Parents with child on beach

There are so many opportunities to staying connected to your child but are we making the most of them? I think I am pretty unusual as in our house we eat dinner together most nights and always have family meals at the weekend. We do lots of family activities and have evening time when there is no homework. We do a lot of talking, laughing, giggling and have fun during those times.  I know there are many other opportunities in our house when we talk and talk. I know I am not going to have my children around the family home forever and our communication will change to be email, text and phone calls rather than face to face. I will miss that when I can’t just reach out for a hug and have to opt for a virtual one instead.

Don’t Miss The Opportunity Of Staying Connected To Your Child

Communication, or should I say being connected (which is what it is), is so important and I think we can often miss out on times when we could be connecting with our children. Last week I sat on the Tube. Across from me were a family – one parent, two grandparents, an aunt and a child of about 8 years old. The adults were either reading a newspaper or talking to each other. The child was on an ipad in the middle of them all. I watched the adults finish their papers, talk to each other and then sit in silence. The child continued to play. None of the adults asked her about the game she was playing, or if she was happy going into London, what was she looking forward to etc. There were no ‘what stop are we at, how many more to go?’ questions.

It made me feel sad. Such a great opportunity to be connect and enjoy this child but no-one took advantage of the travel time to do it. Children can have screens anytime but when we are around can we let them have us for entertainment instead?

If you are interested in improving your connection with your child please get in touch with me.