What are your ideal plans for a family night?

Time with our people is at the tippy top of the list of what fill us up. Whether that includes a planned out event or an intentionally unplanned evening, this time together is extra special. As 6 moms of 18 kids, our favorite family nights cover the gamut. From Rebecca's home cooked comfort food kicking off a night with her boys to Emilee's favorite plans matching each season and how Kim's family loves a game night, we've all found a few things that act like magnets to keep people looking forward to the next family night. Here we share a range of ideas - perhaps you find one that your family will love, too! For instance, Ali explains, "One of my favorite types of family nights is when we all cook together. Recently, we made homemade sushi rolls, and it was such a blast watching the kids get creative with their own rolls and sauces." Read on to find a whole host of ideas!

Kim, Home Connoisseur from @Reverie.and.Root & Founder of Spilling Goodness

Family nights are the best! Between sports, friends and life, I relish in the togetherness whenever I can. Our favorite family nights are pretty chill and usually include a board game, a movie or a seasonal celebration. With Thanksgiving upon us, we'll be looking forward to a few family nights this week.

When a family night starts with delicious dinner (my husband is the amazing chef in our family!), it is easy to linger around the table. These conversations are my absolute favorite and remind me of my childhood. Then, a favorite game for all ages is "right, left, center". We'll bust out the dice and something people would love to win - sometimes dollars, sometimes leftover Halloween candy, sometimes just bragging rights. It is such a simple game, but never fail it is a ton of fun and as the competitive spirit rises, so does the volume of cheers. Another fun family game we love to play together is Taboo. Inside stories, talking around a word and knowing your teammates always pays off in this loud game. My youngest loves to be on buzzer patrol - a job that seems to be made for him. Family nights look different in different season, but the best is just connecting and laughing together.

Jen, Bespoke Travel Designer from @GlobalonDemandTravel

We’ve got a fun family night planned — starting with some time outside to burn off energy! The kids will get to swim in the pool and run around a bit before we settle in for a cozy movie night. Once everyone’s had their wiggles out, we’ll set up the projector on the screened porch, grab some popcorn, and light up the firepit.

It’s the perfect mix for us — a little movement to keep the kids calm, then some chill time together watching a movie under the stars. Nothing fancy, just good family fun, fresh air, and a comfy spot to relax at the end of the day.

Rebecca, Woman's Leadership Coach from @PleasantlyAggressive

I’ve shifted from planning an entire evening to planning half and then letting the kids dictate the rest. I’ve instituted family dinners every Sunday evening. Everyone must be home by 6:30 for a big comfort food meal I’ve prepared: homemade chicken pot pie, pot roast, chicken parmesan, or something like that.

After dinner in the dining room (it makes it special), we clean up the meal and come right back to the table. Sometimes we just let the boys talk, which I love. They regale us with tales of their weekend. Who they hung out with, where they went, or hot gossip about kids at school. We listen and we don’t judge. Lol

We all love games, but it’s hard to agree on what to play. Our default is trivia. We have some trivia board games, but a quick Google search of general knowledge trivia is all we need. I’m usually the emcee, but we don’t keep score. I just fire off questions and they shout out answers.

Some other games we love are Sequence and Yahtzee. They’re good for a variety of ages and any number of players. This year, the boys learned how to play poker, and while I don’t love it, they do, so I get vetoed.

We sometimes finish off the night with a sweet treat. It could be a trip to downtown Naperville for Kilwin’s ice cream. Or, if we’re feeling lazy, we’ll go to the Walgreens around the corner and each grab a pint of ice cream or our choice of candy.

My goal is to keep us talking, laughing, and engaged with each other for one whole evening. If I sense we’re losing someone’s attention or interest, my job is to pull them back in.

Ashley, Millennial Mom Nutrition Coach from @AshleyBreaksTheCycle

Emilee, Book Aficionado from @The BookClubCart

Family nights are my favorite nights! It means everyone is home and in for the night and there is nothing more cozy to me than that.

Family nights can range depending on the season and time of year. Once the weather starts to warm up, our family is heading out to golf together. We do 9 holes and then grab dinner out on the patio if it is warm enough.

Once school begins and the activities start to pick up, family time shifts to movie nights or game nights. For the last year, we have been reading Harry Potter as a family. We earn the movie after we read the book (we are currently reading book 7!). So when we earn that movie, everyone gets so excited and really rallies to make it happen. If you ask my kids what their favorites part of movie night is, they would probably say my stovetop popcorn …made extra salty!

Family game nights are some of our best nights too. We really lean into this over the holiday break. Our favorites right now are Harry Potter Monopoly, Sequence, Rummikub and Cards of Humanity (kids

version!!).

Another family activity that we have been trying to take advantage of as our kids get older is going to sports events together. As Wisconsin sports fans, we have seen Bucks, Brewers and Packers games together which has made some very special family memories.

Ali, Book Aficionado from @The BookClubCart

Family night—just thinking about it makes me smile! I absolutely love setting aside time to be together, whether it’s a planned activity or a simple night at home.

Sometimes that means a cozy movie night, a round of board games, or a fun outing. Other times, it’s everyone doing their own thing under the same roof—my boys playing video games with my husband while my daughter and I have our own little “girls’ night.”

One of my favorite types of family nights is when we all cook together. Recently, we made homemade sushi rolls, and it was such a blast watching the kids get creative with their own rolls and sauces.

No matter what we’re doing, those moments of laughter and connection are what fill my cup. Family time truly is my happy place.

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What are your ideal plans for family night?