Connect with Each Other Through a Family Challenge
Set a Fun Family Challenge
As the new year begins you may be setting goals for yourself, looking to change some habits or start something new. However, have you ever considered setting a goal together as a family?
As parents, we are well acquainted with how quickly precious time is passing as we mark growth charts, pack away clothes and say goodbye to baby teeth. This year I challenge you to set a fun goal for your family, something that inspires you to reach out of your comfort zones and strengthen your family connection. Time is passing. The question is what will you do with it!
To help motivate you and your family, we’ve rounded up a list of challenges that are great for kids to kick start your year. Some of the ones mentioned have online community groups and websites, while others are just ideas to help you fashion your own unique goal based on interests and your family’s priorities.
Why Specifically Choose a Family Challenge?
These days we’re spread thin, the cultural trend seems to have each person in the family pursuing separate goals; soccer for once child, running another to dance, golf for dad, book club for mom. Choosing a family goal will be a way to intentionally connect as a family and build memories together with your children.
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“The BIGGER the challenge, the more opportunity for GROWTH ”
Our Family’s Story : How it Began
In the midst of COVID, we discovered the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge. For a long time I felt like I was just surviving life as a mother of four young children, when I stumbled across this unique challenge something about it appealed to me. Maybe it was having an actionable goal, instead of just completing the mounting pile of laundry each day.
So we began transforming how we spent our days. By intentionally carving out time to be together outside, we visited new parks, found new hiking trails, ate outdoors more, camped and tried new sports.
During this time, what I noticed was that my overall mood improved when I spent time outside, my children became more creative, and we had less behavior issues.
Beauty can be found all around
Unexpectantly, I discovered anew my love for the simple beauty and joy found in nature. It slowed me down as I marveled at the intricacies of a butterflies wings or laughed along with my children as I jumped in muddy puddles. Without the four walls and pile of laundry surrounding me, I could focus easier on gratitude.
It even was a catalyst to help motivate me to create this blog, hence the name Discovering Anew. Honestly, it launched a new trajectory of my life and a desire to help other families connect.
Since then we have set a goal of visiting/ camping at all the state parks in Michigan. With over 78 parks to visit, this is definitely a long term goal for us. If you are a fellow Michigander, follow our Discovering Anew Facebook Page, or Instagram for tons of state park reviews, Michigan day trips, and outdoor activities to inspire you.
Possible Challenges for 2024
Embarking on a year-long family challenge can be an thrilling and satisfying experience. Here are some great tips if this is something you’ve decided to aspire to for 2024.
Spend 20 minutes outside every single day for a year and reap the numerous positive benefits.
Commit to spending 1000 hours outside in a 365 day period. It averages out to about 2.7 hours per day. This group has a great online community presence, blog and free trackers to help you reach your goals!
The goal is to hike 1 mile a week for the entire year. Experience improved physical fitness, mental well-being, explore new places, and connect with family & friends through nature. 52 Ways to Walk is an interesting book to pair with the challenge.
State Park Challenge
Across the country, many states and national parks have their own unique challenges, so make sure to check out your areas state parks. Depending on the size of your state this may be a 5 year goal. Obviously this large goal, can be broken down into a yearly goal of visiting 10 state parks a year.
Join the challenge of running or walking 100 miles in 2024.
Challenge yourself by logging 1 mile everyday. This can be achieved by biking, hiking, rollerblading, paddling etc. You could use a fitness tracker to log your miles or print out a tracker and color code the miles.
The National Audubon society has a fun challenge to identify one bird a day. My husband and son have recently found an app, Merlin, that can recognize bird calls. They utilize it while hunting, hiking and camping. To achieve this goal you may need to venture out to new habitats. Perhaps go to a marshland, city, forest, visit a bird sanctuary or hike in a migration pathway. If this seems like an extremely high goal, set your own. Aim to spot a certain number of bird species throughout the year and keep a log of them.
100 Books in a year or 1000 Books Before Kindergarten Challenge
Select a number of books to read each month or for the entire year. There are a number of ways to track this including Goodreads, Storygraph, or Beanstack.
Aspiring photographers, this is a great one for you. The goal is to capture one photo each day of your kids for a year. They have a simple website to help you achieve your goal. The main idea is to build up a journal of your day to day life and improve your photography skills.
A Twist - Take up photography as a family hobby and seek to capture your outdoor adventures. At the end create a family calendar or scrapbook for the year.
Embark on finding a specific number of caches a month for the entire year. Check with your local areas, for example Geocache Challenge Michigan is working with the State Parks and Recreations areas to get more individuals exploring the parks. combined with the State Parks. To join the challenge you need to find and log at least one cache in 40 of the State Park or Recreational Areas.
Try the Adventure Challenge
Another great option for families is the Adventure Challenge. The Adventure Challenge is a book that features a bunch of fun scratch-off challenges that helps you get off your screens and make real, meaningful connections with the people who you love most. Although I desire for our family to do an an activity together, sometimes the last thing I want to do after a busy week is plan and organize another activity. That’s when the Adventure Challenge takes the decision out of it because they are already pre-planned. There are special editions for couples, kids, families, friends and even dates, there is even a solo edition to help you expand your own personal development.
