Engaging Family Activities for Lasting Memories

Ever wondered how to transform a chaotic family gathering into a serene and joyous occasion? This episode promises to equip you with the essential tools for crafting stress-free and meaningful family events. I'm Wondra Spencer, your guide on this journey, and together we'll unlock the secrets to successful event planning, emphasizing the power of communication, collaboration, and self-compassion. We'll touch on everything from assigning household tasks to organizing meal contributions, all while setting boundaries and maintaining a positive atmosphere. You'll leave with ideas for engaging activities and icebreakers that not only entertain but also strengthen family bonds and create lasting memories.

Stay motivated and inspired with a weekly dose of uplifting content by subscribing to my YouTube channel and podcast. The upcoming episodes promise an exciting exploration into the strength of community, with a special tribute to veterans like myself who have served. Connect with me across social media platforms and engage in a supportive network where personal growth and empowerment are at the forefront. Let's make each family gathering a delightful celebration of togetherness, filled with joy and cherished moments, while also finding time for personal reflection and relaxation.

Chapters

• 2:50 Family Gathering Planning and Self-Compassion
• 21:43 Promoting Motivational Content and Coffee

Transcript

Wondra Spencer : 2:50

Welcome to the Uplifting, motivational Field Podcast. Whether you're tuning in via YouTube channel or another platform, I am genuinely grateful for your presence. Your decision to join our community fills me with joy and I'm thrilled to have you here. This podcast is designed to empower and inspire you, and I am your host, ondra Spencer. I am the owner and founder of the Inspire and Drive LLC and remember our motto is motivation from within. This podcast discusses the love, your health, your strength, your self-care, motivation, inspiration, strength, your self-care motivation, inspiration, lifestyles, finances, personal growth and spirituality. Me and my guests we're here to share our experiences and our stories. Our podcast offers a unique opportunity for everyone to learn and grow professionally and personally.

Wondra Spencer : 3:57

With this podcast today we want to share an update on family gatherings and with the family gatherings you want to make sure everyone has a say-so at the table. So, with the family gatherings and I'm laughing because I want to talk about doing the dishes, that's one of my favorites you can have the adults do the dishes or you can have your kids do the dishes. They can have like a little assembly line, such as washing and drying, putting the dishes away. They can pick their chores out of a hat. It can be a list of chores. It's just so many things that needs to be done that they can do. Maybe the little ones they can fill the paper towels and the tissue and the toiletries in the home. So definitely, with this upcoming family gathering time and you want to be gearing up for those heartwarming get-togethers as the holidays are nearest, and definitely you don't have any need to worry, definitely plan early and you can make your event intimate and grand. So let's plan and prepare for our cherished memories and our beloved family members. Whether your gathering is small or large, there's no need to stress out and you can plan together to make those beautiful memories.

Wondra Spencer : 5:41

So let's take a deeper dive into the family gathering because it comes. Some people do it yearly, some people do it daily, weekly, monthly, and you definitely can prepare for it. If you cook a large dinner, you want to ensure everyone brings their items, their cooks, if they're buying things, so you can advance or prep for the event or pay for it in advance. And if you're not making many trips to the store, sending other family members your mate, your spouse too and you want to add event dates, so you want to have your date, your time, your location and you want to rotate the family gatherings at a home, such as the major holidays will be at everyone's house with last name Z or last name A, and you can rotate the following holidays. If you have family members from out of town, they can arrange to stay with a family member nearby and you can have a main checklist because you want to have it. With your checklist you can do a group text or a social media family page.

