If you’re a father of one or more sons, nurturing your relationship with them is important for providing your sons with support and presenting them with a positive male role model to follow.
If you’re having trouble finding ways to bond with your sons, participating in work or activities together can help you grow closer. Here are four ideas to help you bond with your sons.
Try Recreational Sports
Rec sports are a great way to bond with sons who are old enough to participate in them. Prioritize a sport that your son enjoys; if they love baseball, for example, look for a rec softball or baseball league. Getting some new gear like gloves, balls and baseball bats wood also adds to the fun. Another idea is to join a sport that neither of you have any experience with; the process of learning a new sport and stumbling through the early stages together can help you bond.
On the flip side, if you choose a sport you are intimately familiar with, you will be able to give them great advice for improving their skills. Also keep in mind that the earlier that they start, the more potential they will have as they will learn the fundamentals early and have longer to hone their craft.
Watch a TV Series
If you’re having trouble finding activities that your son is interested in, commit to watching a TV series of their choice. Allowing them to pick will help your son stay engaged and show them that you’re putting their interests first, and watching a show together will give you two something to talk about.
Teach Them Car Maintenance
Another way to bond with your son is to teach them useful skills like basic car repair and maintenance, which can be particularly good idea if they have a car of their own or will soon be licensed. You can also integrate lessons with the process of getting your son their first vehicle by first showing them how to dispose of a broken down car.
If your family has an old clunker that has ceased to work, take your son to a business like U Pull & Pay that buys junk cars and you can teach them that they can get money back for even a non-functioning vehicle.
Weekly Lunch Dates
One final way to bond with your son is to take them out to lunch once a week, perhaps on weekends. Let your son choose where to eat and use the time to talk about whatever’s going on in their lives. This is a fun way to get one-on-one time with your son, and will also give them a chance to talk about anything that is troubling them, which is key to developing a lasting bond with your son.
Any of these four ideas can be a great way to begin bonding with your son. Trust and understanding are key to a father-son relationship, and these must be developed over time. But by participating in activities together, you can help them feel more comfortable around you; besides, if you can find activities that you both enjoy, you and your son will end up having fun together, which is perhaps equally important.
