Having family fun and spending quality time together as a family is not always easy. We have so much going on in our lives and our kids have so many activities, it seems like we just do not have the time. Then if you add the cost of taking your entire family out to just dinner, it can almost seem like it is just never going to happen.
Not only do we seem to not have the time, but we also do not have the money. Yet one of the best parenting tips I’ve learned is that we have to make the time and it does not always have to cost us a lot of money. Our kids are only going to be with us for a short time before they are out in the world on their own. So while we still can, we should not only spend time together as a family, but have fun as well. This is where at home family fun night comes in.
So I recommend having fun, because there is nothing better for people in this world than to eat, drink, and enjoy life. That way they will experience some happiness along with all the hard work God gives them under the sun.
Ecclesiastes 8:15 (NLT)
With just a little bit of planning and without busting the budget we can spend quality time enjoying life together. Not only are family fun nights a great way for you to spend time together, but it is also a way for your children to build life long memories. Here are six at home family fun night ideas that you could use today to start enjoying time with your family.
1) Cooking Together Is Great Family Fun
I do not know about your kids, but my girls love to be in the kitchen cooking with me. And since my hubby loves to eat it is a win-win in my house! Cooking together is a great way to not only spend time together, but to teach your kids things as well. Teaching your kids to read a recipe and use different measuring utensils are great life skills they will use for years to come.
When cooking is your family fun night activity, I would encourage you to include dessert as well. This way your kids get to cook dinner with you, and after they eat dinner the fun can continue. Now they get to make a sweet treat and eat that too!
2) Slumber Parties Are The Best
Your kids, much like mine, will fall in love with the idea of being able to sleep in your room. You can all get into your pajamas early and just hang out together in your room. Then when it is time to go to bed, your kids can make themselves a bed on the floor just like they would at any slumber party.
I usually take it up a level when my hubby, Eric, is out of town and let my girls sleep in my bed as well. This usually involves me sleeping at the end of the bed so I do not wake up with a child sleeping on top of me, but it’s all worth it.
3) Game Night Is A Must For at Home Fmaily Fun
Game nights are usually a go-to in my house for a family fun night activity. We order pizza and let each of our girls pick a game or two a piece to play. Family game night can consist of board games, card games, or electronic games, such as the Wii. The possibilities are endless and so is the fun you will have.
4) At Home Movie Night
There is just something so awesome about snuggling up on the couch with some blankets and a few bowls of popcorn to watch a movie together. Whether you rent a movie or watch one you already own, it’s totally up to you. The time you spend together is more important than the movie you watch. My girls like picking a movie from our public library and that works for me because it’s free.
5) Nail Painting Party Is Great Family Fun
As a girl mom, it is only fitting that I throw a nail painting party in as another family fun night idea. My girls love getting their nails painted much like their mother and I know if you have a daughter she would as well. So the next time you are out shopping, pick up a little nail painting kit just for your girls and make a night of it.
6) Hide & Go Seek
We recently started playing this as a family. It is so much fun and a great way to have an impromptu family fun night as well. All you need to do is determine what parts of your house are off-limits, for example at my house you cannot hide in the attic or in the utility room in the basement. The rest of the house is fair game and you can let the fun begin. Hide & go seek can provide you with an endless amount of fun, laughs, and will not cost you a thing.
I hope these 6 at home family fun night ideas gave you a few ideas and the inspiration you may have needed to plan your next family fun night. Where you will not only have fun, but also create memories that will last a lifetime.
I’d love to hear your ideas for some great family fun nights in the comments!
I LOVE a game night and especially with twister! haha, it’s such a great way to get everyone involved and really spend some quality time with eachother! Great post and I love the ideas!
I love love love all these ideas! So many great ways to have fun as a family at home!
These are such fun ideas! We love games and movies too! My youngest loves the sleepovers, but my older two just want their own beds! Thanks for these fun family ideas!
I definitely understand wanting your own bed, Julie. 😂
These are so cute and perfect! We love game night at our house. I found some really old Bingo cards at an antique shop one time and we love using those for game night. I am pregnant with our second girl so I can’t wait until my girls get old enough for a nail painting party. So fun!
Awww, Anna, congratulations! Your two little ladies will love it! 💅🏽
In our house, Fridays are pizza-making nights. It’s a great way to end the week! We also love board games. We also have a large puzzle that sits on a table in our family room…it’s ongoing to anyone in the family that is in the mood to sit and work on it. So fun!
I love the ongoing puzzle, Jen. If we had a little more space I would totally do that. 💕
I loved this article! What a beautiful family 🙂 I can’t wait to try the nail polish party with my daughter. Thanks for all the great ideas.
These are all great ideas! And so affordable for any family size. Thanks for sharing these 🙂
A-
This is such a fun post! I have a baby’s boy but I can’t wait to start having movie and game nights once he’s older! Family time is so important and some of these games were my favorites growing up!!
These are such great ideas. I love that it’s so easy to have fun together without spending a lot of (or any, for that matter!) money. Really like the idea of a nail painting party – my daughter would loved this!
Thanks, Corey, and your daughter will love the nail painting party. I know my girls are due for one soon. ?
