Family Fun Night: An Idea for Each Month of the Year
Looking for creative ways to spend time with your family? Check out these 22 family fun night ideas, with activities for every month of the year.
The older I get and the older my kids get, the more I realize that time together is the most important part of life. But doing things with your family doesn’t happen by accident.
Since we all live together in one house, you’d think doing things together would be easy. But sometimes, we tend to all scatter to our own corner of the house.
That’s where intentionality comes in. As the mom of your family, you can choose to gather your family together and do a fun activity.
Yes, it will require some planning. Some frustration may be involved–especially if your kids are younger!
But the memories you make will be worth the struggle. Even if you do something as simple as watching a movie inside a tent fort in your living room, your kids will cherish the time with you.
Read on and find 12 family fun night ideas that will create lasting memories and love in your family!
12 Things to Do at Home as a Family
Here’s the thing: spending time with your family doesn’t have to mean going out. It doesn’t even have to mean spending a lot of money.
In fact, sometimes simple family funday activities are the best. So, save yourself some stress and try one of these monthly family fun night ideas.
January: Hot Chocolate and Game Night
The holiday season is often busy and chaotic. By the time January rolls around, we’re ready for some relaxation and downtime.
Planning a family game night is just what you need! If your kids are younger or super-competitive like mine, choose games where everyone can have a chance to win.
If your kids are older, you can even set up a championship with a prize for the winner.
Make the night even more fun with a fancy hot chocolate bar. Provide packs of hot chocolate mix, marshmallows (flavored or gourmet ones are even better), chocolate chips, and peppermint sticks.
You’ll have a great time creating unique drinks and playing together.
Our family enjoys playing Uno and Uno Flip. If you have younger kids who struggle to hold the cards, check out these playing card holders. I got some a few years ago, and they make family game night a lot more fun!
February: Indoor Camping Adventure
In February, many of us are starting to feel some cabin fever! Bring some outdoor fun indoors and have a faux camping trip.
You can set up a small pop-up tent if you have space. If not, lay out sleeping bags in the living room, turn the lights down low, and turn on some ambient sounds on your phone or a smart device.
Make s’mores in your oven, and enjoy camping favorites like hot dogs and hamburgers. Take turns telling stories, or watch a favorite family movie while snuggled in your sleeping bags.
March: International Food Night
Got picky eaters? This might be a fun way to get them to try some new foods!
Choose a country, research some popular dishes and prepare a few of them together. You might be surprised what your kids will eat if they’ve helped to cook it.
Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Bobotie (Africa)
- Ramen (Asia)
- Paella (Spain)
- Ragu (Italy)
Check out these Kid-Friendly Recipes from The Gingered Whisk.
April: DIY Pizza Night
Round up everyone’s favorite pizza toppings and let each person create their own personal pizza. You can go gourmet with fancy ingredients like fresh mozzarella, basil, prosciutto, and balsamic vinegar.
However, if your kids are younger, can keep it simple with pepperoni and cheese! My boys love creating their own pizzas on naan bread rounds. They only take a few minutes to prepare and bake, and they’re the perfect size for smaller hands.
Making homemade pizza crust is much easier than you think, and family pizza night is a great time to give it a try. Just remember, it takes a few hours for the dough to rise. So, give yourself enough time to make it and let it rise.
But don’t stop with savory pizza. Wrap up your night with a yummy dessert pizza. Or, stick with the Italian theme and make homemade cannoli. Yum!
May: Backyard Scavenger Hunt
In May the weather is warming up, but it’s not so hot that you want to stay inside. It’s the perfect opportunity to get outside with your family.
Plan a simple scavenger hunt in your backyard, at a local park, or even on a hiking or biking trail. Make a list of objects and work together or in competition to find everything on the list.
You can make the objects as hard or easy to find as you want. Older kids can find more obscure items, like a particular type of leaf. Younger kids may have more vague rules, such as finding a leaf or a pinecone.
Celebrate your win–or loss–with a picnic.
June: Water Balloon Olympics
Beat the heat and get everyone outdoors with water balloon games. You can have events like balloon toss, relay races and target practice.
Take the fun up another notch and add water gun games, as well! Keep the activities lighthearted, and enjoy popsicles as a yummy treat when the water war is finished.
July: Indoor or Outdoor Carnival Night
Everyone loves a good carnival, and it’s tons of fun to set one up for your family to enjoy. Depending on the weather, you can host your carnival indoors or outdoors.
