Um, Say What?! In AUGUST?!?!

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Did you know that August is National Family Fun month? Recently, I was looking up a few things on the internet and came across this novel idea and it literally made me laugh out loud. Seriously, why designate just one month for your family to have fun in? And ESPECIALLY August?! Let’s face it, August has to be one of the top three most stressful months for most modern families. Kids are so involved in activities (which is not necessarily a bad thing), that there is hardly any time to transition from summer activities and vacations to getting ready to go back to school. Parents are usually running around getting a million school supplies, going to “Back to School” nights, and ensuring their children have new clothes (and those must be in style). Have I mentioned the shopping for food for the kids’ three meals a day? 

 Family fun should be every day of the year. That doesn’t mean you go out and find an amusement park. Fun does not always mean you spend money. It seems like a lot of modern families have either lost the concept of how to spend quality time with their children or they are not sure how to relate to their children. I am going to be the first one here to say that there are so many times I have no idea how to relate to our kids. Sometimes, I get that idea in my head that my way is the only way and they will listen to what I have to say. I forget they are people, too and don’t always see things the way I do. Enter that generation gap. That is why family time is so important. Whether we are feeding the animals, picking vegetables in the garden, or walking laps around our field, we are having family time. It is in that time; the kids like to open up and talk about their dreams and what it is they hope to achieve in life. 

 Those moments lead to other special times. For example, when the kids come into the kitchen while I am making food for dinner or for preservation. Usually, they sit down and start talking to me. It is random and there are times when I just do not want to communicate at all because I am tired or in a grouchy mood, but it is important. It is family time. There is no greater gift than a child and no greater honor than the relationship you build with them. Those unexpected moments are priceless. 

Since we prefer to not spend money when we don’t have to, we try to have our family time at home. When we go out as a family, it is usually to Lowe’s or Home Depot. We may go to a movie once or twice a year, but we really do prefer to watch movies at home. So in honor of August being National Family Fun Month, I put together a list of things our family enjoys doing together without spending money. 

Things We Do as a Family Without Spending Money (The Burning Barrel Farm version): 

1. Go on a hike (and make sure you take your camera and a picnic) 

2. Find a creek and dip your feet in it 

3. Go for a walk 

4. Go for a family bike ride 

5. Make dinner together

6. Have a family game night 

7. Karaoke (usually this is just Alex and me, the kids roll their eyes) 

8. Clean your entire house together (especially after burning a fire during the winter)

9. Watch a movie on the couch 

10. Feed your animals together 

11. Play with baby rabbits 

12. Build animal shelters/paddocks together 

13. Walk your property with a camera in hand 

14. Play a game of kickball or baseball in your field 

15. Pick those veggies from your garden 

16. Wrangle piglets 

17. Plant crops 

18. Put up fencing 

19. Swim together whether it is in a pool on your property or a pond 

20. Talk about your dreams together 

21. Pull weeds from the garden together 

22. Cut brush and pile it up, then light it up (and grab those smores!) 

23. Split firewood 

24. Process your chickens, turkeys, and/or ducks together 

25. Work on fixing your machinery together 

These are our top 25 ways to ensure we have our family time on our little farm. When we do these various activities together, it isn’t always what we want to be doing, but we always walk away from these activities satisfied. All human beings need to feel loved, and they need that safe space. For us, our safe space is our farm and our family. AND that is exactly I find the concept of having a designated National Family Fun Month as sort of a ludicrous idea. Shouldn’t that be something that occurs naturally? Your family should be your rock, not an acknowledgement one month out of the year. 

 What are some of the ways you spend time with your family? What do you think about a National Family Fun month?

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