Start January with a focus on improving minds, bodies, souls, and family bonds with some simple family activities on New Year’s Day! New Year’s Day has changed over the centuries, but the idea of celebrating it has remained. Start new family traditions on New Year’s Day and use the opportunity to help family members focus on new growth.
Improve Minds
Plan and carry out New Year’s Day family activities to exercise minds and help them grow. Give children and one another new books or games that help improve thinking. It’s often a better day to give few educational gifts than Christmas where toys might cause children to overlook them. Spend time on the Internet to find a few new sites that promote learning, such as NASA’s site, math game sites, or sites with nature information.
Take time to discuss how everyone is doing in school or other programs to increase learning. Chat about ideas to help anyone who needs to improve and possible new study areas or habits to promote learning.
Grow Healthier Bodies
Start the year healthy with nutritious foods and exercise. Take a family walk to see what new sites everyone can find on the first day of the year. Make a new, healthy snack or food for all to try. Check everyone’s height and weight and post it to recheck growth later in the year. Consider scheduling one evening a week to exercise as a family. This can be walking, indoor exercises, or even going skating or bowling together.
Discuss any health goals of individuals and how other family members can encourage success. Be willing to partner in exercise, diet, or other plans so a loved one can become more physically fit.
Grow Healthier Souls
It’s always a great time to improve the spiritual life. Making a new commitment as a family is a wonderful goal for beginning the year. Give each person a new book, Bible, devotional, or journal to inspire spiritual growth.
Start a New Year’s Day journal for the family. Record last year’s best and worst events, as well as the funniest happenings. Ask each person for a specific goal for the New Year. This may be a long range goal or character trait to work on. Plan to review the lists next year and add to it each year.
Build Family Bonds
Start the New Year with a big, family hug and photo. Make plans to celebrate together with a few special activities during the year. Dream about family vacation plans and excursions to do as a family. Post the dreams and start a savings plan to make them into realities.
Discuss how to communicate better as a family and how to solve disagreements that might pop up. New strategies now could lower stress and make the family work together better.
There are plenty of things to do on New Year’s Day with the family. Make New Year a day to inspire growth and new goals for everyone. Improving minds, keeping the body and soul healthy as well as building family bonds will give the family a new focus and a great start to growing healthier and closer throughout the year. Challenge members to work at keeping new goals set.
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