Wondra Spencer : 7:10

You can send out a questionnaire to gather input for planning. You can send out a questionnaire to gather input for planning. You can recruit and assign tests to family members. You can establish a central planning command center, develop a budget and you can prepare for those unforeseen circumstances and keep all the lines of communication open and arrange activities for everyone there. And you can kick off the event with an activity such as an icebreaker. You can share your family stories, your history, have a room filled with board games and toys and different things to keep the kids occupied and you can keep that energy going throughout the gatherings and everyone can take turns to clean up and prepare the take-home plates. The family should assign different dishes, such as ensuring that everything is cooked and properly addressed If you decide to cater it, you want to start looking at your prices, confirm the number of people family members and any unexpected family members and guests, and if it's a family reunion, you can get your customized shirts done to plan for it, to make great memories, and make sure you take a lot of pictures too. And it's also important for you to take the time to thank everyone who attended, who attributed to the fruit in the beginning and helping with the chores, so with the family gathering.

Wondra Spencer : 9:02

You want to have a mental health plan, so you want to do your joy. You want to not be so stressed and do your yoga. You want to keep your anxiety and stress at a minimum and you can make sure that you communicate healthy um with everyone and ensure that your well-being remains a priority. So you can reflect on the past experiences, such as walking down memory lane, reflecting with your family members. You want to see how you feel before and after and during the event. If anything trigger you, you want to make sure you take care of it and understand the anticipation and event itself and make sure things are not challenging so you can get help for your mental health and you can set the realistic expectations. So it's easy to dream of a picture perfect family gathering where everything goes smoothly.

Wondra Spencer : 10:30

However, it can be things that unexpected that happen. So you want to accept those unexpected or imperfection things and make sure you take a part in the experience and focus on appreciating the positive moments and you can set those realistic expectation for men to prepare you for the ups and downs and any frustrations and turmoil for that day. And you got to have boundaries, have boundaries, have limitations. You want to see what things can be limited, what things that you make sure people are not crossing those boundaries and make sure you protect yourself and your boundaries of your well-being and others and set aside some alone time. Maybe get you a cup of coffee or go and sit on the porch, take a brief walk and you know, really take that dive into yourself and have that peace of mind and really enjoy nature and you can identify your support system. That's with everyone who's navigating with you through this family gallery.

Wondra Spencer : 11:56

Make sure you identify the ones you can talk to if you're overwhelmed. You need to pass things off and make sure you have that reliable support system and you're managing your stress levels and make sure that it's positive planning and activities, conversations that bring you joy and peace. So you know, if you have those family car games, you know someone might get angry, so you definitely don't want to have those like car games. Maybe the kids have some want to have those like card games. Maybe the kids have some other games where they're they're having fun. But certain games you know you probably don't want to have.

Wondra Spencer : 12:42

And make sure that everyone is uplifting each other, encouraging each other and it's not stressing anyone out. And if you find that you're being distracted you're stressed out. Maybe put on some headphones or read you a good book, step outside and go to another room to review yourself and your emotions and you can make sure that you're making your stress go down, not increase it when it's the challenging time. And if need Plan for an exit plan, maybe get there early, talk, mingle Eat with everyone and have an exit plan so you can reduce your stress and control it and you can drive your separate car, you know, have your ride, pick you up early where you're not waiting for anyone to take you home because you're ready to go and it's your bedtime sometimes and you can practice your self-compassion. Definitely be kind to yourself. It's okay to be stressed and anxious or upset, but just make sure you take care of you, allow yourself self-compassion. If you offend anyone, definitely take care of it and make sure you're not stressed. You're not stressing anyone out because it's the holiday. So if you plant early you definitely can accomplish a ton of tasks. One of my tasks I like to get done is to start shopping in October. If I start shopping in October I can get everything I want and get things out the way. So I'm not stressing towards the the end of the year and if unexpected things come up. So make sure that you're reflecting on the event. Maybe things that could be improved for the next year. Maybe talk about the positives and negatives and consider what strategies work for you and your family and share with others. If the other household with the letter S is contributing to the family gathering next year, you can share some pros and cons of it and make sure you plan for the future and share information with the upcoming gathering for the family.

