Ways To Reconnect With Your Eldest Child

There are lots of great things about becoming a big sister, but do they really make up for getting less attention from your parents? M loves Little, but over the last couple of years she has had a lot less time with just me. It won’t be long before she reaches the age where she wants to shut herself away in her room to listen to music and she already spends afternoons with her nose in a book so I need to make the most of now. It is really important to me that I spend regular one to one time with my eldest and fully focus on her, but this can be hard to fit in. At the weekend I turn Little's nap time into Mummy & M time, a special time where it’s all about just the two of us.  


Selfie of a mother and daughter with fluffy pink ears and pink noses
Being silly with my eldest daughter is a great way to bond


We might have to stay in the house, but there are so many fun things we can do without a little sister around. Here are some of the “big girl” activities we get up to. If you have ideas for any more I would love to hear them.

7 Bonding Activities I Do With My Eldest Child While Her Sister Sleeps

Cooking

M and I started cooking together more this year and she loves to prepare meals. I remember learning to cook as a little girl and it’s great being able to pass on my love of cooking to M. From prepping veg, to shaping meatballs she is becoming quite the little sous chef. We especially love to bake cakes, I think it's because we love to eat the cake mix! M also makes a delicious fruit salad and she keeps requesting I buy different fruits to go in them.

A young girl in a pretty blue flowery dress cutting up a strawberry on a green chopping board
Cooking lessons with my 6 year old makes her feel more confident and grown up

Make Believe

At only 6 years old M wants to be grown up, but she still loves to play and I think it’s essential to encourage make believe. We should never stop believing in magic and the best way to show her that it’s ok is to play with her.  Together we have built big dens across the living room and dressed as fairies and princesses. The house has been transformed into a beautiful castle and far away forests. We have been superheroes saving the day and frogs trying to catch flies. There are no limits and the more we play the bigger our imagination gets.

Have A Cuppa

M isn’t really into hot drinks, but she does love to make a cuppa for me. I am slowly getting more confident that she can handle the kettle safely and she is slowly remembering how I like my coffee. She can’t yet reach the biscuit stash so I have to get them down for us, after all, what is a cup of coffee without a biscuit? M has milk or squash and she loves to have it in a mini mug so we are drinking together.

A young girl holding a tray with 2 mugs on and a plate with 3 oreo cookies
I love that my eldest daughter can make me a cup of tea

Reading Together

M has always loved books. She has progressed from chewing on them as a baby to making up stories from the pictures to spending hours curled up reading. She loves to read in her head now, but every so often I get her to cuddle up with me on the sofa or in bed so we can read together. We might read a few pages of the book out loud each or one person will narrate while the other reads the character voices. It’s fun reading together and it helps improve her language skills too.

Painting Our Nails

I struggle to find time to pamper myself as a busy mum of two, but there is no reason I need to do it on my own. M loves to have her nails painted so it’s a great activity to do together. During term time we might have to stick to painting her toes, but it lasts longer on her feet anyway. I have to make sure we don't have a busy day if she is going to paint my nails; I often end up with more polish on my toes than my nails.

A big hand (mine) painting some little feet with sparkly nail vanish
A bit of pampering is a fun way to bond

Massage

M’s is lucky to go to a really great school who like to include lots of activities outside the core curriculum. She gets to experience lots that I didn't get the opportunity for in primary school including: learning French, private singing lessons,  yoga, but my favourite is the recent massage classes. I obviously like to encourage her to practise on me and she's quiet good. It's a nice calming activity and great for bonding.

Playing Board games

We have some great new generation boardgames like Igloo Mania, Bugs in the Kitchen and Big Beard Battle, but they are hard to play with a little person around. Nap time is perfect for us big girls to get them out and get competitive. We just have to be careful not to shriek too loudly with excitement when one of us wins or Little wakes up and Mummy & M time is over.

Spinning a spinner to decide what move will be next in the Big Beard Battle Game
Younger siblings can ruin board games so we have fun when she is napping

1 comment

  1. Great to see your Oreo inspired fun! Commenting for myself and on behalf of BritMums and thanking you for taking part

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for your comment (unless it's spam in which case, why?)