Giveaway update 7/18/12: Dustie is the winner of the beach balls! Congrats Dustie!
We hear the statistics over and over, few families sit down for dinner together anymore. Everyone is running from one activity to another. Family members catch up on each other’s day while in the car going through the drive-thru on the way to the next sport’s practice. Each child has their own separate activity, requiring mom and dad to divide and conquer.
So when do families have meaningful conversations?
When do parents share their faith, the way God has worked in their lives, and the hope He’s given them, with their children?
Real relationships develop and grow around the dinner table. Everyone loves a potluck supper at church because food and fellowship go hand in hand. The same is true at home. Family meal time is best accompanied by conversation and shared hearts.
If you haven’t read my post about our family conversation jar, click here. This jar is used at the dinner table to encourage family members to talk, learn about each other, share thoughts and feelings, and develop deeper relationships. The jar could be any container really. It is filled with strips of paper. Each person pulls out one of the strips of paper and answers the question written on it. Some of the questions are light-hearted and encourage general discussion. Other questions require deeper thought and encourage meaningful dialogue.
To see the questions we use, click here. For your particular family, you may want to add simpler questions for younger family members and deeper questions for adolescents.
I recently came across a similar idea to my conversation jar, using a beach ball. This is a great idea for active, kinesthetic learners. The ball has questions written all around the outside of it. Family members take turns tossing it to each other and wherever your thumb lands when you catch it, that is the question you answer.
I’m giving away one set of these FAMILY MISSION STATEMENT BEACH BALL
. To be entered for the drawing, leave a comment below and/or “Like” my Facebook page. If you like my page, let me know in the comments below. Random.org will select the winner next Wednesday, July 18 at 8:00pm EST.
Linking up with:
Love the beach ball idea, how fun! I haven’t seen these before. As always Christina, your posts are so encouraging and filled with great ideas. Thanks you for taking the time to write.
Love both the beach ball and your conversation jar! Liked your fb page
Thanks!
My girlies would LOVE the beach ball! What a great idea!
The family conversation jar. I love that idea!
We have something similar at church for our k-4 kids. Never occurred to me to do that at home tho.
Fun idea!
Such a great idea for deeper, more meaningful conversations including the kids. Thanks!!
I love those beach balls! We used similar ones for getting the kids talking @ youth group down in ft.l. - so fun!
What a great idea! Love it…and I have a kinesthetic learner
I like ya on Facebook and would love ya if they let me…
I love reading your blog! You have a lot of wonderful ideas that I use at my house. I “liked” your facebook page a while back and enjoy looking at it also!
Great idea about the conversation jar! I’m going to make one this weekend! I also love the giveaway. Thanks for linking up today.
Shari
Okay, I’m an empty nester so I’m not really sure you should enter me to win the beach ball. But! So glad I stopped over to read about it. What a fun idea.
Love this encouragement! We need to communicate with our family, not just exist with them.
Love the giveaway too!
Oh and I already like you on FB!
Thank you for your blog…it has been such an encouragement to me! I love this beach ball conversation starter idea!
I definitely liked your Facebook page
Blessings!
The ball conversation starter is new to me. When I taught, we used beach balls for math and literacy questions, and our students LOVED it…amazing how a game can open up such participation!
Blessings for an awesome weekend!
Thanks for linking up this morning! It’s good for me to read more of this series.
Also, I do like the Jesus Storybook bible you commented on for my post today….that is my “next” step w/J, as he’s growing up, but I’ll probably order it now too!
Michy
I love your page because even though my kids are grown, they are both still living at home and I find many great ideas to start discussions on here. I also have 3 great niece & nephews and apply your ideas to when we spend time together. Thank you for keeping me sharp, it’s easy to forget when you no longer have small children!
Love the beach balls. I have seen them before and I am sure Gavin would love it! I liked your FB page. Thanks so much for hosting this giveaway!
Great giveaway!
Fun idea! I would love to win!
I love this idea! It is something I have been thinking about starting with my own family, although i’m not sure it is that applicable right now since my kids are 4 and 23 months…and the 4 year old tends to talk about anything she can think of