There are a variety of self-care activities for kids to try at home. From self-care games to simple self-care exercises, this post highlights a list of fun self-care activities everyone can enjoy as a family.

Planning for things to do with the kids can be exciting. Although stressful at times, creating memories together is part of being a family.

Whether you’re looking for more ways to spend time with your kids or simply need ideas on how to get the most out of the time with them, it’s important to remember one thing.

Your kids are growing, and they need your love and attention. Don’t be surprised when your child asks to spend more time with you after a day together.

It’s normal to want to spend more time with someone when you’re enjoying those moments. After all, a child who wants to be around their parent is a good sign in my book.

If you’re looking to simplify the everyday madness and teach your child about the activities to cope with stress, then you’ll want to include self-care as well.

What Are Self-Care Activities

Understanding the concept behind certain exercises can help you get a better view of what is self-care in general. According to the World Health Organization self-care is what people do for themselves to establish and maintain health and to prevent and deal with illness.

There are different types of self-care to highlight when you discuss coping exercises. These include physical, social, emotional, mental, and spiritual.

Physical self-care focuses on sleeping and eating habits, as well as how active you are on a daily basis. These topics are often seen as your health habits and are easy to tell the lack of physical self-care in a person when you look at them.

Social self-care is engaging with those around you, whether through face-to-face communication or simply connecting with the people in your life. Sometimes this can be hard to do based on your everyday schedule.

Emotional self-care embodies the ways you handle emotions like anger and stress. This is when it’s important to focus on activities to manage stress and the different emotions you face throughout the day.

Mental self-care can be described as the activities that aid in keeping your mind active. These actions include doing puzzles and reading articles/books.

Spiritual self-care activities focus on ways to reflect on everyday life. Meditation is a great option for people who seek a better understanding of things that happen in their lives and work to improve their situation. It can also be a religious act, such as prayer.

What Are Some Fun Self-Care Ideas?

Whether you’re focusing on ways to improve your life or in need of a better view of what’s been happening in life, it’s worth adding more self-care into your day. Based on the different types of self-care mentioned above, it’s best to think of one of the activities from each group that you can work on daily.

For instance, I like to meditate as part of my morning routine and prepare for my day before everyone else wakes up in our home. Followed by breakfast, a shower, and getting dressed for the day.

These easy self-care activities in the morning tackle the spiritual, mental, and physical aspects of self-care. Before noon, I chat with family and friends (social) and at night focus on my bedtime routine to help relieve the stress from the day (emotional).

Other examples of self-care activities I like to do throughout the day include tidying up our home and working on ways to simplify everyday life with kids.

Signs You’re Not Taking Care Of Yourself

Just as you shouldn’t avoid warning signs on the road, you should try not to avoid the ones your body tells you. Taking care of yourself is important, and when you don’t it shows.

If you’re constantly tired, you might want to focus on your intake. Not only physically but mentally as well.

It’s easy to forget the value of a care plan when you’re focused on everything else around you — especially what’s happening on social media.

After taking a couple of days off social media, I noticed a change in my mood and I made time for other things I had been neglecting. I enjoyed the much-needed break and decided to decrease the amount of time I spend on social channels.

Warning signs you need to practice self-care in your life include:
You’re always exhausted;
You’re skipping basic needs;
You’re focused on someone else’s life/problems;
You’ve lost touch with those you love;
You’re not feeling like yourself;
Your schedule doesn’t include time for yourself;
Your To-Do list keeps growing; and
You’re always moody.

If you can agree to feel any of the above, then it’s time to rework your schedule for more self-care. Your time is valuable and you need to include yourself and your health as well.

When you work on yourself, you get back the time you spent on unnecessary things. Spending hours scrolling through social media won’t help with self-care.

Try focusing on self-care activities like reaching out to someone and striking up a conversation with an old friend. That will help you more than subjecting your mental health to the stress of sad updates, happy photos, and upsetting comments from everyone on your friend’s list.

Self-Care Activities For Kids

Creating activities to do with the family can be exciting. Regardless of how stressed you might be, it’s important to find ways to include fun self-care ideas for the family to enjoy.