Where I live in South Carolina, July is mosquito season, so having our carnival outdoors might not be ideal. But moving inside where the air conditioner is pumping is a great alternative!
Set up carnival-inspired games like ring toss, cornhole, or darts. Serve up cotton candy and popcorn. Don’t forget to have prizes for the winners!
August: Ice Cream Sundae Bar
Even though summer is winding down, there’s still time for one more party! Get the kids together for an ice cream sundae bar to say goodbye to summer.
Start with vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry ice cream. Then allow everyone to load up on their favorite add-ins.
Some ideas include:
- sprinkles
- flavored syrups
- fruit
- sugar and waffle cones
- marshmallows
- whatever else you can think of!
Obviously, your kids are going to be on a crazy sugar high after this. So, the sundae bar is probably a weekend or middle-of-the-day activity.
September: Family Painting Party
Encourage everyone to release their inner artist with a painting party. You can make it as simple or fancy as your budget and the ages of your kids allows.
Grab some canvases, paint, and brushes. Have a theme, like painting an object, self-portrait, or another family member. Or, get creative and let each person paint something different.
Afterward, create an art display and (kindly) critique one another’s art. Take it up a notch with an art show where everyone eats tiny appetizers and looks at the artwork!
October: Storytelling and Bonfire Night
There’s just something about being cozy that makes everything more special! Build a warm bonfire outside, or create an ambiance inside with a YouTube video of a fire.
Let everyone take turns telling stories (ghosts optional!), or listen to a family-friendly audiobook. My family enjoys having a fire in our smokeless fire pit a few times each fall. We love looking at the stars together or listening to the night sounds.
A couple of years ago we downloaded The Action Bible audiobook to listen to while we sat snuggled in blankets around the fire. It was so special to listen to a presentation from God’s Word while experiencing His creation!
Serve some warm cider or hot chocolate to make your bonfire night even more festive.
November: Thankful Jar Activity
As the holiday season draws close, our hearts start to turn toward gratitude and being thankful for all that we have. A thankful jar can help your kids develop their own gratitude habits.
Set up a pretty jar, and encourage everyone to write something they’re thankful for on a slip of paper. You can do it all at once, or set a time. For instance, everyone adds one slip each day for a week.
Have a special family meal or snack time where you take turns reading out of the jar. You might be surprised at the things your kids are grateful for!
Related: 17 Gratitude Activities for Kids to Encourage Thankfulness
Christmas Baking Night
This is one of my favorite family fun activities that we do every year! There are so many different ways to have a baking night with your family. Much of it depends on the age of your kids.
If you have little kids, baking from refrigerated dough is fine. You can roll refrigerated dough out and let kids use cookie cutters to cut out shapes. The decorating will be messy–but worth it when you think about the memories you’re making with your kids.
Some other ideas include gingerbread houses, gingerbread people, jam thumbprints, and more!
If your kids are older, they may want to box up their creations and give them as gifts to friends, family member and neighbors.
Related: 10 Christ-Centered Christmas Traditions to Start with Your Family
Some More Family Night Ideas
Everyone’s family is different, so if some of these don’t fit your style, that’s okay! Check out these other great family night activities:
- Build Your Own Taco Night
- Pajama Dance Party
- DIY Science Experiments
- Family Cooking Show
- Puzzle Mania
- Living Room Campfire Stories
- Minute to Win It Games
- Family Book Club Night
- Karaoke Night
- Around the World Craft Night
How to Enjoy Your Family Fun Night Activities
No matter what family fun night activity you do with your family, you’re guaranteed to make good memories. It’s not always easy, and things don’t always go to plan.
The most important thing you can do is to embrace the imperfections. Life doesn’t look like an Instagram reel. It’s messy and full of mistakes.
Lower your expectations a little bit and have a great time with your family–even if that means cleaning popcorn and cookie crumbs out of the couch cushions or scrubbing red icing off the counter.
When your kids are grown and gone, you won’t remember the bad parts nearly as much as the fun times. It’s worth the time and effort you put forth to have these happy memories with your children!
More Family Fun Activities
Keep the fun going with these other family funday activities:
- Fall Bucket List: 15 Fun Activities for Families
- 16 Patriotic Activities for Families on Memorial Day
- 19 Festive and Fun Christmas Activities for Kids
