What is Family Adventuring?
And how to do it more often?
Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash
We all fall into routines. Routines are comfortable and predictable. We know how long soccer practice will be, how much time we need to set aside for dance rehearsal, or the best times to go grocery shopping. Habit and routine make these repeatable activities easier and less stressful.
In an earlier article (Time flies when we aren't creating new memories), I talked about how creating new memories is a tool to make time feel like it isn't flying quite as fast. It's important to actively create new and unique memories. And what better way to do that than with some Family Adventuring.
Family Adventuring must contain two elements.
Getting out of the house to share an experience with your loved ones.
Exploring something new.
These trips could be anything from a simple day trip, to an overnight adventure, all the way to a road trip adventure. The important thing is to step away from your norms and habits and push your boundaries beyond your everyday commonplace experiences.
Sure, most parents get their kids out of the house regularly, but we tend to fall into a routine when it's available. This is a contributing factor to kids wanting more screen time, they are bored with habitual outings and crave something new. Adventuring with your kids is more than getting out of the house, it's continually finding something new - and this is where your challenge lies.
Finding something new isn't merely going somewhere you've never been before. Sure, that tactic works to an extent. However, you quickly exhaust all your nearby options, and this leads to two predictable outcomes: You end up traveling farther away to find something new.
You become one of those been-there-done-that parents.
You feel accomplished, but become a bit of a know-it-all, and you are right back where you started.
Exploring something new can be as simple as engaging your curiosity and actively looking for new ways to break your habits. Here are some tactics to finding something new in your old routines:
Try that local history lesson your kid has been working on in school.
Talk about/draw/create something related to what life was like back then.
Revisit that museum you gave your membership up at years ago, enjoy it again through your older children's eyes.
Have you tried to get to a familiar spot by using public transportation instead of driving there?
Did you go on a hike, bike ride, or walk a few weeks back? Try going on it backward, is there an alternate route you can add onto it?
Is there a place you can play local tourists for the day?
What about purposefully breaking your routine somewhere you've visited plenty of times? Is there another entrance? Go left instead of right upon entering. Try going directly to the end or back and work your way forward.
What can you do to shake up your routine to make somewhere familiar feel new again?
Cody Tolmasoff is an author and publisher for Adventuring.in. A San Francisco native raising two daughters, he regularly finds new adventures around the SF Bay Area. He's on Twitter @codyo, and his most recent title is Adventures in Getting Out, filled with advice on successfully getting your family out for day trip adventures.