Successful Family Rituals in a Blended Family Quizlet

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Every night at bath time, my three-year-quondam daughter chooses five bath toys, and we take turns tossing them into the tub. "CANNON BALL!" we shout.

Once all the toys are in the water, I turn to my girl. "Hmm…something's missing. What is it?"

She grins, jumping up and downwardly. "Me! Me! Me!" she chants, until I scoop her up and put her in the tub.

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Information technology may sound silly, and it's certainly very uncomplicated, just this is 1 of our family rituals. This 1-minute ritual brightens our moods, strengthens our bond , and even makes my girl look forward to bath time each evening.

You probably take several family rituals and traditions of your own, perhaps without even realizing information technology. Only if you don't accept whatever still, or if you'd like to create some new ones, read on for family unit rituals and traditions ideas and inspiration!

What are family rituals?

It's sometimes difficult to distinguish between rituals and routines . According to psychologist Barbara H. Fiese , rituals and traditions symbolically communicate the idea that "this is who nosotros are" as a group, providing continuity in meaning across generations.

On the other hand, routines are a way of communicating, "This is what needs to be done."

For example, bathing your child at 7:00, followed by bedtime at vii:thirty, is a routine. Simply if you lot contain personalized moments similar a special kiss, handshake, or song, you can transform the routine into a meaningful ritual.

Why are family unit rituals important?

Rituals allow families to slow downward  and connect , and they're associated with all sorts of powerful benefits.

Fiese and her colleagues at Stanford conducted a review  of fifty years of research on family rituals and traditions, published in the American Psychological Association's (APA) Periodical of Family unit Psychology.

According to the review, both family  routines and rituals provide stability  and are associated with adolescents' sense of personal identity , children'southward health, bookish achievement, and marital satisfaction.

Maintaining these routines and rituals even during times of transition  like divorce can lower levels of disharmonize and help children adjust to modify, protecting them from the proposed risks of nontraditional families.

If you're interested in starting some family rituals (or adding to your current list), accept a wait at the 41 best examples of family rituals and traditions below .

Family rituals that teach responsibleness

Rituals can be a fun way to teach your child responsibility.

1. Assigned Tasks - For case, assign each family member a specific task when setting the table: one family unit fellow member clears the table, another sets out napkins, one distributes silverware, and a fourth lights some candles.

Y'all can do the same when preparing breakfast, lunch, or dinner, perhaps to the sounds of our "Love Yourself Mix"  on Spotify.

The give-and-take " chore " has a negative connotation, but you can make chores a positive family ritual that teaches responsibility.

In many cases, kids don't mind helping out - information technology makes them feel special and capable! And family chores can teach your child that your family unit is a squad that operates best when they contribute.

2. Rotating Chores - For instance, accept a rotating chore chart on a whiteboard that changes each Sunday. Or you could write a variety of chores on Popsicle sticks, then have each family unit fellow member draw a stick or two to determine their chores for the week.

iii. Designated Chore Time - Designate a particular time each week (usually Saturday or Sunday afternoon) when the entire family comes together to clean the business firm. You can play music, talk, laugh, dance around - merely the chores must get done!

4. Collaborative Projects - Finding projects that the entire family can collaborate on is likewise a lot of fun, whether you're shelling peas, doing 1 of the activities from our Growth Mindset Activity Kit , painting a wall, or constructing a crib for an upcoming addition.

These rituals show your children that hard work tin exist fun, and they'll larn about responsibility from a immature age.

Rituals that promote kindness and compassion

Rituals like the loving kindness  meditation and volunteering as a family can teach your kid the importance of kindness and compassion .

5. Loving Kindness Meditation -  It involves thinking of loved ones and sending them positive thoughts or "good-hearted wishes." You can eventually expand the positive thoughts to more neutral people in your life likewise.

The four traditional phrases are, "May yous feel rubber. May you feel happy. May you feel healthy. May yous alive with ease." But the exact well-wishes your family unit uses aren't important; it's about generating feelings of kindness and warmth.

Research shows that loving kindness meditation results in increased  mindfulness , purpose in life, and positive social behaviors, like generosity.

This meditation is included in the Big Life Journal  and is part of our 7-Day Positivity Challenge.

half-dozen. Family Volunteering - Find a place you'd like to volunteer as a family , such as a nursing home, an fauna shelter, or a soup kitchen.

Alternatively, take your children assist with projects like altruistic food, vesture items, school supplies, or toys.

When you volunteer as a family, you lot set a great example for your children and teach them to demonstrate compassion and kindness.

