Fun as a family: Building bonds & having a blast

To really connect with your kids, you need to set the stage for some good "chill" time with mom or dad. Here are some fun and freeing ways for all of you to enjoy family time, with benefits now and into the future!


What a rush!
As all parents know, kids are really good at testing their limits -- and sometimes that means going for a good adrenaline rush.

If you can get in touch with your risk-taking side, sharing an adrenaline rush with your teen is a great way to bond -- and that's saying something when your kids are at an age when such opportunities are scarce.

One Boston-based mom decided to take her son on a zipline ride, and rode down on the fastest zipline in North America (with a 300 foot vertical drop) alongside her firstborn.

That daring mama, SheKnows columnist Jen Klein, says, "I almost didn't do it. It was terrifying, just being on the top of the ski jump and looking out over the vast North American plain spread before me." She wasn't the only one facing some fears. "My son refused to admit it," she says, "but right along with his excitement and eagerness to do this zipline, he was a little scared, too."

Read Jen's full story of their zipline riding experience here, and to get ideas about other kinds of adrenaline rushes, take your kids on an amusement park vacation.


Seek and you shall find
Who doesn't love a treasure hunt? You need to check out geocaching -- a family-friendly combination of a scavenger hunt, a hike, and a test of your tech savvy.

In a nutshell, geocaching is all about someone hiding a waterproof container -- the cache -- within which is a log book along with a variety of trinkets (usually a variety of inexpensive and non-perishable goodies, such as toys, CDs, postcards, foreign coins, keychains or magnets). The cache's creator goes online to post the latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates of the treasure trove on a geocaching website, then anyone can track it down with a portable GPS device.

Then the adventure begins! There's no limit to the number of people who can participate in the hunt or locate the treasure. Each time the cache is discovered, the finders all sign the log book, take a trinket and leave another behind, then then go to the original web site to record their success.

Find out more about geocaching -- a cool and challenging way to enjoy the outdoors -- here!


Get gardening
Plot out and plant a garden with your kids, and you will all benefit from the time together outdoors, and, later, the bounty of your harvest. Whether you're growing food or flowers, gardening will teach useful skills while offering a rewarding end result.

To keep beginning gardeners interested in the process, start by helping your children choose some fast-growing plants -- such as radishes, lettuce or bamboo. At the same time, seed some of their favorite veggies. Even kids who "hate" vegetables will want to try what they grew.

Think a big backyard garden sounds too overwhelming? Even a flower bed or small container garden offers great benefits without too much maintenance.

Want to know more? Get more info about gardening with your family and some money-saving tips for gardeners at SheKnows.


Do you have any great ideas for ways to have fun with your kids? Let us know by posting them below!