Is there amusement in your home?

Photo by Hope: http://www.hopemoremong.com/

When I initially had my babies, I thought about what I required our family life to look like. One of the first things on my list was amusement. I wanted our family to be a place where people express amusement and where people laugh. I think love and amusement and recollections all go together; it is hard to have any of those things without in addition having the other. Does your home ring with amusement?

One of the studies affirmed that teens laugh twice as much as adults in their fifties. Once we exceed fifty, it is all descending and we stop laughing. That's heartbreak. However maybe we wouldn't stop if we promote amusement in our homes! So here are some random opinions on how you can promote amusement and laughter:

• Play a lot with the kids

We laugh when we play; we laugh when we talk and we laugh when we are together and things happen. We don't tend to laugh when we are alone in our rooms doing our own thing. If you want to promote laughter, you have to in fact be together! And from time to time the things that you will end up laughing about are the things that you were totally upset about at the time.

• Do ordinary things

Once you do spend time together, do it out of the ordinary ways! Do not just watch TV or movies, even if they are funny. The things that are hilarious tend to be the things that take place in daily life that you are paying notice enough to see the funny side in them. Aim to do odd and wonderful things with your family!

Do not constantly watch TV; sometimes play chess or board games, or go for walks in the park. We also do really strange things at the dinner table. We’d do funny face competition with the kids or we’d have details questions after dinner, and you couldn't leave the table until you got something right. Spend time together out of your regular household tasks, doing weird things, and you'll without doubt laugh!

• Give kids permission to laugh at you

Photo by Hope: http://www.hopemoremong.com/

This begins when they are toddlers. Each time I did something stupid, I would go running to wherever my kids were and I'd say, "Look how Mummy put my blouse on inside out! And we'd all laugh. Children like to laugh. They like to feel that they can laugh at their parents, too, because while kids want to feel safe, they don't want to feel like their parents must be perfect. If you give your children the feeling that they must always think you are perfect, your children will feel unfaithful and untruthful when they become aware that you are not perfect. So offer them safe ways to chat about your fault!

Also if Daddy does something funny, too, let the kids know about the funny thing he did, and laugh! Of course, you do not want to make fun of, and you surely do not want to allow your children to make fun of each other. There is a difference between healthy laughter and laughing at someone, you must teach your children the difference. Although it will be simple to learn if you model it from the start!

How do you express amusement in your home? Let me know!