5 Ideas for Your Dad Day

When you are making breakfast, kids usually hang around and watch. This would be a great way to talk in the morning.

If you are unsure what to talk about, we put together a post about talking to your kids. 

Here are some simple ideas though. Start with their dream last night. Quiz them on their school schedule and ask about their favorite subject.

Build a foundation of conversation and then follow up on things that they tell you. 

If the conversation turns to how they are feeling or specific goals that they are trying to achieve. Write down what they say and reference it again so you have a conversation starting point.

Breakfast can be anywhere, at a food truck, your favorite restaurant or in the kitchen. If you aren't capable in the kitchen, don't worry. If you kids are like mine, if there is food, there is a way. We have done simple things like going to get donuts or complex things like waffles and caramel syrup.

Make up a story to teach your child a principle or lesson. Make it a silly story. We have made up a lot of stories about a moose in our house. Here is one that we wrote.

One day a moose and his duck friend got stuck in a rain storm. The moose pulled out his umbrella, opened it and put it upside down.

He needed a bath anyway so when the umbrella filled with water, he jumped it. The water started to get to high so he dumped the water out and set his umbrella floating on the water.

He grabbed a tree branch and hopped in the umbrella. The duck and moose floated down the water for a little bit.

The big moose leaned too far and over he went. He had to swim like a duck.

The kids laugh and you made up a silly story. The moral of the story, the more you spend time around someone, the more you become like them.

This could be as simple game of rock, paper, scissors or a thumb war. Just a quick smile between both of you.

It could be a few games of tick tac toe. Maybe as complex as Settlers of Catan ( a complex but fun game for older kids, my daughter started playing when she was 7 and really enjoys it) or perhaps a video game.

Get outside and play catch or kick the ball. You pick a game that reaches them on their level and they will want to play.

Don't limit this to staying at home. There are plenty of other activities outdoors. Hiking, fishing, boating, camping, diving, swimming, spending time on the beach, metal detecting, going for a drive, hunting, trapping and so many other things.

One activity that my oldest daughter and I really enjoyed was deep see fishing. We spent about 6 hours on a boat, caught a bunch of fish and fed the family for dinner. She tried something that I have always wanted to do and she had a blast.

If the great outdoors are not exciting to you, try a museum, concert, a movie, getting some books from the library or any number of things can be found in a city. 

There is a train museum/store near where we live now and inside they have a railway track and a train that they give you a tour on. They chug the train through their museum. Quite fun for little kids. What is something unique in your town that most people don't know about.

This may sound a little too simple, kids need entertainment. Try getting them to talk to you. We linked to it about but one great resource is our blog post on communication strategies for parents. As grown ups, it is easy for us to talk to adults. I struggle with talking to younger people teens to early 20's. These techniques help me be a better communicator.

It has been said that kids attribute connection and relationship to food. To keep them connected to you and engaged, keep them fed.