Turn Downtime into Family Time

Most days, you probably try to squeeze 25 hours' worth of activities into each 24-hour day. This coming year (yes, New Year's resolutions are just around the corner!) and during the rest of the holidays, resolve to target small pockets of time to enjoy the company of your kids.

Lissa Coffey, a family and relationships expert for Hasbro games and author of Getting There! 9 Ways to Help Your Kids Learn What Matters Most in Life, offers the following tips to take advantage of any small amount of time together:

Green therapy Most young people spend too much time indoors, developing what Coffey calls "nature deficit disorder." Spending even 10 minutes outside is one way for parents to eliminate the indoor distractions of the Internet and video games and help children learn to appreciate the outdoors. Instead of sending kids to watch TV after dinner, take them outside to toss a baseball or rollerblade around the cul-de-sac.

Congregate in the kitchen Another way to create quality family time is to take advantage of the one thing that all family members have to do -- eat! Cooking and eating a meal together promotes conversation fosters family connections. Ask kids to be "kitchen helpers" by giving them simple cooking tasks such as washing vegetables, setting the table or mixing cake batter.

Fun and games Everyone loves games! Coffey recommends that families create an "activities" closet or bin where favorite games and puzzles can be stored, making a "go-to" place for family fun. For times when families have only a small window of down time, try Express games -- abbreviated versions of board game favorites that can be played in 20 minutes or less. Small puzzles or a few rounds of charades also work well for spontaneous, quick games.

Get crafty Coffey recommends that families find hobbies to enjoy together. Knitting, building model airplanes and scrapbooking are examples of "blast from the past" hobbies that promote family togetherness. Hobbies like these lend themselves to projects that can be worked on for a few minutes at a time over a period of days or weeks.

~ Lisa