Rituals that boost positivity

Try the suggestions below to assist your family unit de-stress , reverberate, and ultimately boost positivity .

7. Family Cuddle Fourth dimension - Kelly Holmes , author of Happy You, Happy Family , found an later-schoolhouse/after-work ritual that helps her family unit tiresome down and spend 18-carat quality time each day. Every day when her family arrives home, they pile into bed together and caress for five minutes.

They call it "family unit cuddle time" or "cozy upward in bed fourth dimension." They spend the 5 minutes cuddling, talking, and laughing together as a family.

Every bit a outcome, their evenings are happier and less stressful. Family members laugh more than, assistance more, and argue less.

viii. Reflecting on the 24-hour interval -  Another chemical element of family unit cuddle time is discussing each family fellow member'southward solar day. However, this can be incorporated into just almost any ritual, including dinner and bedtime rituals.

Sometimes, talking to your kids about their day isn't like shooting fish in a barrel. They may be hesitant to share or dismissive of your questions. Utilise the following tips to brand the most out of this ritual:

• Make certain you're not using "yes" or "no" questions. Instead, ask questions that begin with "how" or "why."
• Make the questions fun! Information technology shouldn't feel similar a test, and your child shouldn't experience put on the spot.
• Utilize our "Let'south Chat" printable (office of the Growth Mindset Activity Kit )  for a fun mode to get your kids talking!
• Heed to your kids instead of guiding them to give any particular answer. If your child responds with, "I don't know," explain that there'due south no right or wrong answer to your question.

Family unit sharing rituals can also be more than specific, like having everyone say one affair they're grateful for at Sunday dinner, or sharing 1 success and 1 claiming each day.

9. "High, Low, and Buffalo" -  Another idea is " Loftier, Low, and Buffalo " suggested by Audrey Monke, summer military camp director and mother of five. Each family member shares the high point of their solar day, the low point of their twenty-four hour period, and a buffalo (anything else they would similar to share).

Open communication, laughter, and understanding will promote positivity  that brings your family closer.

Rituals that build potent family connectedness

Bedtime and dinnertime rituals are among the best means to foster connection with your family members.

Bedtime rituals requite you a chance to connect with your children and help them relax earlier they go to sleep. You may want to try some of the ideas below, or a combination.

10. Massage -  If your child responds well to touch, end each evening with a calming massage before bed.

11. Songs -  Cull a few favorite songs to utilise as "goodnight songs," or have your child option a song each night.

12. Stories -  Equally with songs, yous may have a few favorites that you apply each night, or you can allow your child to choose nightly. Pull a few selections from our listing of Top 85 Growth Mindset Books for Kids  (part of the Growth Mindset Printables Kit )! And to foster their artistic skills, enquire your children to choose 3 objects or characters, so ask them to tell you lot a story based on their selections.

thirteen. "Goodnight, Nose!" -  Bedtime rituals can also exist something giddy, similar saying, "Goodnight, nose!" while tweaking your child'south nose, then, "Goodnight, toes!" while gently tickling her toes, and so on, maxim goodnight to various parts of your child'due south body.

14. Love Listing -  When you tell your child goodnight, you tin can say, "Mommy loves you. Daddy loves you. Grandma loves you lot," going through a list of the many people who dearest and take your child.

Dinnertime rituals are very powerful. Shared family dinners  are associated with academic accomplishment, improved moods, and lower low and feet  rates. They've also been shown to decrease the likelihood of high-gamble teenage behaviors like drinking, drugs, violence, and sexual activity.

xv. Sharing Time -  Accept turns going effectually the table and share about your day each evening.

sixteen. Shared Tasks - Have each family member contribute something to dinner training, making meal prep a shared endeavor.

17. Accept Turns -  Have turns choosing favorite meals based on a schedule, random drawings, or specific achievements.

18. Theme Dinners -  Have weekly "theme" dinners, similar Taco Tuesday, Pizza Fridays, Sunday Sundaes, etc. These are even more fun if you incorporate a toppings bar and let each family member personalize their tacos, pizza, or sundae.

19. Sample New Foods -  Sample dinners from different cultures each month or attempt (and charge per unit) different cheeses as appetizers. Perchance you even have a special family approving you say each nighttime or a dessert you make when someone in the family reaches a major goal or achieves something awesome.

It doesn't matter how complicated or simple your rituals are - the point is that they brand dinner a memorable and meaningful time for your family to connect.

