Lynda Loveland: Everybody in

This past weekend, we all went up to Virginia to see my husband’s parents.

I think it’s so important for my kids to spend as much time as possible with their grandparents. I thought the long weekend would be a perfect opportunity. Little did I know, I would be the one who benefited most.

I’ve been trying to spend more quality one-on-one time with each of my kids. That’s been my goal. But I was missing the big picture. While one-on-one time is valuable, so is family time. When we’re home, there’s always practice or homework or playdates or games or chores or or or or or. It goes on and on.

While we were together as a family, we weren’t BEING a family. We watch movies together, go places together, but it’s not the same.

Over the weekend, with nothing specific to do and nowhere specifically to be, we played together as a family. We ALL played soccer and we ALL played baseball … together. We dog piled, we tackled and we laughed. And in the middle of all of it, I found myself smiling. A big, ear to ear, heart feels light and happy, kind of smile.

It’s time to stop and smell the roses. Their names are Campbell, Caiden and Carys.

What’s your favorite thing to do as a family?