FREE FAMILY FUN TIME!
FREE FAMILY FUN TIME!
The wonderful thing about family is that we can, each of us, define family for ourselves. We get to say who is in our family. Yes there are those we are related to, but there are also those that we turn to when the chips are down, or those we laugh with the most and create memories with.
Fun is similar to family in this way. We get to define what fun means to us, we get to set our own fun boundaries. And of course, both family and fun are free.
I admit I am very fortunate with regards family. I have a small and close knit family of people I’m related to. I also have a larger extended family made up of friends. Some of those people live close by, and some further away. Some I see frequently and others less so. However, the reason I know they are a part of my family is that we share the same values. For all of our many differences – lifestyles, life stages, personality, we have a similar set of values which brings about shared respect, and therefore a sense of belonging.
Bringing fun and family together does not mean enforcing fun, but it does mean being open to it. Fun can come in many different guises and because of this it can be easy to overlook it. Sometimes fun is about belly laughs and embracing your childlike side. However, sometimes fun is about being present and seeing the smaller things in life that make you smile and feel grateful for the moment you are in (of course a little bit of silliness always helps!). It is often times these smaller moments that are the seeds of the silliness that ends up in belly laughs and childlike fun.
When you are with family and friends it can be easy to get lost in routines, traditions, every day life, or repeating unrewarding relationship patterns and so fun can feel like a lifetime away. This is where effort comes into it. Fun in a familiar situation sometimes needs to start as purposeful, and as I’ve found in previous months, it takes a lightness of attitude and mindset. To find fun we most keep our hearts open, our mindset set to growth, and a god dose of silliness close to hand.
This month, the biggest lesson I have learnt about family and fun is that they go hand in hand. But as with all types of fun, you have to put the effort in and you have to be ready to embrace it. Fun is all around us, and can often be for free but we have to be prepared to cultivate it, and see it in whatever forms it arrives.
So whether you are heading down the park with the kids, going out for dinner with old friends, or visiting an elderly relative I urge you to take your open heart with you and a fun mindset, and you’ll be lost in the midst of laughters and good ties before you know it…and all at no extra cost.
Wishing you all free family fun time and a happy and confident day!
Lydia x