Rituals that develop a sense of belonging

The best rituals also give children a sense of belonging and acceptance . This can be achieved with something as simple as a special greeting or farewell.

xx. Special Greetings/Farewells -  For instance, say, "See you later, alligator!" while your child responds, "Afterward a while, crocodile!" Alternatively, y'all say goodbye to your child with a "kissing hand," as in the popular children's story A Kissing Hand for Chester Raccoon .

21. Special Handshakes - Have a personalized handshake with each of your children, making them feel unique and special.

Even these brief rituals demonstrate that your kid is a cherished part of something special: your family.

Holiday rituals and unique family events also transport the message that your family is a unit of measurement and that your child is an accepted and of import fellow member of this unit.

If your family celebrates Christmas , try the post-obit:

22. Hayride -  Continue a hayride each twelvemonth, perhaps around a Christmas tree farm where you pick out your tree annually.

23. Christmas Lights -  Drive around the neighborhood marveling over the Christmas lights, so vote on the best-busy houses.

24. Decorating the Tree -  Decorate the tree while listening to carols, then eat bowls of chili by the fireplace.

25. Decoration Traditions -  Each twelvemonth y'all can brand ornaments with your children, or you purchase a special ornament symbolizing something that happened that year.

26. Reindeer Food -  You tin leave cookies out for Santa and celery and carrots for the reindeer too.

If you lot celebrate Hanukkah , consider the following ideas:

27. Personalized Latkes - Make customized latkes with ingredients that your children select.

28. Dreidel -  Play dreidel with jelly beans or other candies, making it more personalized and exciting for your children.

29. Songs -  Sing Hebrew songs, particularly any family favorites or songs that hold significance to you and your family unit.

30. Act -  Act out stories similar the story of the Maccabees, complete with fake swords.

New Twelvemonth's is a great time for reflection on the year, and these rituals can help you take a await back:

31. Family Videos -  Watch family videos or a slideshow of pictures to reflect on the year, laughing and discussing your best family unit moments.

32. Prove Gratitude  -  Go on a "Gratitude Jar" throughout the twelvemonth. Any time you're especially grateful for something, write it on a slip of paper and put it in the jar. You tin can then review the slips of paper at the finish of the year, creating a warm and positive transition into the new year. Even improve, get in an annual tradition to complete our 7-Solar day Gratitude Challenge , which includes the Gratitude Jar, a Gratitude List, a Give thanks-Y'all Letter, and much more.

33. Birthday Songs -  A birthday ritual can be as simple every bit a special birthday song that you sing.

34. Personalized Block -  Make a special cake for each family member's birthday (their favorite kind, of course).

35. "Anything Goes" Breakfast -  Or maybe on birthdays, your kids can consume anything they want for breakfast, even cupcakes or ice cream!

36. Invent Family Holidays -  In my family growing up, we had Mother's Twenty-four hours, Father's Day, and "Kid's Day," an invention of my dad's. He would give us cards and take us to do something special. Commonly, this culminated in a trip to the Dairy Queen, then eating the blizzards in a fort in our backyard.

Unique family events , like the post-obit, promote a sense of belonging as well.

37. Weekly/Monthly Theme Nights - You might desire to effort introducing a theme night that your family does weekly or monthly, like Board Game Nights or Picture Nights. For movie nights, check out our listing of 75 growth mindset movies for kids part of our Growth Mindset Printables Kit .

Prepare specific rituals related to these nights. For example, a dissimilar family unit member chooses the game or movie each fourth dimension. Perhaps Flick Night is e'er accompanied by popcorn, and Board Game Night typically means pizza. Perchance the whole family wears pajamas and drinks hot chocolate.

38. Sunday Morning Pancake Breakfasts -  If every Lord's day seems like too much, have a special pancake breakfast the first Sunday of every month.

39. Monthly Nature Walks -  Use our Brain-Edifice Nature Crafts  printable to make your nature walks fifty-fifty more than fun.

xl. Favorite Restaurants -  For instance, swallow pizza at the same local eatery subsequently every soccer game.

41. Living Room "Military camp-Outs" - "Camp out" in the living room monthly or every so oftentimes. You can build a tent, make microwave s'mores , tell stories, use flashlights to create shadow puppets, and so on.

Call back that creating a existent family ritual means sticking with it. So call up of something that every family fellow member would enjoy - and that won't exist much of a hassle to carry out consistently.

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Source: https://biglifejournal.com/blogs/blog/family-rituals-teaching-responsibility-positivity-kindness-compassion

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