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When your children leave home the most important thing they will take with them is their memories. And while they are still there the memories will give your child, even teenagers, a strong sense of family commitment, and a desire to actually be home because they enjoy it. Here are a few wonderful ways to make memories with your children.
1. Near their birthdays and at half birthdays have a special day where you take that child and only that child out to do something with just you. Sometimes, especially in large families we can get so busy that we don’t spend undivided time with each child. This will become a much anticipated day to spend quality time.
2. If your children go to camp or even when they are just gone to school, write them a letter. Tell them why you love them and some reasons why they are so special to you. These positive strokes will be read again and again, and will help keep your relationship strong as your children get older.
3. Pass something special down to your children. My mom gave each of her daughters a special piece of jewelry and told us to pass it to our daughters when they are old enough. This will remind your kids of your family and the heroic ancestors in it.
4. Make a picture book. Keep your camera out in plain site at all times with a goal to take at least one picture of each child each month. Your children will love looking at it to see how they’ve grown. And as adults it will stir fond memories, especially if you write little messages under each picture.
5. Video tape them. Video cameras aren’t very expensive anymore. Videos can show things that pictures can’t, like, movement and speech patterns. Your grandkids will love to see their parents as children too.
6. The best memory makers are yearly vacations together. You will have many memorable experience and the time to reminisce about earlier years.
7. Keep a journal about all the things that your children are doing, and funny things they said. Try to write at least one thing about each child each month. This is a wonderful way to recall the character and uniqueness of each child.
8. For Christmas each year give your children an ornament. By the time they move out they will have a box full of ornaments for their own trees, and they can sit back and remember all the years.
9. Do something crazy together, like singing at the top of your voice as you take a walk around the neighborhood. Things totally out of the ordinary can seem silly, but often result in fond memories.
10. Tell them about their ancestors. Do research together and learn things that they have passed down to you. This will create a strong family bond while insuring that their memories and their lives will live on.
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