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Towards the end of Summer, once Ian had completed his work projects and was safely back onshore we were able to book in some quality one on one time with the kids. We have five kids between us and it can be difficult to carve out time for each one but I think it's so important to connect with each child in a meaningful and individual way.
It is said online that making space for this one on one time can do a few key things:
Improve their communication
Boost their self-esteem
Reduce sibling rivalry
Gives us a better understanding of their individual development
All great things!
Here are a few of the things we did with our kids and I'll include some other ideas for all budgets at the end too.
Train Ride & Concert Tickets
Aimee was up first as she received a ticket to the Ultimate Pop Party concert for her birthday and the date finally arrived! We got all dressed up, we did each others hair and makeup and I also splashed out and bought her a pair of leather trousers for the event. She was looking extra trendy as we made our way to the train station. In Scotland they have a deal where kids travelling with adults get their fare for £1 which was great. A train journey is a great activity to do with the kids, she absolutely loved it and we hadn't even started the official day yet!
We arrived in Aberdeen city and I took her to Claire's Accessories to buy a couple of multicoloured hair extensions to really add to her pop party vibe. I managed to pick up a pair for £6 (not sponsored but they are down to £3 here!) and then went to The Works to purchase a pair of scissors to cut the extensions in a bit - nothing fancy! I'm rubbish at hair!
We headed to lunch at Burger King and ran over to the venue. We were only a few rows from the front and we had a fantastic time watching the acts and dancing about for just £17 a ticket. Well worth it! We finished up and went for dinner at Frankie & Benny's and the kids menu is awesome - Drink, main, side and dessert all for £8.30 and even less if your kid prefers small plates like Aimee! Such a good deal. We got the train back and arrived home stuffed and exausted!
Favourite Team's Football Match
Mason was up next and I can't comment on a lot about this trip as him and Ian went to see Celtic play in Glasgow. They both adore Celtic so they were both just as excited as each other. Same as Aimee, Mason got on the train for £1 so it is well worth it to take your kids on Scotrail, even if its just to go for a walk or something at the other end. Change of scenery is key!
They got some merch and screamed and shouted as their team played and Mason was absolutely thrilled to see the players getting off their bus in front of him outside. He was just the happiest wee boy in the world.
Gamer day
Tyler's turn came around and we asked him what he would like to do as there were no events planned that he was interested in. He mentioned he would like to go gaming and he had a choice who he took along, as me and Ian had each been for a day out - he picked me which I'm so flattered about 😊 This time I drove and we headed to KFC for lunch as chicken on the bone is one of his favourite things in the world.
Next stop was a new little place in Aberdeen with VR equipment and we strapped up and zoomed into the world of Minecraft in Virtual Reality. I have to say, although I've been known as a gamer in a past life, Minecraft never really appealed to me. However, Minecraft in VR was so much fun, especially as we were in the same world together and could do each task as a team. It was £20 an hour and we were able to cram a few games into this timeframe. To be honest, any more and I would have been sick as it played with my senses and my brain got so confused it needed a break 😆
We headed to Game and Beyond Gaming to do some PC gaming as we don't have one at home and Tyler got to play a game he had seen online but couldn't play as its PC only so he was totally chuffed. We spent a couple of hours here (£5ph or £10 for the whole day each) and great value for money. We headed off for dinner to Tyler's most favourite place in the world - Yo!Sushi.
I have to say, Yo ended up being the most expensive thing that day and I can't say I'll be back with kids anytime soon. If you have young kids and loads of dolla then good on you but within five minutes of us sitting down Tyler had scoffed £17 worth of sushi off the moving belt with no signs of stopping 😂 I think the novelty of the belt was as delicious as the food to him! I couldn't keep up and ordered from the menu (not a huge fish lover) and tried my hardest to master chopstick under Tyler's strict supervision.
He is a good teacher and I managed to eat all of my Teriyaki with chopsticks, no small feat for me! However, I did leave the restuarant with hand cramp and suspected carpal tunnel with Tyler's cheery rating of "room for improvement" 😆
It happened to be National Cinema Day so all Cineworld tickets were £3 and popcorn and a drink was £4 so we headed over after dinner to watch Meg 2 in 4DX as the £3 deal included ALL SCREENING FORMATS! How insane is this deal?! Unfortunatelty, it was totally sold out so we ended up watching Blue Beetle which was actually a really great movie!
Tyler's day out ended up being the most expensive but only due to the sushi. I mabe could have saved a bit of money by just observing him gaming and not joining in but to be honest I'm glad I joined in. It really added to the bonding experience and we both have memories to last by being a team in these games.
One on one with kids - Ideas & Advice
Some other ideas I had on the list to do are below in case you need some other inspiration:
Fishing
Strawberry picking (or any fruit)
Ice cream parlour
Scavenger Hunt
Escape Rooms
Some wee nuggets of advice I've picked up along the way:
Think of it like a date - Our kids are constantly adapting and changing so we need to keep getting to know them over and over as they experience new things.
Ask questions - Not all kids are going to open up about things they are finding hard in life so make sure you are setting it up so they can speak about it.
Give them a heads up about conversations - I tend to say something like "we can chat about school and your friends at dinner later if you want." This way they can think about anything they want to bring up rather than being put on the spot when the convo starts.
Don't assume - Don't assume you know what they like, they are ever changing little beings and move with different trends that we can't keep up with!
Hope this post helped you with some inspiration or a laugh today!
Let me know below what your favourite one on one things to do with your kids! 🤎
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