You’re stuck at home with your teen daughter, and you’re likely driving each other crazy by now. She’s missing her social circle, and you’re missing the peace and quiet.
What you don’t realize, this is a golden opportunity to bond with your teenager. You can both enjoy the time together and make lasting memories if you put in a little effort. Believe me, she will likely fight you on a few of these. But trust me, if you can convince her neither of you will regret it. Here’s to bonding!
#1 – Karaoke
The first and totally free thing to do at home with your teen daughter is
SIIIINNNGGG!
Yes, I promise it’s still fun when you’re sober, and no, you don’t need any skill. Karaoke isn’t about being able to sing, it’s about feeling the music all the way to your soul. The best part of karaoke at home with your teen daughter is that you can let her choose the songs.
That means you’ll finally know what she’s been listening to on those headphones that seem permanently attached to her ears! Trust, this is a big bonding moment, and it requires nothing more than YouTube and a karaoke playlist. So hop to it and sing your heart out!
#2 – Video Games
I was hesitant to add this one. Not all girls are into video games (or so my own teen daughters tell me). I don’t think that’s true, though. They may not play first-person shooters, but there’s something that they like. Find a multiplayer game that might interest your daughter and pitch the idea of playing together.
Mine are currently into Pokémon games, Animal Crossing, and Overcooked. Overcooked is the one we all play together… for hours. There’s a lot of yelling, laughing, and fighting, but mostly there’s bonding. If you want a wacky game that always delivers, I suggest you check it out.
#3 – Dance (the night away 💃🏽💃🏽)
Okay, maybe not the whole night… but this 3rd and also completely free thing to do at home with your teenage daughter is a blast. So much so, you may want to keep it up all night. If you couldn’t get your child to agree to karaoke maybe, she’d agree to this.
You can even set it up as wanting to learn the latest dance moves from her or teaching her some of yours. That way, it doesn’t matter if one of you can’t dance 😉. Although, that isn’t an excuse to skip this one if neither of you can dance. All that means is you have an opportunity to learn together or just say who cares and just move, how you want.
Oh, and bonus: It’s a great workout!
#4 – Make a Video
Here’s another excellent way to score some bonding time. Take on a Facebook or TikTok challenge and get to recording. There’s always fun ideas for videos circulating on social media. I know you’ve seen them out there, and you may have even wondered about joining in.
Well, I’m giving you permission to go ahead and do it. Who knows, maybe you’ll go viral and both get 15 minutes of fame. Either way, you’ll learn a lot about each other during the process, and that’s all the reason you need. Happy Filming! 🎥🎥
#5 – Watch Movies
I have recently introduced my children to some movies from my past, and it went great! Turns out, my girls are actually a lot like me, and they found my old movies just as entertaining as their new ones. In fact, they liked our movie nights so much they started asking for them and suggesting some of their own.
I learned a lot about likes and lives just from watching movies with them. They’d unconsciously point out things that related to them, and I made a mental note of as many as I could. You might want to keep a notepad tucked away secretly and write down some of the gems they’re sure to drop.
#6 – Cook
Our last thing to do at home with your teen daughter is also an important life skill. I hope that by the time your daughter reached 13, she already knew how to cook SOMETHING. Even if that thing was boxed mac n cheese. If not, now is the perfect time to start teaching her.
I have taught both of my teenage girls how to cook their favorite meals.
It’s the most natural place to start since she’ll be excited about the end product. As you cook, talk about how you got the recipe and/or try asking her why it’s her favorite dish. Anything to keep the conversation and bonding flowing.
Well, that’s it for this list. I hope these help you survive being stuck at home with a brooding teen. I know it can be a bit of a challenge, but there really is a silver lining. Take my advice, and don’t do these all in one day. I know they’re all fun and exciting, but you gotta pace yourself… I mean it!
Okay, what are you waiting for? Go enjoy your kid already…
Until Next Time…
💖 Kami