We Love To Be A Family Day 2021
A few months ago I was turned on to this LearnDoBecome organizing system program by a friend, so now I get their emails which I’ve been doing a good job of avoiding — who has time to get organized? I’m not even certain why I clicked on the email but it had a really good subject line of something like “what are you doing on Saturday night”, and being well aware that Valentine’s Day was three days away, I guess I was open to some sort of a suggestion to celebrate the day. Then the first few lines mentioned this “We Love To Be A Family Day”, so I read on and clicked through to the podcast episode. The concept of the whole day dedicated to following this heart map seemed like something the kids would have fun with. Really what it came down to was a little bit of mom guilt that we had been home from school for almost a year (thank you 2020) without much for celebrations that generally occur in a school setting, so I thought, what the heck, Valentine’s Day is on Sunday, we usually have a family day on Sundays anyways, how hard could it be.
Let the Planning Begin
I really just followed their suggestions in their blog post which was to make a list of activities to do as a family. You’ll see that some of the activities were super simple and really included something that we were going to be doing on a Sunday already. Then I ran the idea by Brian and enlisted his assistance in making a few hearts happen (maybe I am learning a bit of next steps organizing skills). I threw a little extra creativity in it and came up with clues that all revolved around love or hearts then I made the treasure map. I also found a few small gifts for them to open up.
Heart 1
Somewhere I read that these things could be super simple, so that is what I started with. Brian was already gone for the morning for sound practice at the church so the kids really enjoyed tackling me best they could and then when we all got home from church we did the family group hug.
Heart 2
This is where I asked Brian for his help. Since he needed to be at the church for an early sound practice, I asked if he wouldn’t mind sneaking out a bit early to swing by Jerry’s Cakes and Donuts for a dozen of their best donuts. He slipped the donuts back into the mudroom ready for their heart surprise #2.
Heart 3
So this one was probably easiest one since we usually go to church on Sunday, but easy or not, it is still an important one. Brian was already there so we gave him a big squeeze when we saw him. I enjoyed service and the kids always have fun in Sunday School.
Heart 4
After church we headed home to follow the next clue, even though the kids begged us to go somewhere to eat. I’ve always heard that the quickest way into someones heart is through their belly and these heart shaped biscuits (ok, they look like pac-mans sideways) did the trick.
Heart 5
What better activity to do than to have some quiet time after a good meal, possibly a little snooze. I figured the kids wouldn’t go for a nap but they would go for a movie. Jackson wasn’t too excited at first but when the opening scene of the Love Bug started with racing cars he was on the edge of the couch. It was such a fun movie to watch as a family and now they keep asking to watch the sequels.
Heart 6
Wow, it seemed like all we did was eat, but I assure you there were hours between each meal.
Heart 7
In my brainstorming for heart ideas, I knew I wanted to end the night with a family game night. Sure, we have a closet full of games but one we didn’t have was Pictonary, which is weird so I thought it might be time to add to our game options. In my research I saw this new Pictonary Air that uses a mobile device. I wasn’t certain how well it would go with Jackson but I grabbed the game when I was out getting their gifts. It was a hit. Be sure to watch the video below to see Brian in action. We all laughed so much.
Heart 8
The last heart was to go to bed with a good night kiss….there is no better way to end a great day! I was so glad that I received the email that challenged me to go through the steps of making this day for our family. Our kiddos enjoyed every minute and will carry these memories for a lifetime. Who knows what next year’s We Love to be a Family Day will look like…
