The summer holidays are drawing to a close, and as tradition would dictate the weather is pants, my sanity levels are getting dangerously low and my bank balance is sorely diminished.
One of my go-to low-cost and minimum-effort family activities is the family night in.
The children absolutely love having a family evening, and it’s a nice way to unwind after a long day and start the bedtime routine early!
Luckily Room To Grow sent us everything we needed for a family movie night.
Here are my top tips for having a fab family fun night in!
1) Make pizza
Absolutely no family night in this house is complete without pizza and it’s great fun to make your own, which for one thing is healthier and also encourages the kids to eat it. Win/win.
If you’re a bit lazy like me and can’t be bothered with that kind of thing, buy a plain pizza and get the children to decorate it with toppings of their choice. Alternatively, pizza ovens make this process a whole lot easier. You can learn more about them at Botanex. If your children don’t like pizza… I don’t know. I can’t help you.
2) PJs on!
While the pizza is cooking, give the kids a super early bath and get their PJs on.
Firstly, there’s little fuss about doing it because there is a reward (some might call it bribery) in the form of a fun night ahead, secondly it saves time later so that you can squeeze in the end of a film, and lastly if someone happens to fall asleep then you can pop them straight into their bed without having to read Oi Frog again for the 23754th time in a row.
I won’t lie, I usually have my own PJs on at this point too. If you can’t beat them etc.
3) Get out the games
We love family board games; I’ve done a round up of some of my favourites here.
Board games are a really fun way to involve everybody in the family. There are plenty of age-appropriate games which are easy for toddlers to play, but if it’s a little tricky we make teams. We were sent Orchard Toys’ Llamas in Pajamas which is a fab little matching game, perfectly pitched at my two!
4) Get comfy
After dinner and games it’s time for the main event, but you can’t watch a film without snuggling down first!
We were sent this gorgeous pink dotty Snuggle Sac from Room To Grow. The outside is fleecy and it’s lined for warmth and comfort, and there is a space for a pillow to be slotted in. The Snuggle Sac would be perfect for a sleepover but it also great for watching a film on the sofa! This full-sized fleecy snuggly sleeping bag/blanket hybrid retails at £50. Toddler-sized Snuggle Sacs are £40.
5) Dim the lights
Curtains closed to get everyone in the mood to concentrate… Also so the kids can’t see you sneaking chocolate/sweets/whatever treat you don’t particularly want to share.
6) Put on a brilliant family film
Although it has been out for a while, if you haven’t seen it, I can heartily recommend Paddington 2 as a great film that the whole family will enjoy.
At the moment my two are big fans of The Greatest Showman, The Lego Movie, anything Disney and Trolls… pretty much anything you can sing along to I guess!
7) Popcorn!
Of course, you can’t watch a film without popcorn! One pack of salted and one sweet for balance.
And maybe a glass of wine for mum and dad too.
What are your top tips for a fun family night in?
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This post was written in collaboration with Room To Grow children’s beds and bedroom accessories.