Family Day Planning

Family day is such an amazing idea! I think it’s a fabulous way of getting the family together. Realistically, in this day and age, it’s so hard to consistently get together with family. Not only is family day good for my husband, kids and I to spend time together, but we use it as an opportunity to see my parents, my husband’s parents, and his siblings (I’m an only child)! It’s very difficult to have the entire family together at once. We try to have a family dinner once a month, but something ALWAYS comes up, and there will always be someone that can’t come for whatever reason—whether they’re sick, one of the kids has a friend’s birthday, or even sometimes the adults get caught up and have to stay late at work. Our entire family makes a huge effort to leave the afternoon of Family Day completely free. This way we can actually have the entire family together. It’s okay when a few people are missing, but it’s still not the same. I love love love Family Day! 

What we usually do is go for lunch somewhere that we all like! My kids aren’t picky eaters (thank goodness) and neither are my nieces and nephews so it’s pretty easy! Unfortunately, since some of them are still little, we go somewhere that’s family-friendly. What could make more sense for Family Day? After our lunch, we usually like to go to the movies and find a good movie for the whole family! We usually try and find a comedy. If there are no good movies out for all of us, we find something else to do (but we almost always find movies!). After that, we go for a nice family skate. I’m from Toronto, and so are my parents, but my husband and his family are from Montreal. It’s pretty safe to say that growing up in these cities has made both of our families into hockey nuts. We LOVE skating and playing hockey together! My father and father-in-law still like to play, so they come out with us. Meanwhile, my mother and mother-in-law usually go to a nearby Starbucks, get some hot drinks, and come and watch us play! We always feel badly leaving them out, but they insist on it every year—they say it’s our tradition and they don’t want to ruin it!

Then, after skating, we go back to my in-laws for dinner. The boys usually watch sports while the girls hang out and watch TLC. We usually order in some Chinese food for dinner, and we like to try a new place every year. We almost always like where we order from!

So for all of you feeling like you never see your family, or never have any time to get together with them, do not worry—Family Day is for that reason! Family Day isn’t just for your immediate family… it’s for anyone who’s family! That’s the beauty of it! Enjoy!