Family Goals
Think about something that can keep you connected with your kids as they get older. That’s the activity that’s worth investing in.
Several years ago I set family goals for us to keep the North Star of what I am trying to achieve in front of me. Those goals were summed up into 4 simple ones:
To be a parent that the kids want to visit when they don’t have to
To have kids that I want to have visit
Create memories that make us laugh
Raise my kids to be independent enough when they are ready to be on their own
Part of making these goals a reality is to develop kids who help out, have empathy, and for them to have fun memories. Adventure plays into this in so many ways.
Building good family time and memories is a foundation. Several of our current activities were picked with the idea that as my kids turn into teenagers, this activity can still bring us together. Or at least it’s cool enough to want to bring a friend to. Those activities include skiing, surfing / boogie boarding, and mountain biking. They’re activities that I can be passionate about and have a ton of fun in, but the kids also enjoy.
The activities all have an independent component to build their self-confidence. Preparing for activities builds the ability to be independent and we even discuss budgets around activities to build financial awareness. Skiing in particular gives us that ability as we discuss trade offs. “That trip is half a day of skiing” is a common statement here.
The key is to make sure you enjoy it because getting a troop of kids to the beach, even on a cold day, requires you to enjoy it. In our part of the country that requires wetsuits so imagine yourself at the car trying to help multiple kids out of those tight, wet contraptions while you’re also shivering. But for us playing in the waves means laughs and we follow it up with a great meal on the way home.
Think about something that can keep you connected with your kids as they get older. That’s the activity that’s worth investing in.