You might not always be able to get alone time, and that’s when you need to think of taking care of the necessary things before focusing on yourself. For instance, tiring out the kids so you can enjoy alone time is the only option for families of multiples.

You can try different ways to spend time with the family and add self-care for kids to enjoy as well. For example, adding something to do outdoors can tire out the kids.

Mental and physical activities like climbing and walking are great for exhausting the kids during the day. Swimming is another self-care activity for kids to try. It’s great for the physique as well.

To help with ideas for fun self-care activities to try together as a family, below is a list of the self are activities for groups that can work with the kids.

Clean the house together

Before you go and close out of this post because you think the kids won’t enjoy this. Read on.

There’s nothing more rewarding than relaxing after some good house cleaning. This teaches the kids the importance of doing the necessary to enjoy the fun times.

Host a surprise water balloon/snowball fight

Whoever thinks water balloon/snowball fights aren’t for adults hasn’t tried it. Parents and kids alike can get the most out of these.

It’s refreshing and exciting. Also, it helps relieve stress between you and your partner (or with the kids).

Have lunch outside on a beautiful day

The outdoors isn’t just for working out or getting places. You can do much more as a family when you’re outside.

One of the best self-care activities to do with kids is to dine al fresco. On a sunny afternoon, you can get some amazing views.

Watch a funny movie together

Sitting on the couch to enjoy a movie with the kids might sound like an everyday routine for some, but there are families that don’t make time for this.

A comedy film is always a great idea for the kids. I always go for the classics — anything with Leslie Nielsen or Adam Sandler is a hit with our kids.

Paint/draw together

Do you remember how relaxing it was a child to color something? Painting can get messy, so it’s something I try to avoid.

I do enjoy coloring with the kids. I highly recommend it on a stressful day.

Easy And Fun Self-Care Activities For Adults

There are moments in the day when you can dedicate time for yourself. At times, it may feel as though you can’t find a minute to yourself.

That’s when you should take a break and try self-care activities for adults that will help you relax. Below are a handful of suggestions to try.

Lay down for a couple of minutes

Laying down can be a great way to recharge your energy. My favorite thing to do these days is to layout on the hammock.

There’s nothing more relaxing than feeling that afternoon breeze. I like taking the time to be outside on the patio.

Write down your thoughts

Whatever you may be thinking or going through, it’s best to let it all out on a piece of paper. It helps you leave your emotions aside.

I’ve done this during a stressful day and left a handwritten note for my husband to read. Other times I’ve written a message to myself to help cope with stress and making adult decisions.

Watch an episode of your favorite show

Sitting down to enjoy a show is a great way to get the laundry folded. It helps take your mind off whatever’s going on that day. Viewing an episode can also help you view things differently based on the plot of the show.

Turn up the volume and dance

Dancing has always been part of my list of fun self-care ideas to do when I’m feeling overwhelmed. It’s a good time to cook or do other house chores when the rhythm gets you moving.

Call someone you love

It’s nice to hear a familiar voice on the other end of the phone. Although you may not be able to physically sit next to them and chat, there’s always a phone call waiting to be made.

Take a warm bath

Yes, self-care goes beyond bubble baths, but it does come in handy. You can wash away the day or start the morning just right after a relaxing bath.

Plan out your meals

Thinking about healthy and delicious meals for you to enjoy is always a good idea. Not only does it get you excited for the day, but it also helps with your mental health knowing you’ve planned something for you to enjoy that’s good for your body.

You can also visit the MTME list of more than 100 self-care ideas you can try any time of the day — morning, afternoon, or evening. There are weekend self-care ideas as well.

Printable Self-Care Worksheets

Understanding the need for a list of self-care activities to try as a family, I’ve put together a set of printable self-care worksheets for you to share together.

It includes:
– Daily self-care check-in sheet,
– Weekly self-care check-in sheet,
– Self-care activities word search,
– Types of self-care activities you can list for yourself,
– Schedule time sheet for self-care; and
– Self-care activities for kids to write down and try.

Each sheet is an open conversation for families in need of time together or seeking alone time. It’s important to have a healthy balance of both.

Give these printable self-care worksheets a try today!

There are a variety of self-care activities to try during the year. You can read how to add fun self-care activities into your daily self-care routine.