In recent talks with many homeschooling moms, I've noticed a sad, recurring theme: dull days lacking fun and laughter.  While we aren't to judge our progress based on the number of times we giggle, I do believe that we set ourselves up for burnout, and our children up for frustation, when we don't create frequent opportunities for jubilant family living.  So, for those of you who are struggling through a rut, or who just need a little jumpstart to get those creative juices flowing, here are just a few suggestions for gifting your children with what I call, "delight breaks". 

 1.  Let your child get dirty.  Whether it's providing a mud puddle and tins for her "chocolate" pies, giving him free reign to dig a hole for buried treasure, or allowing him to pose with a mass of seaweed on his thirteen-year-old head, your child will never be too old to enjoy the delights of wearing God's creation.  When our kids were little I'd let them "paint" the a fence or old boards with full-sized paint brushes and buckets of water (sometimes mixed with dirt to make brown paint).  Then I'd line them up for a freezing hose down and wisk them off to the bathroom.  Or, make up a batch of sidewalk paint by mixing equal measurements of cornstarch and cold water.  Tint with food coloring and provide 1" to 3" brushes to decorate your sidewalk or driveway.  Chalk dipped into water can be used to add detail.

2.  Sing goofy songs together.  Our kids may now be ages preteen through adult but each of them still delights in singing our silly songs.  If you don't know any, make up your own...we've sung about the cows that stand on the mounds throughout the California dairyland, memorized Westminster Catechism questions to the tune of "Take Me Out To the Ballgame" and panted our way through the cardiovascularly demanding motions of "The Twelve Days of Christmas". 

3.  Swing.  When was the last time you sat on a swing with your child or grabbed the one nearest him or her to enjoy an "airy perspective"?  

Bucket, rope, tire...any one will do.

4.  Play an active game.  Before the weather turns too chilly. round up the kids for a game of tag, duck-duck-goose or hide-and-go-seek in the yard or a nearby park.  If the temperature dips or darkness threatens, play family Sardines (one person hides, everyone else seeks--when a seeker finds "It" he quietly joins "It" until everyone has crammed-in together). Or, see who can come up with the most creative dance routine to your favorite classical composition.  Even boys will do this to make their parents laugh...though they may never admit it publicly. 

5. Pack a picnic.  You have to make lunch anyway, so why not enjoy it on a blanket in the front yard, at your favorite lakeside sandbar, on your living room carpet, or in a lovely neighborhood park? 

6.  Pick fruit. Some of our most enjoyable memories have been picking apples together at our favorite "U-Pick" orchard, eating oranges right off our trees, or scouring the river banks for wild blackberries.  If your kids are old enough to help, work together to turn the fruit into jam, pie-filling, or other canned delicacies. Don't worry about the mess or the mistakes...relish the time together.   

7.  Enjoy goofy "secret talents".  While these shouldn't be your family's complete source of entertainment, they can certainly be the source of hearty belly laughs.  Wiggling ears, belly kettle drums, chicken impersonations and helicopter fingers are just a few of our family's hidden gifts. Delight in one another's quirks.

8.  Read aloud in a unique location.  Build a tent out of sheets and gather the kids to read within its walls, perch on the low branches of a sprawling tree, park at a lookout and sit on the hood of the car, or cuddle with your kiddos in the back of a pickup.  I'll never forget an attack of aggressive geese that forced one  outing (with a newborn, 1 1/2 year old, and 3 year old) to the hood of the car.  While I'm sure I looked a little foolish to passersby, it's one of my cherished smile "outloud" memories because it was something out of the ordinary. 

9. Share family stories.  My grandmother could laugh--heartily.  And she loved to make us laugh by telling funny family stories...like the tale of Stubb Farlow--my Grandmother's uncle. You might know him as the bronco rider on the Wyoming license plate.  He was missing a finger, and he delighted in making the little ones laugh by pretending to pick his nose; you get the picture. 

Our have watched our wedding video countless times.   Why? Because it gives them joy to see Mom and Dad, younger, skinnier, walking the aisle, reciting vows that they still keep, beginning the life that would one day include them. 

I regularly write in journals for each of our kids.  Now that they're older they enjoy sitting down with me and reading through some of the many years' entries.  What precious memories we relive and how their faces light up to hear my praise and love recounted.  If you have little ones, make the investment now for "delight breaks" later. 

10. "Love on" each other.  Don't hold back the hugs and kisses.  Even big kids need affection!  After prays and nighttime tuck-ins Steve and I individually have a handshake, hug sequence, or fingerplay type game that we engage in that is uniquely designed for each child.   Our sons love it!  Making affection routine does not make it boring or insincere.  Be both spontaneous and purposeful.  Your kids will appreciate it.

11.  Be flexible.  Don't miss out on opportunities to enjoy your kids.  It's okay to gather the older kids from their studies to enjoy a coloring session with younger ones.  Taking a day off from school to enjoy an autumn walk down an amber and gold studded lane may be far healthier for your family than a joyless day indoors.  Remember that dirt washes off but memories stick around; choose that which lasts.