is no different! When all three are involved, sometimes things can get messy. But when you bring one out at a time and allow them to really get creative and not worry about competing with their siblings, great things can happen. Have a garden party with one of your children! Show them that their creativity is needed in your home space. Show off their artwork. Allow them to get their hands dirty. Let them plant flowers or pot plants. It can truly be such an adventure for them.

Visit The Library:

Here’s a full confession: we don’t read enough at home. We just don’t. It’s a terrible thing. The iPads and the iPods and the iPhones… they have taken over! The only way we can squeeze in reading time on any sort of regular basis is if we go to the library over the weekend. What a wonderful time we all have, too! I love to take each child on their own so we can dive into their particular section. We, of course, pick up books for the other two … which is also part of the fun. It’s always a surprise what we bring home for the family! Once everyone is back together, we all enjoy a KinderJoy and dive right into our new reads. What a perfect afternoon!

Kinder Joy comes in a plastic egg-shaped packaging that is comprised of two separately sealed halves. One half contains two soft creamy layers – one milk-crème flavored and one cocoa flavored. Nestled into the creamy layers are two round, chocolate-covered wafer bites that are filled with sweet cocoa cream. This is all to be eaten with the included spoon. The spoon makes it so easy to take this treat wherever you go – whether it’s the library, grandma’s house, or your local coffee shop.

Take My Child To Work:

I am a work-at-home mom. I started my first online company in 2005 and haven’t seen an office cubical since! My husband joined me in 2007 and from that moment, we’ve called our dining room our “official office”. So, when it’s “Take Your Child to Work” day, that usually means my local coffee shop. That’s the one place I head to when I need to really get away and get a lot of work done. My children BEG to come with me whenever I go, too. They think it’s the most grown-up thing EVER and I just love having them with me. Every so often, I take one of them along and they usually bring along their favorite book or some homework that still needs to be completed. I usually end up working through my emails and chatting with them about their week. I can’t help it! When I’m with my children… I want to be with my children. Bonding time at its best.

At Home Spa – DIY Mask:

My daughter loves to do anything DIY. It is her absolute favorite thing to do. She loves to bake, to make slime, to create lip balms and face masks. I mean – pretty much anything you can whip up at home — this child has made. Natalie adores the challenge. Sometimes she dreams up recipes! I swear she is going to be a magnificent baker one day.

On Friday nights, one of Natalie’s favorite things to do is to squeeze in some girl time while the boys are playing video games. Grandma usually comes over on the weekends and so we grab her whenever we can! Natalie creates the sweetest smelling beauty products on the market! You know, parents find out the most about their children during these kinds of activities! Don’t forget that, moms!! Keep them crafting and they will stay chatting. 🙂

As a bonus, while she is waiting for her mask to harden, Natalie always opts for a Kinder Joy and has one on hand for both me and my mom. There’s just something about indulging in that sweet bliss that makes everyone smile.lad

How do you create lasting memories with your children? Do you have any tips that you’d like to share? Nothing feels better than seeing that smile on your child’s face. Kinder Joy wants to be a part of this experience and so much more. You can find Kinder Joy sold at your favorite stores everywhere.