9 Fun Ideas for Your Next Family Night

1. Escape Room

Depending on the age of your children, the escape room can be a fun family activity. It uses each person's spatial reasoning to solve a puzzle and allows for teamwork, conflict resolution, and bonding toward a common goal: escaping the room. There are also many fun-themed rooms where kids will enjoy the room's ambiance while looking for clues. Although a family may feel they won't solve the puzzle in time due to the age or capabilities of their family, they may be surprised at how much fun they have despite the goal of winning. Focus on the bonding and fun you have together. When we take the focus off winning and on the family experience it creates, memories will last forever and create a legacy of family time that will be passed down from generation to generation.

2. Family Photos

Take a unique spin on traditional family photos and do a family photo shoot in an area everyone loves. For example, a friend can take great photos via an iPhone at the favorite park doing what you love. Take shots of parents pushing children on the swing, holding hands, sliding down the slide, etc. This is an inexpensive yet great way to create memories of ordinary moments in a family's life. These pictures will be fun to create and a treasured memory when the kids get older and leave home. Parents will love looking back on these memories and cherish these moments that have been preserved in their memory forever.

3. Culture Night

Instead of going to a traditional restaurant, have each person pick a meal from a different culture. Have each family member choose a culture on which they would like to do more research. Search the Internet to find out what foods are common. Go one step further and even consider dressing or decorating the home like that culture. Allow each member to purchase food from their favorite takeout place that reflects that culture. Try something new; don't fall back on old habits. Each person gets to be the main "chef," allowing each person to try the meal they selected. Each person must tell the family why or why not they liked the meal. This will broaden your family's understanding of different cultures but also allow each person to feel special learning about the new culture they selected.

4. Nature Walk

One of the best and most affordable hobbies for families to do together is hiking. If each family member can hike, choose a hiking trail at a park near you or find one within a short distance. Make a point to take advantage of the longer daylight hours and walk a trail together. It's a great way to exercise, keep your family healthy, and enjoy and commune with nature. Have each person connect by talking about what they like about nature and how they believe God created it.

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5. Family Scrapbook

Although not every family member may like crafts, they all may enjoy putting together a scrapbook of their favorite memories. Have each person choose one memory from the past they would like to highlight in a scrapbook. This may take getting craft supplies from a craft store or using a digital website such as Shutterfly to incorporate photos from social media platforms and desktop photos and create a scrapbook. You can highlight all the places the family has gone traveling, or it can be a scrapbook of family memories. The choice is yours! Have fun going through old memories on either platform, putting together the scrapbook by cutting and pasting or creating a digital scrapbook. Let each family member enjoy highlighting their favorite memories and talk about why that memory is important to them.

6. Family Pen Pal

If your family likes crafts, there are many fun activities a family can do together. For example, before the Internet, people wrote letters to each other. Spouses wrote love letters to each other when they were geographically distant, and friends used to write letters as pen pals. Become each family member's pen pal and have each family member choose another family member to write letters. Mail the letter and allow the family member to receive their letter. Feel free to keep it anonymous or assign your name. Either way, highlight all the ways you love each other. A handwritten note communicates that a person is special to them and took time out of their busy schedule to express their love for each other.

7. Decade Night

This family activity works best for the family who is older. For families with teenagers or even adults, hold a decade night where each family member gets to highlight the decade in which they were born. For example, parents born in the 80s may have fun dressing up in rad clothing, eating gnarly 80s food, and watching a classic 80s movie. Kids born in the 2000s may also want to explore their decade by listening to their favorite music, eating their decade's food, and watching a movie from that decade. Nostalgia is always a great way for a family to bond as it helps each family member know more about their other family members and also get to know their likes, dislikes, and other preferences.

8. Game Night

For those families who simply love board games, there's nothing wrong with doing a game night. Choose a new board game from Target. Try Settlers of Catan, What Do You Meme?, or another new game, or try classic games like Monopoly, Sorry, Risk, etc.

Wager-friendly bets and have family members who win a special prize. This will make the game night extra fun as they seek to win and learn lessons of proper sportsmanship while having fun doing it at the same time.

9. Volunteer

Although this may sound like the least fun option for a family night, it's sometimes the only way a family can bond together. Pick an organization in the community that could use some help. Volunteer one night a month (or quarter,) whatever time allows. Have each person help at a soup kitchen, stock shelves at a food pantry, or donate clothes to a local clothes closet. Although this may not sound fun, knowing they're contributing to the greater good of their community may be more fun and attractive than once believed. Families that love their community not only demonstrate their Christlike faith but also bond together as a family and solidify their roots as Christians.

Family night can be a great time for all involved. Choose activities that not only don't break your budget but also make weekends something to look forward to as a family.

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