5 Low-Cost Relaxing Activities For You and Your Family

If you are trying to stay within a budget these days, you may find it difficult to simultaneously entertain your kids and maintain some peace and quiet in the home. You may think relaxation in your home is impossible during a family night. Well, there are several relaxing, low-key activities your whole family can do together that cost little to no money to put into action. Here are some family-friendly ideas you can try out.

1. Have a Movie Night

Everyone enjoys watching a movie, right? With thousands of kid-friendly options available at your fingertips that even mom and dad will get a kick out of, having a movie night in your home is a perfect unwinding activity for every member of the family. Clean the living room, make some popcorn, get out some spill-proof glassware for lemonade or soda, and have everyone get comfy on the couch together. Utilize your comfiest pillows and blankets.

A movie night at home is very cost-efficient. Buying some snacks and drinks is all you'll need to keep your family happy while you're all watching a kid-friendly comedy together. For moms, dads, or kids that have recently undergone surgery, such as a wisdom teeth removal, a shoulder surgery, or a breast reduction, as Plastic Surgeons certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery perform more than 90,000 breast reductions each year in the United States, this will be the perfect way to unwind and relax with the family while in recovery.

2. Decorate Cookies

Another relaxing activity your whole family can have fun doing together is making and decorating cookies. Buying the ingredients to make and decorate sugar cookies is very cheap. Make the dough ahead of time, and take it out of the fridge when your family is ready to get to work.

Be sure you have a few rolling pins handy, flour so the dough doesn't stick to the counter or table, plenty of cookie cut-outs, and a variety of frosting colors and sprinkles to decorate with. Put on some light background music and have every family member cut out some cookies. After they're done baking, give everyone in the family a kid-friendly knife or a spoon to frost the cookies. Help younger kids frost, and be sure to use cool cookie sheets to collect extraneous sprinkles during the decoration process. Don't worry about what the cookies look like. Try to relax and enjoy the quality time with your family during this activity. Remember to dress your children in comfortable clothes that can get messy as baking can be messy but so much fun!

3. Create Origami Art

Have any of your family members tried origami? Origami is the art of paper folding, and some intricate designs can be created with much practice and patience. It can be a very relaxing activity, and it is also very low-cost because all you need is paper! You can choose to use white copy paper at home or buy paper with cool designs and colors. However, the paper must be bought or cut into squares before starting an origami project.

With so many free resources online, finding available step-by-step videos and tutorials on the internet will be easy if this is an activity your family would like to pursue. However, be sure to perform the research yourself if your kids are young. Internet crime involves the use of the Internet to communicate false or fraudulent representations to consumers, and you don't want your young kids to come across anything fraudulent while searching on a computer or other device for origami tutorials.

4. Play a Board Game

A board game night is another relaxing and potentially costless activity your family can enjoy together. Use your kitchen table or your living room floor and set up your family's favorite board game. Have a few lined up to play after, too. Family board game night can be accompanied by some light background music and some snacks and drinks.Games like Sorry!, Tetris, Yahtzee, and Apples to Apples Junior are family-friendly and don't require much movement or heavy thinking. On the other hand, games like Mouse Trap, Clue, Twister, and even Monopoly can be very engaging, require some thinking and strategy, and get your family members jumping up and down in excitement or out of rage. Opt for board games depending on the night you'd like to have.

If board games are not exciting for you, you can also consider playing online games. The internet offers a vast array of options, from classic card games like solitaire to interactive titles like online Pictionary. These virtual alternatives provide the same level of fun and challenges as their physical counterparts, making them a great choice for a successful game night.

5. Practice Yoga

Have you ever tried yoga? The practice of yoga has proven to help improve strength, flexibility, and balance. It can also help manage stress and relieve pain, which may be two things you or your partner may be dealing with if an injury has occurred. Did you know that over 20,000 workplace slip and fall injuries were reported to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in the state of California alone in 2015? This number shows that you or your partner is not alone if an injury has been sustained at work -- or elsewhere! Practicing yoga may be a healthy and natural way to help ease some pain, discomfort, and stress from a fall.

Yoga is also a family-friendly activity. Lay down some comfortable mats, dress your children in some comfy clothing, and play a free beginner's video on your TV that doesn't require any exercise equipment. Your family can learn some basic yoga positions and feel relaxed together in a quiet environment.

If you're looking for some low-cost, relaxing activities your entire family can enjoy doing together, consider trying out one or more of these ideas. You never know what your family may love doing together. Movie or board game nights can become a weekly occurrence, yoga can be practiced a few times a week together, and origami could become a hobby for one of your children. Enjoy time spent relaxing with your family!