Staying in has definitely become the new going out. For most of us, Saturday evenings at the movies, pizza parlor, or arcade are much more memories of a strangely distant past than a feature of our current reality.
Instead of getting sad about the things we may have lost or put on pause, let's focus on the positive. Now we have more reasons than ever to stay in and spend quality time with our families!
However, as you've probably figured out, just having all this time together is not always enough to make it quality. Having to spend so much time with the same people can create friction, detracting from the fun you could be having. Yet if you put a little effort into keeping things exciting and varied, it becomes a lot easier to see how all this time together really is a blessing.
Every family has different interests, but we've compiled a list of more than 20 ways you can spend a night in with your family. Try them out, and we bet you'll have so much fun that these nights in become a key part of your family life moving forward.
Nothing says fun with the family like a movie night. While this may have meant getting out and spending the evening at the theater, you can still have a lot of fun with this at home, so much so that this may become the preferred way to watch movies together moving forward.
To make this special, consider going all out with it. Maybe look into getting or renting a projector screen, or consider trying to turn one room in the house into a home theater by hooking up good speakers and making the space extra dark.
One of the big challenges that stand in the way of family movie night is figuring out what to watch. How many times have you said, "let's watch a movie," only never to watch one because you couldn't agree on a title that worked for everyone.
Well, skipping over this step will help make the evening a lot more fun, so we recommend coming up with a system first.
One idea is to have everyone make a list of movies they want to watch, write them on a piece of paper, and then choose them from a hat. Make sure everyone has agreed beforehand to watch whatever movie comes out. If you have younger kids, make sure they know that not watching their choice first doesn't mean anything. They'll get their turn eventually.
Another option is to rotate who gets to choose the movie. This way, everyone gets the opportunity to pick what you're watching, and no one feels left out. If you do this, consider an unofficial deadline, so the person isn't still deciding in the hour leading up to when the show is set to begin.
Luckily, there are now so many different ways to watch movies that it's easy to find inspiration. If you subscribe to a few streaming services, then most of the movies you want to watch will never be more than a few clicks away.
To help make movie night extra fun, consider doing some of the following things:
In the end, anything you can do to make the evening a bit more special than just "watching a movie" is a great idea. This helps turn the night into more than just "any old" night, which will get everyone a bit more excited and get them looking forward to a fun night in.
Cooking is an excellent activity to do as a family. It's a great opportunity to make something that's a bit more involved and then make sure everyone plays a role in creating the meal.
So, to have a fun night, think up a more elaborate meal and then spend the evening cooking it. If you want to make things more fun, perhaps you could take a trip together to the store first to get all the ingredients.
Don't be afraid to cook something you don't know how to cook. Watching YouTube videos together and making messy mistakes can make the evening all that much more special and will also increase buy-in from the kids since it's an activity where "everyone's learning."
Choosing what to cook together can be difficult, especially if you have a larger family. One way to work around this is to rotate who gets to choose the meal, giving everyone the chance to pick the menu and share something they like to eat with the rest of the family.
Of course, this can be challenging if your family has dramatically different tastes, but this can also be an opportunity to encourage trying new things.
You can do this whether you want to cook as a family or not. If cooking together isn't your thing, then make the evening all about letting one person choose what everyone eats. You could even open this up to takeout.
It's not quite the "event" that cooking together is, but it's still something special that can turn a regular evening into one that's a bit more special.
One fun thing to cook as a family is pizza. Pretty much everyone loves pizza, but we typically get it from a restaurant. So, why not try making it yourself?
This works so well as there are quite a few steps, meaning everyone can get involved. You've got to make the dough and the sauce and then prepare the toppings. This is a great chance to get creative.
Maybe everyone gets their own mini-pizza and can put on it whatever they want? You don't always get this type of freedom when ordering from a restaurant, so make the most of it and put something wacky on your pie. Anchovies and pineapple, anyone?