Shenanigans while completing one of adventure scratch-off challenges
We love the goofy and creative challenge that keep our family laughing and out of our everyday routines. Recently we completed this popcorn challenge and it promoted some deep conversations and connections, plus a few crazy pictures too.
Create Your Own Challenge
The wonderful part is, its your goal and it’s completely customizable. Set a goal that pushes you out of your comfort zone, but is still realistic to obtain. Don’t get hung up on the numbers and remember your overarching goal. This is where involving your kids is crucial. Customize it and create your own unique challenge. Since I’m a sucker for symbolism, I love the idea of 24 in 2024.
This is a great goal for picky eaters or a family that wants to explore new cultures and foods. Unique ways to incorporate this goal is to try out the new Indian restaurant in your town, head to the produce isle at grocery store and pick up a new fruit like papaya or star fruit. Choose a recipe in a cookbook randomly that calls for a unique ingredient.
Try 24 New Sports or Activities in 2024
We are creatures of habits, yet there are so many skills and hobbies we might love if we give them a chance. Some examples could be snowshoeing, pickleball, kayaking, geocaching, birdwatching, whittling etc.
Visit 24 New Places in 2024
Expand your region a bit and visit state parks, arboretums, playgrounds, nature center, and beaches. Invite friends to join you and build community.
24 Community Service Hours for 2024
Set a goal to spend time doing community service projects, random acts of kindness, or volunteering to help those in need as a family. This List of Ways to Make the World a More Beautiful Place, pairs well with the children’s picture book Miss Rumphius and has tons of great ideas.
An Alphabet Challenge
Work your way through the alphabet by selecting an activity, park, food to correspond with that letter. (A = aquarium, B = build a fort, C = campfire)
Camping Challenge
Camping 1 time each month or camp 12 nights under the stars. If you live in states where the weather has extremes you could also include cabins, yurts etc.
Friend Challenge
Build community by setting a goal of inviting new friends or neighbors over each month.
Tips for Obtaining Your Goal
1. Get your families and children’s input. Involve everyone in the discussion so your children and spouse take ownership too.
2. Clearly define the objective of the challenge. What is the overall purpose that you hope to achieve as a family? Some examples are improved health, having fun together, learning a new skill, developing a hobby, connecting as a family, getting outside or character development.
3. Set clear, measurable goals for the challenge.
4. Break the goal into manageable steps (daily, weekly, monthly, yearly). This is especially true if its a large goal.
5. Track Your Progress. Print out a tracker or find an online app that can log your miles, books, parks, etc.
6. Establish the rules. If you’ve chosen a challenge that is promoted by a specific group, then read through the rules or define what represents a success. Does the entire family need to be present? In my opinion, don’t get too hung up on the small details and remember your overarching goal (ie have fun, exercise, spend time as a family)
7. Celebrate your successes. This can be done monthly or as one big celebration at the end of the year. Below are some fun ideas of ways to celebrate.
Ways to Celebrate
Take it up a notch by infusing unique traditions into your family, such as a special kickoff event or a celebration marking the end of the challenge. These rituals will help create lasting memories and emotional significance that children can look back at through their childhood.
Create a printed scrapbook or calendar of your adventures and achievements
Plan a big trip or adventure at the end
Take a commemorate picture with your tracking log
Plan a special dinner celebration and discuss highlights and memories
Create a highlight video
“Don’t just tell your children about the world, show them. ”
Turning Failure into Triumph
I know, I know. The thought of failing, might keep you from even attempting one of these challenges. Yet there is much to be learned through the journey. That is the beauty of starting the challenge with clear objectives. If your main goal for starting the challenge is to connect as a family, or learn a new skills, then even when you fail, you’ve achieved these goals.
With your children you can emphasize and highlight your accomplishments. A failed challenge can still promote new habits, fun traditions, strengthen relationships and create immeasurable memories.
I still remember when we embarked on the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge, I was discouraged because we didn’t make our monthly goal in February with the bitterly cold winter in Michigan. Mentally I had to flip my perspective and focus on all we did accomplish. Not to mention, we went on to achieve 1000 hours, thankfully racking up tons in the summer months which allowed us to hit our overall year end goal.
Closing Thoughts
Are you ready to join a challenge this year? No matter what you do, time is passing. Wouldn’t it be great to have something to celebrate and be proud of at the end of the year.
We would love to hear what challenges you are embarking on in 2024. Make sure to Pin and Save for later and encourage your friends to join you. If you found this helpful, follow Discovering Anew for more campground reviews and family adventures. We’re constantly producing new content and strive to create honest reviews to help make planning your next trip easier. From our family to yours…Happy NEW YEAR!
Lantern Lit Night Hikes are occurring throughout Michigan this winter. Here is your Michigan Winter hiking guide for 2024-2025 season, including a detailed map. Hike, ski or snowshoe as you journey through a glowing trail lit with lanterns. A variety of Michigan State Parks, MI recreation areas and nature centers are hosting these magical night hikes with cozy camp fires afterwards.