How to Elevate our "New Normal"
Our daily life has a new meaning. The daily grind now consists of wearing pj's all day, home schooling, big outings or backyard strolls. And to top it all off, we can not see anyone in person. This is a lot. It can be overwhelming and stressful. Instead of getting down, why not try to take those daily routines and elevate them? Why not try to have a little fun and make things special? Everyone needs a little light in their life right now. And, we need things to look forward to and to break up this new normal.
1. Dinner Party/Date Night: Have dinner by candle light and get dressed up - Who doesn't love to get all dressed up and feel fancy sometimes? Get out the nice dishes, put on your fancy clothes, pour some wine and toast to surviving the day. Let's get out of the nightly dinner routines. Have fun!
2. Movie Night: Watch movies on a projector (drive in style) - Create a drive-in movie theater in your backyard. Order a projector online (you can find some that are inexpensive), hang a sheet from a tree, put out some blankets and pop the popcorn. You can even download the new app: Netflix party which allows you to stream, pause, play movies at the exact same time as others. Make it a virtual movie night with family and friends.
3. Cooking: Have family cook off's (iron chef/bake wars) - Split up the family into teams and have a challenging cook off. Make sure to have different themes to help you expand out of the ordinary. Have a Mexican or Parisian night and maybe give everyone 5 ingredients that they have to work with and see who comes up with the best, most creative meal.
4. Sports: Sports tournaments - Take some simple backyard activities and make it a fun tournament. You can buy badminton, tether ball, horse shoes, croquet, etc.... Bring back some of your childhood favorites and have a little tournament.
5. Games: Trivia nights for prizes (virtual too) - From trivial pursuit to trivia apps, there are many ways to play family / couple game night. You can even play games through the app House party. Play them with friends. Be connected and social while keeping everyone safe.
6. Music: Karaoke Nights - Like to sing? Or just like to embarrass your family? Have a karaoke night or maybe even play your version of American Idol, the Voice, or start a family band. Why not try a new instrument or bring out the ones that have been in the attic since your high school days? Kids will love it and it's a fun new challenge. You can find a tutorial for everything on YouTube, or Right now Fender is offering a free 3 months of guitar lessons free.
7: Dance: We all need to dance it out right now. Why not learn a choreographed dance together, or maybe you make a Spotify playlist that you can share with your family and friends. Then, you can video call each other and all can dance to the same music at the same time. Do not cut out all the fun things that you do with your friends just because you are home.