Blessing Your Family, Fun Memories

Brainstorming Fun Memories

• my dad and I visiting great-grandma, she always had beef ribs and hard-candy for me
• literally everything while visiting my grandma and grandpa (way too much to list)
• listening to my dad play piano, and learning chess from him, playing various games
• driving cross-country with my mom, and going to amazing and historical places
• holiday meals with my Italian step-family – still the largest scale deliciousness ever
• Christmas in July, amusement parks, campus visits, more road trips, and more, more, more!

My wife, as step-mom, has always prioritized fun memories focused on “our” son:

• making cup cakes together, shopping and special gifts and treats
• visits to family across country and special destinations and experiences
• trips and theme parks together
• creating a home environment free to play and rough-house
• supporting and encouraging school and church adventures for him
• “ganging up on Dad”, and “spoiling the boy”
• supporting and attending his events, like sports and music etc
• Holiday decorating, food and traditions

And of course, the previously recommended fun memories with your mate:

• my wife still uses a novelty champagne glass from our first Valentine’s Date
• our wedding and honeymoon, and other trips
• daily tenderness together, and simple acts of service (her top Love Language)
• couple time at home, sleeping in, and our backyard oasis together
• cooking, eating out, and varied dates and events together, and more

Intentionally Planned and Randomly Spontaneous

Here is the secret to making family Fun Memories: “Prioritizing Yes“.

We must make our marriage and family first, a Priority. And we must be actively looking for opportunities to say Yes! This means that some fun memories come as a result of intentionality and planning, and others come about in randomly spontaneous ways. Doing this is made easier if we are already practicing Consistency and Margin.

When we make our marriage and family a priority then we automatically block out quantity time as best we can into our schedules, and we become more open to saying yes to quality time as opportunities arise in the moment. We will never have quantity time if we aren’t intentional about planning it first. And while we can plan for the best opportunities to have quality time with our spouse and our children, more often than not those opportunities happen in the moment and cannot be structured. That’s why we must always be open to the opportunity to say yes to those that matter most to us.

As my son moves closer to adulthood there seems to be less time together as he pursues his own interests and relationships. This means that when a spontaneous opportunity or request to do something together arises I consciously choose to be ready to say yes. I must be flexible, adaptable, and ready with some margin to do so.

Time Is Short

Time is already short as it is, and we all know that “we are not promised tomorrow”. Time is our greatest asset, and time with those we love is our greatest treasure. As you pursue your heart’s desire to Bless Your Family prioritize your time with them, and look for ways to say yes to quality time with each of them. You will be creating fun memories that will last a lifetime and possibly carry over into future generations and traditions!

What might you do to start prioritizing time with your mate and children? What holidays and long weekends are coming up in the year that you can start making special plans for?

Are there weekly date nights and family times you can block out in advance? Are you actively receiving those spontaneous moments to capture special memories with your mate and your children?