Great ideas! I think family fun nights are important. We try to have one once a week. We will try some of your ideas!
I love making a big bowl of popcorn and having a family movie night!! So fun!
Me too, Logan! The best part of movie night for me is the popcorn.
I love this! We’ve been looking for some new, fun activities to enjoy family time after dinner. I’m excited about introducing my littles to slumber parties in Mom and Dad’s room! Thanks for sharing!
I’m glad you like them, Meredith. Having fun ways to spend time together as a family is so important. And I know your kids will love the lumber parties as much as mine do. ?
Cooking together has become my new favorite activity, as my daughter is just now old enough to ” help”. So fun!
Mine too, Ashley. My girls love being able to help and are usually excited to eat anything they helped to make. So that’s a win-win for me! ?
I love these ideas! My kids are 5 and 3 so we are just getting into playing games with both of them. We love CandyLand because we put pieces of candy all over the board and if you land on that spot you get to eat the candy!
That is a great idea, Shani! I will definitely have to to do that the next time we play. Everyone, including Eric and I ?, would love the extra special treats.
I love all of these ideas!! 🙂 The nail painting one is so much fun 🙂
Cooking with kids is such a great life skill! I am so happy that you implement it already!
It sure is, Jenn. It is definitely something I want them to not only know how to do, but to love to do. My oldest wants to be a chef, so she loves cooking the most.
I remember all of those games from when I was a kid (Candy Land/Chutes and Ladders were my faves) – does that make me old? 🙂
You are not old at all, Andrea. ? I love being able to share the games I grew up with and love with my girls. Chutes and Ladders is one of my favorites too.
Fridays are always (homemade) pizza and a movie for us and we just started introducing game nights on Saturdays. We love having little traditions like this with our daughters!
Karin
These are such great bonding ideas! We do all of these all the time and it really keeps up connected
That’s awesome, Jenell! Staying connected as a family and having fun together is so important. ?
Game nights and sleepovers!? Sign me up!!!
I know right, Kelly! ?
Wonderful ideas for family fun especially with the little ones. Family connection is so important with all this technology in the world. I love the traditional approach here.
You are so right, Evelyn. We all need to find more ways to unplug and connect. Other that a picture or three ?, we make sure our electronics are put away.
These are all such fun ideas for family nights and they’re perfect for the family on a budget.
xo, Helene
Game night and movie night are something we have not done much lately since we never watch TV at home anymore. But it sounds so fun for everyone.
You guys look like you had a great time. I remember playing twister as a child and a teen. I should probably get the game for my grandson. thanks for your post:-)
These activities look like so much fun!! As a family, we love having a movie night. We snuggle on the couch with some popcorn and let the kids decide what movie they want to see.
That sounds like a perfect night to me too, Anne. The snacks are a must for us as well with popcorn topping the list. ?
These are awesome! I’m always looking for good ideas for family night! Thanks for sharing!!
These are all great ideas!! My husband and I are looking forward to movie nights when our son is older.
Looks like so much fun! We love to do movie nights, play sports in the back yard, and cook yummy desserts to enjoy!
We do many of these things..well other than nails in an all boy house lol but, these are great ways to keep family a priority and have fun together.
We love at-home family dates too. Easy on the wallet and fun times. 🙂 We just discovered the game Dragonwood and love it. It involves only a tiny bit of reading and some basic math (adding) skills. It was easy to learn for our 10-year-old. What are your favorite games?
YESSS so much freakin fun!! I need to do more of these and purchase board games! I dont have enough!! I love all of these ideas.
We do all of these but the nail painting night, because I have boys, but all the others we have so much fun! My husband always falls asleep during movie night, though, LOL.
I used to play a LOT of those games from when I was a kid!
These are great ideas. We have game time occasionally. But I never let my kids sleep in the bed with me, or my room….LOL. I don’t play about sleep time. LOL.
Playing games has always been one of our fun family night with yummy treats.
We love to do all of these ideas. Love it. Board games and movies are the best!
the How-to Guru
Great ideas! We need to do this more often…I think if it’s fun for the adults too we will be more likely to do it!
These are such fun ideas! We love game night and movie night at our house. My mom still asks for us to sit and play games together as her Mother’s Day celebration every year!
Game night and movie night are great go-to’s for us all, Vicki. I think that is awesome that even your mom wants to still join in on the fun. Having fun with your family never goes out of style. ?
What a great list and roundup! Thank you for sharing.
Thanks, Lauren! ?
Family time is so important! We make it a priority in our home too!! Thanks for sharing your ideas!
That’s awesome, Candice, that family time is already a priority in your home. Finding new ways to spend time together is always a great thing. ?
Definitely good ideas for family nights! I’ve recently read a post on putting together a box with some treats for family nights as well! I love popcorn and movies together! Thank you for the suggestions!
That is a great idea, Amanda. Popcorn is definitely a must for movie night here. I need to make a go to family night box of snacks and easy treats to make for all those impromptu nights. ?
Super cute ideas- we do movie night (library or $1.50 red box) and lots of game nights! I love asking for games for birthdays or christmas from family. Have not done as much cooking but we need to !