Don't forget about dessert! Of course, you could have ice cream sandwiches, but why not go all out and have a sundae night? Heat some hot fudge, make your own whipped cream, get some nuts, sprinkles, chocolate chips, or whatever else you want and lay it all out so that each person can make their sundae exactly how they want.
This could be the event on its own, or you could incorporate it into a grander cooking night. Either way, it's a lot of fun and a great way to turn an evening into something exceptional and memorable.
Another fun dessert option is to make S'Mores, that warm gooey combination of marshmallow, chocolate, and graham crackers that we all love. We tend to associate these tasty snacks with barbecues and camping, but who says you can't have them whenever you want?!
Of course, it's fun to keep this as a special treat, but having a random s'mores night can be a lot of fun. You don't even need to build a fire for it (if you don't want to). You can toast the marshmallows over a gas grill, or you can even make them in the microwave. Though building a fire is a great way to make this night even more fun!
The classic game night activity, board games are a lot of fun, and there are so many different types out there that you are sure to find one for everyone.
Some board games take a lot of time (Monopoly, Risk, Dungeons, and Dragons), which might be a good thing for your family. It will give you the chance to extend family game night to more than one evening, roping everyone into more quality time together.
Card games are a bit of a lost art, but they are fun and pretty low maintenance. Usually, all you need is a deck of cards.
Poker is a fun one to play as a family since you can find ways to gamble for fun (candies, potato chips, quarters, etc.). Other games such as Rummy, Setback/Pitch, Hearts, Cribbage, etc., are underrated games that can make a regular evening exciting if everyone gets involved.
Plus, the beauty of card games is that you can play them pretty much anywhere, meaning a fun night in can be had no matter where you might find yourself at that moment.
Jigsaw puzzles are another underrated classic. They take time, but what's more rewarding than slowly putting together a fun picture.
The benefit of doing a puzzle as a family is that you can tackle more challenging designs. This could be the perfect moment for that 5,000-piece beauty that's been sitting in the closet for a long time.
Of course, you'll have to be on the lookout for someone hiding a piece so that they can put it in last. If you can keep this from happening, doing a puzzle together can be a lot of fun.
Don't forget about charades! Sometimes we shy away from this game because we have to express ourselves in ways we're not used to, but if you're with family, you should be able to get over this pretty quickly.
As you probably know, this game can be quite silly. If you get pushback at the beginning, just encourage everyone to try. Usually, after a few rounds, when they've warmed up and started having fun, they'll want to keep going all night!
Family game nights are a great chance to step away from the screen, but there are also lots of video games you can play together that can make the evening fun. For example, think about playing Rock Band together, the game where you play "musical" instruments. Or do a Wii Sports tournament. Bowling can get pretty intense.
Maybe don't always rely on video games so that you can build some analog traditions, but mixing in some digital entertainment here and there can be a lot of fun and also make reluctant teens more enthusiastic.
Don't forget that there are other games you can play. Hide and seek is a classic that you can enjoy both indoors and outdoors. There's also just plain old tag. If you can get outside into the yard, then these games are extra fun because they get you moving around and tire out the young ones before bed (which can never be bad!)
Why not try a scavenger hunt? This one will take some time to plan and set up, and so it's probably only practical to do it every once in a while. Putting together the clues and scattering them around the house can be a lot of fun. If you attach a fun prize to the game, everyone can get excited, which is an essential precursor to a successful family night.
Want to get away for a bit but still want to stay in? Look no further than the backyard. Set up a tent, make a fire, tell ghost stories, and then sleep under the stars.
Try your best to mimic an actual camping experience. Bring your food out with you and cook outdoors, and try to limit the trips you make back into the house. Maintaining the camping vibe will help make the night even more special.
If you want to do something outdoors but don't want to sleep outside, have a fire night. Fire pits or smaller chimeneas are relatively inexpensive (or you can just dig a small hole somewhere in your backyard) and have a wonderful evening sitting by the fire.
