A lot of men think that, when they have a son, their bond will automatically appear and be lifelong. For most dads, the moment they hold their son in their arms for the first time, that bond is instantly felt, but the thing is, that doesn’t mean it will stay that way.
If you want to have a strong and lasting close relationship with your son, you have to work at it every single day. You need to spend lots of quality time with your son, teaching him things, sharing experiences and having fun.
With that in mind, here are some fun father and son activities that are great for quality bonding.
#1 – Sports
It’s an obvious one, but if you and your son both enjoy the same sports, spending time together watching or playing – especially playing – will help you to build a bond. You don’t have to go around in matching baseball uniforms – although that could be fun and you could have your own family team uniforms printed up – to bond, you just need to spend time enjoying the experience together, talking about it and encouraging each other on.
The bond will be flawless then and even if your son grows up to be far different from you, you will always have the common language of sports to fall back on.
#2 – Fishing
Fishing is a great father-son bonding activity because it is technical enough that you can impart your wisdom to your son, but it is also a very meditative activity where you can enjoy each others’ company in silence, and have the space to bring up difficult topics if necessary There is a reason why dads throughout time have taken their kids fishing!
When you go fishing, make sure you have all the equipment you need for a fun outing. Take bass lures, poles, extra lines, and safety equipment. Also, make sure you have plenty of sunscreen, even if it’s a cold day. You don’t want your child’s skin to burn!
#3 – Camping
Camping is ideal for daddy and son time because you can just head off into the wilderness, just the two of you, and have a fantastic time breathing in fresh air and talking about your lives.
If you want to get more into it you can teach your son how to build a fire and other basic survival skills, so that he’ll be safe as he grows and he’ll always have fond memories of the things you taught him.
#4 – Reading
Reading to your child is one of the most basic things that most parents do when their children are young because it helps to build a bond and build their basic skills.
However, once children get a bit older, reading together at bedtime or any time really often starts to happen less frequently. This is such a shame because reading a book together, talking about what you do and do not like about the book and predicting what will happen next is a great way to bond with children of any age.
#5 – Building Something
Whether it’s building a soapbox racer, a treehouse or even a Lego creation, there can be nothing better than spending quality time together, using your hands while your minds are free to connect. It’s also a great opportunity to teach your son a lot of skills and handicrafts that will see them well into adulthood.
Whatever you do to strengthen bonds with your son, just do something.
Josh – Contributing Author