The “Fun Parent”: Why (& How) to Get Weird with Your Kids

Once when my kids were younger, back in that season I was covered in toddlers and preschoolers, we met my husband at Chick-fil-A (always a win) after work one night.

When they’d slayed the nuggets and the playground and it was time to go home, I asked our four kids who’d like to ride with Dad, and who wanted to ride home with me.

Hands-down, 100% Dad.

I think my oldest–who to this day, is still telling it like it is all day long–was attempting to console me when he told me, “It’s okay Mom. Dad’s just so much fun!”

Honestly, this is a great thing. First, I got the minivan to myself. But I also loved that my kids played paparazzi (and in some ways still do, as teenagers) to a godly guy who’s constantly diving into their world.

So. Are you the fun parent?

This is not to disparage if you’re the parent, like me, who makes sure everyone gets their medicine, has their permission slips signed, and checks to make sure the 12-year-old assigned to clean the bathroom actually scrubbed the toilet.

Though I have my fun moments–and my fun tends to be like, “the library” or “let’s bake cake mix cookies” or fueling the planning behind the vacation–I am not the funnest.

And neither am I attempting to say you need to be everything.

(Even you, single parents. If you’re just trying to make sure everyone brushed their teeth and wore underwear today, do not feel the pressure to be your family’s cruise director, too. I hope somehow the Body of Christ is stepping up to be fun with your kids .)

But does being a fun parent matter?

Why to Get Weird

Someone recently told me about the time, as a kid, when they accidentally put liquid dish soap in the dishwasher instead of dishwasher detergent.

Yeah. You see where this is going.

As in, the kitchen was swimming in suds.

And in the inevitable moments like these, we stand at a fork in the road, both reactions of which stand to be remembered by our kids. Will we opt to chastise our kids (remembering we discipline differently for childish behavior than for rebellion)?

Or will we laugh and create a shame-lifting memory?

Sometimes it’s easier than I think to be fun, if I can just get my brain there–and maybe stop being mad, which when I’m mad, I don’t usually feel like doing.

Years ago, I was unloading the dishwasher, and my son was terribly grumpy. Inspiration seized me when I pulled a mixing bowl from the dishes. I put it on my head, continued to unload.

Spell broken.

Goofiness sometimes equips us to turn a really bad day into one where our kids feel God’s embrace.

Getting a Good Connection

Fun moments with our kids are connecting moments.

Our kids often feel connected to us when we climb into their world (sometimes literally, on that Chick-fil-A playground)  and get downright silly. We sit down and watch Curious George with them. Or we climb in their tent and read a book, or pull on a tutu when they’re playing dress-up.

Jesus came into our world, into a barn, and got our mess all over him. (The book of John says, “The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood” [1:14, MSG]. What’s it take to move into the neighborhood of my kids’ lives?)

There’s something to be said for dropping everything and playing with your kids. 

Fact: They will probably remember this more than if your kitchen floor finally got clean(er). (But do see idea #7 below.)

Fact: Connecting moments make us infinitely more approachable to our kids, so they can come to us in the not-so-fun moments. Fun parenting builds friendship.

Fact: Fun parent or not, they won’t always want to play with you.

So every now and then I get out and go sledding with my kids, even when I would rather have a latte inside, wave from the window, and feel my fingers.

13 Easy-ish Ideas to Be the Fun Parent Right Now

I recently polled some parents on easy ways they’ve had fun with their kids. Drumroll, please.

1. On leftover night for dinner, let your kids play restaurant, creating a menu, taking orders, setting the table, and (hey!) bussing the table.
2. Time for a Nerf war.
3. Let them play with shaving cream (like fingerpaint) in the bathtub. (Warn them about getting it in their eyes!)
4. Make a solution for giant bubbles along with homemade bubble wands (we like waterbottles with the bottoms cut off).
5. Play this free, low-prep version of the newlywed game for kids.
6. Make simple T-shirts or bags using iron-ons or stencils and fabric paint. Or check out Pinterest’s vast ideas to retool old T’s.
7. If you have a non-wood kitchen floor, one parent I know removes the furniture from the kitchen, squirts Dawn on the floor with some water, and lets her kids mop the floor by sliding around in their undies. True story.
8. Have a sleepover together in a fort in the living room.
9. Let your kids paint (with washable paint) on your windows.
10. Make an ice cream sundae bar for dessert.
11. Together, make a food you read about! Like pancakes for dinner after reading The Story of Little Babaji, or an apple pie after An Apple Pie for Dinner, or your own version of Stone Soup (Aladdin Picture Books).
12. Get together a parade with neighborhood kids, decorating bikes and scooters, and maybe even pulling a pet in a wagon.
13. Throw a spontaneous dance party.

Your turn. What’s your easy idea to be a fun parent and come into your kids’ world?

Want More “Fun Parent” Ideas?

Child’s Play: 65 Non-Screen Ideas

71 Ideas for Bored Teens & Tweens

60 Easy Ways to Make Summer Special with Kids!

10 Fun Ideas for Kids this Summer!

11+ Low-prep ideas to occupy kids on Christmas break (with FREE printable!)

16 More Fun, No-Screen Ideas to Occupy Kids on Christmas Break