One fun thing to do is to have an outdoor movie night. If you can, set up a TV outside and watch something while keeping warm by the fire. This also works if there is a sports game you want to watch. Or, simply don't watch anything and just enjoy each other's company in a fun setting.
Nothing is more awe-inspiring than the night sky, so why not make watching the stars a whole night? If there happens to be a meteor shower coming through, this is an excellent opportunity to make stargazing the event of the night. However, you don't need this special occasion, as there are beautiful things to see every night.
Perhaps you could start by doing some research about the stars. Maybe everyone could find a constellation they like and then spend some time looking for it while outside.
In the end, what you do doesn't matter, but instilling in your children an appreciation for the night sky can only be good for them.
Engage with your creative side and have an arts and crafts night. This could be something free and open-ended, such as a painting or drawing night, or you could find something specific to make. It all depends on what your family likes to do. There are tons of craft ideas out there on sites such as Pinterest, so if you are looking for inspiration, you shouldn't have any trouble finding something fun.
Part of having a fun night in is just making the night special, and one thing you can do for this is to have a "fancy" dinner. This could refer to what you cook, but it can also refer to what you wear. Nothing says special occasion like putting on nice clothes and listening to fancy music.
Of course, this only works if your kids already have these clothes, but then again, you don't need to do fancy dress. You could just make up a theme and have everyone dress up according to that theme.
Time capsules are boxes or some other container that you fill with modern-day items, bury, and then dig up later. Make this an event. Film it, interview people about why they chose their items, what they think might happen when it gets dug up, and so on.
This can be a bit sentimental, but kids usually get pretty excited by the idea that this thing is going into the ground for years, if not more, so play up the drama and enjoy the evening.
Visualization is a skill we all should learn, but that many of us don't. It involves thinking about your future and manifesting your dreams, and one great way to do this is to make a vision board. Usually, you do this by cutting pictures out of magazines, but you can also find inspiration on the internet and print it out.
Encourage your kids to think big, and also explain to them why they are doing this. It's an exercise designed to remind them that they can create their own realities if they set their minds to something and stay committed to the process.
If you're feeling bold, think about doing a "no rules night." During these evenings, all bets are off. Of course, there need to be some rules, mainly for safety, but relaxing some restrictions, such as bedtimes, can open up many possibilities and help turn the night into something unexpected and a lot of fun. Just make sure that everyone is aware that once the night is over, the rules are back!
Everyone has a unique talent, so why not throw a little talent show where everyone in the family gets to show off what they can do? If you have a small family, to make things go a bit longer, consider doing both individual and group performances. Different people can team up and do things together, which will make for more acts and get everyone working together and exploring their talents as a team.
Who doesn't love a karaoke night? You may need to rent some equipment for this one, but it can be well worth it.
Of course, the less-musically inclined family members might need some encouragement, but once they see how much fun it is, they should open up. This is a great way to spend the whole night laughing.
If you've got some young stand-ups in the family, consider having a comedy night. Or, if you don't want to put people on the spot, think about doing an improv night. This might take some time to get used to, but it can be fun to get silly and have some fun while staying in.
Lastly, if you want to make a fun night but don't quite know what you're in the mood for, then consider just doing a "no screen night." This means no TV, no phone, no tablet, laptop, etc.
You might get some resistance to this at first, but the creativity emerges once the screens are off, and you never know what you will come up with.
As you can see, there are lots of different ways to have an entertaining night in. All you need to do is get creative and think a bit outside the box.
One thing we recommend doing is making family nights a tradition. Maybe it's every other Saturday or one day per month. Whatever it is, stick with it. This will create space for this time in everyone's busy schedule and help make it something special. If you do this, consider doing something different every time so that no one gets bored, unless, of course, there is one activity that everyone loves.
Now it's time to fire up the popcorn, put on your fancy dress, and enjoy a fantastic night at home with your family!
