Creative Solutions For Parenting Problems 

Parenting is not easy, and although that’s something you’ll hear from a lot of people in a lot of places, they might not then come up with anything useful to help you make it easier. Because that’s the thing a lot of people forget – parenting isn’t easy, but it doesn’t have to be so hard.

The truth is that sometimes the most effective solutions to parenting problems and challenges are the ones you least expect and the ones you might not have thought of. Traditional advice is great, but what if there were other ways to do things that just made more sense and that helped more? Well, there are – there are some amazing and creative solutions that you can work through to make parenting just that little bit easier (and sometimes a lot easier), and with that in mind, if you want to know what some of them are, keep reading.

Minimalist Parenting

You want to buy nice things for your kids, don’t you? But the issue is that you end up with too much stuff that doesn’t get used and that cost a fortune to actually get, and that can lead to feelings of guilt, not to mention a busy and cluttered home. If that’s a problem you face and you want to get past it, minimalist parenting might be the solution.

Minimalist parenting is all about reducing the clutter (both the physical stuff all around you and the mental clutter you can easily succumb to as a parent) so your home is happier, healthier, and more harmonious. If you can do things like prioritize quality over quantity when you’re buying things, you’ll find you and your children are a lot more content and you can focus on what really matters rather than material possessions, which isn’t just helpful in the here and now, but it’s a handy skill for your kids to have as they get older too.

Start by decluttering your home and involve the children in the process if they’re old enough. They’ll be able to understand what’s useful and what isn’t, and they should be able to start valuing a more simple lifestyle as well, which is great for everyone involved. It’s also a good idea to look at your schedule (and your children’s schedules) and see what you can do to simplify them – when there’s a lot going on, it’s hard to live a minimalist life, and it can all get very overwhelming – it can even lead to burnout. Plus, try to do ‘mindful consumption’ where you only buy what you need. Now this last idea is going to be really hard to get into the habit of, but once you do, you’ll find things become a lot easier.

Balance Screen Time

It’s impossible for kids not to have some screen time these days, whether it’s TV, video games, or going online, and as much as you might not like it, they have to do this – they need to know how these things work because of the age we live in and the fact that they’ll need to use screens throughout their school life and, very probably, when they start working too. Not to mention the fact that they’ll find it hard to interact with friends and peers if they’re not able to talk about the same websites, games, and TV shows. It might seem trivial, but it’s actually important.

However, just because kids need to have some screen time doesn’t mean they should be online all the time, and that’s why there needs to be a good balance and, as the parent, that’s a balance you need to work out and put in place. One good idea is to set screen time limits so there are clear rules about how much time the children can spend using screens, and there should be extra rules about not using them during meals or just before bedtime, for example. It’s also not a bad idea to set up some tech-free zones in your home, like the bedrooms and dining room or wherever you think is a good idea – not only can devices not be used there, but they shouldn’t even enter the room in the first place. And of course, if you’re limiting screen time make sure you’ve got some alternatives in place, like plenty of books, outdoor games, and crafting materials – you don’t want children to be bored.

Make Chores A Game

Parents always have a problem when it comes to kids and chores. On the one hand, they want their children to be happy and have a great childhood (chores don’t tend to make people happy), but on the other, those chores still need to be done and there’s also the fact that they need to teach their children responsibility. So what to do? Should you give your children chores or not?

The answer is yes – learning how to keep a house nice and clean is good for responsibility, health, and even happiness – but you can do it in a way that makes it seem much less of a task and much more of a game, and that can be the difference that really does work wonders. You can do this in all kinds of ways depending on what it is your children like and what’s going to appeal, but one thing that often works is a reward chart where you add stickers, stars, points, or however else you want to do it for every chore done, and once a certain number of things have been added to the chart, your child can get a prize. Or how about timed challenges? You can turn chores into timed challenges to see who can do the jobs fastest or if they can beat their previous time. And although we’ve said you need to balance screen time, there are even apps you can use to help manage chores and turn them into games, so that could be another solution if you want to try it.

Use Educational Games

Puzzles and other similar ideas can often be seen as something that’s just for adults, but they can actually be a really useful educational tool, and since they’re also fun, they can be a fantastic way to give your children a boost when it comes to their learning. If you can integrate puzzles like sudoku or crosswords that use numbers and words to come up with a solution, it’s bound to help your children get better at those things and they’ll potentially start to excel at school.

There are a few ways to include these puzzles in your daily routine, and one great idea that can be a lot of fun is a family puzzle night. Not only does this mean you’re all together and working on a common goal, but it’s also something for everyone to look forward to; no matter what else is happening, this night is an appointment no one can miss, so make it fun with snacks and prizes and get everyone involved – it’s the kind of thing that can go on for many years, especially if you start it early enough. Plus, there are bound to be apps and websites that include plenty of puzzles, so if you want your kids’ screen time to really be useful, those puzzles might be the answer.

Use Nature

Nature can be a wonderful way to solve some parenting challenges, and there’s even something called nature therapy (or ecotherapy), which is all about engaging with nature to help with mental and physical health and wellbeing. If you can introduce your children to the natural world early on, they’ll have an appreciation and love for it that can last a lifetime, and that’s never a bad thing.

Nature walks are an excellent way to start – they get everyone outdoors and give you the chance to teach your child about the outside world (and to learn about it yourself too). Go to a local park, go for a walk in the woods, go to a nature reserve, or whatever else you want to do and you’ll find there’s plenty to do and you can spend many happy hours outside in the healthy, fresh air.

If you don’t want to go too far, there’s always your backyard instead, and that can be just as fun. Playing outside is a given, and that’s why having some high-quality play equipment at home is a great plan – if you want the kids to go outside more, they need to have a reason to go and something to do when they’re there. However, as well as playing, you could also get your children involved in gardening – they won’t be bored and they’ll be getting some physical exercise, which are two problems parents often come across. You could even start a family garden together where children can learn about plants, insects (bee hotels are a lot of fun to set up), and how important it is to take care of the environment, for example. Since you’ll be outside with them, it’s a great opportunity to bond and to get some healthy air yourself, so it’s not a bad idea all around.