With such busy lives, it becomes way too easy to lose connections with those you love most. This is especially true in your marriage once careers and children enter the picture. As your kids get older, their lives also become cluttered with social priorities and families often feel disconnected from one another.
The Laugh, Love, Reconnect Jar is a great idea featured on the Happy Family Movement Website. Family members write down activities they want to do together, such as doing 10 minutes of an 80′s workout video or camping in the back yard. The ideas are placed in a mason jar and opened when they are ready to explore new ideas for family time.
I love this concept and thought of a few variations to share as well.
- Write down things you love about family members throughout the week. Pick a day of the week, such as on a Sunday evening, to open the jar and read them together.
- If you notice someone doing something you appreciate, such as spotting your teenage son putting his dish in the dishwasher or your husband fixing a bike tire, write it down and put it in the jar. Pick a day of the week and read them together.
- Record special memories by writing down a moment during your week or month that you really enjoyed or made you feel good inside. These can be big or small moments, from remembering a special moment with your preschooler at breakfast to going to the zoo as a family. Write the memory down as soon as possible. At the end of the month, or even once a quarter, open your jar together as a family and read them allowed.
I feel good just thinking about the opportunity for bonding when the special notes are read together! Some days and weeks are more stressful than others and we can get wrapped up in our own lives. Taking time to write down special thoughts and memories about one another is a great reminder throughout the week about what is most important.
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