Wondra Spencer : 15:26

Home and family gatherings can be challenging. They can go smoothly or not, but make sure you enjoy every moment of it and remember to prioritize your well-being. And it's not selfish, it is necessary. So with the family gatherings. They are so fast in today's world where they can be coming so fast. People can do it together, they can do it virtually, but you want to make sure with your family gathering, you're enjoying it. It gives you a chance to reconnect with your loved ones. You're making sure that you're enjoying it. You're sharing the experiences. Maybe someone has a new baby, a new spouse, extended family member. They're catching up on life happenings and make sure you take many pictures and enjoy those moments. And with the family gatherings you want to make sure that your, if it's a family gathering and someone is celebrating a anniversary or birthday or new marriage, make sure that you get a picture and you give them a keepsake for that so they understand what that the meaning of that family gathering and they can take a look at it everyone in a group text or on a social media page for the family member and make sure with these that you are celebrating the ones whom's not with you.

Wondra Spencer : 17:23

If someone has passed away, you can honor their, their life and celebrate their memories together with their family members and make sure you embrace and preserve on your heritage one of the most beautiful aspects of family gatherings coming together from multiple generations and you can have a powerful meaning through, have a powerful meaning through sharing your stories, family histories, traditions, that's passed down, different recipes, so you really make sure you cherish those and the different tales, the pros and cons, the ups and downs. Remember that card game where such and such broke the table or we had to find a table. So definitely just remember that you cherish those moments and it definitely can start a new tradition for the younger generation and add values and ideas and really enhancing your family legacy and make sure, with those stories, that you're taking advantage of your tradition and your culture. Your family is unique. So taking a time to a young, sit with the younger generation, sit with the older generation, sit with the younger generation, sit with the older generation, sit with the next generation, just really enjoy it and create those joyful times together. Take many pictures and you want to make sure that you're spreading that joy and togetherness and make sure you set a time aside for a chance to get to know each other. So you're having that potato sack race or it's the time where you're hiding the eggs around the house because it's too wet outside or snowing outside. Just make sure that you enjoy it and enjoy the meals and the laughter and the love and the creation of memories because it will be cherished for years to come.

Wondra Spencer : 19:43

Your family gatherings are just more than a gathering. They are there to celebrate your family, your life and the love that binds us together. And remember these are your roots, connect to your past, your roadmap to the future and in the world. If you feel isolated, the family gatherings reminds of your support and your strengthening your family and welcoming others to your family. So, with the family gatherings, the unsung heroes in strengthening the ties that bind us across generations, and get ready to make the most of your family gathering by being proactively, establishing a plan to support it and really supporting everyone's mental health, and including yours, and you can have a solid plan to empower and navigate your challenges and confidentially and gracefully and remembering prioritizing yourself is an ongoing process. Embracing these strategies in your daily routine will enrich your family interactions and contribute to a positive and having a more resilient mindset.

Wondra Spencer : 21:10

In conclusion, you got this. You just planned your family gathering. Just go back and get your checklist and you can do it. And you don't want to do everything. Some things you can get some help with, such as the cooking, the traveling arrangements, the cleaning, enjoying, enjoying. So you have the time to enjoy that upcoming holiday and remember motivation comes from within and that's the motto here at Expire and Drive.

Wondra Spencer : 21:43

So subscribe to my YouTube channel and my podcast. You can get the motivational fuel on Fridays and also for my military buddies. You can get a cup of coffee, use the COVID and it will come directly to your front door and you will get a percentage off on my website. And you can also follow me On my social media pages At Wondra Spencer, on Facebook, instagram, tiktok, X, which is known as Twitter,

Wondra Spencer : 22:22

Llinkedin, alignable, and I can see my listeners from throughout the world. It's really cool to see. So send me your email At support At WondraSrespencercom and I can give you a shout out on my upcoming podcast. The upcoming podcast is a special one. I want to get a tribute, definitely to my veterans, including myself. So stay tuned to listen for it. Enjoy those family gatherings they're coming so fast. Definitely enjoy it and we'll talk soon.