Welcome to Mom Motivation Mondays where weekly contributing writers share their motherhood experiences to encourage you to find the joy in being a mom.

{This week: Post by Heather}

Have you ever noticed that when you have all your kids together the dynamic can be drastically different than when they are with you on their own?

It’s kind of eerie isn’t it?

Just a couple of weeks ago I was driving my youngest to the store, just the two of us, which doesn’t happen very often because she’s the littlest. And while we were driving the silence in the car was startling.

She’s normally trying to shout over her sister or sing louder than her sister or just annoy her older sister in that special way only the youngest can. But here she sat looking quietly out the window just happy to be on the way to the store, just her and her mom.

It was then that I was struck with the realization that I haven’t set time aside for special mother-daughter dates.

Even though I spend a large amount of time with each of my daughters throughout the course of the day doing homework or reading one-on-one, we don’t actually get “special” designated time together to do something “special”.

When this dawned on me I instantly knew it was something I desperately wanted and needed to make a priority this year. So as I sat down to write out my resolutions and goals for the New Year this was at the top of my list.

My most important resolution/goal for 2017 is to have mommy/daughter dates with each of my daughters once a month. Read the full post here to find out all of my New Year’s resolutions and goals.

Then I started thinking and brainstorming what kind of dates would we go on?

So I developed a list of mother-daughter date ideas for both my daughters to get that undivided attention they need from their mom.

Included is a list for my oldest daughter who’s 8 years old as well as a list of more age appropriate ideas for my youngest who’s 4.

And because I didn’t only want to focus on spending money I thought up both paid and free activities. These questions to ask daughter are helpful to keep the conversation rolling and be intentional with your time together.

Mother-Daughter Date Ideas for Different Age Groups

THE OLDEST

Movie Date

One of my favorite things to do with my girls is to surprise them and head to the movies, especially when we lived on base and we only had to pay a shocking $2 a ticket! Even though we no longer live by a base theater I still love taking my girls out to see a movie every once in awhile.

But it’s usually with both of them. So a movie date with my oldest would allow her to enjoy a movie of her choice, like maybe one without animation.

It would definitely feel special to her to get to pick an older kid movie that she’s been waiting to see that wouldn’t interest her sister.

Pedicure/Manicure

My oldest is the complete opposite of me when it comes to hair, makeup, nails and getting dolled up. Maybe it’s because I’ve had kids and time is of the essence or maybe I’ve just had a change of heart but none of that stuff really interests me.

I’ll wear makeup every once in awhile, but I’m not one to put it on before I head out the door.

My daughter on the other hand LOVES anything that has to do with putting makeup on or getting your nails done. So going out to get our nails or toenails painted identically while we hang out and talk would be something she would definitely remember.

Paint Pictures

She’s my creative, artsy daughter, and I love creating things as well. It would be so fun to go to Hobby Lobby and pick up the 2 pack of canvases that are always on sale and paint pictures for each other. Then we could both hang them up in our rooms.

Ride Bike/Walk Together

One of the best memories I have with my oldest is a day a couple months ago where she rode her bike slowly, and I walked around the neighborhood with her.

Since I only had one kid with me there was no interrupting or challenging the other to a race. It was just her and I talking about her day, the latest book she was reading and how school was going.

I just loved the simple nature of it.

Book Club

I love reading and she loves reading, so I thought it would awesome for her to pick out a book that she wants to read and then we both read it.

We could go out and pick a cool spot and read together. Her with her book and I with mine. Then we can share what we thought about the book she’s picked. A mini book club for just her and I.

FOR THE YOUNGEST

Tearoom/Dress up place

My youngest loves to dress up and pretend to be the “big” kid so I thought a great place to take her would be to a local tea time place where the kids get to dress up, drink tea and eat snacks.

She loves trying new things, and I know she’d have a fantastic time trying on all those dress up clothes and jewelry.

Park Playtime

She’s my super active daughter. She loves to run, jump, tumble and skip all day every day. Literally, she’s still moving and squirming right up until the moment she falls asleep. I know she would love for me to run, jump and play with her every step of the way at the park.

Plus, we could bring our lunch and eat under the huge trees they have there, if and when she ever gets tired enough to sit.

Reading Together

I know this sounds trivial, but if you’ve got more than one kid you know that reading together especially with an older child means that my youngest often  feels left out because she can’t read yet. Mine also gets frustrated about it.

I would love to spend more time with her teaching her to read. It will be something she’ll remember forever.

Hairday

My youngest loves to “play” salon and is constantly asking me if she can brush my hair and style it. I’ll give her all the brushes, combs, hair ties and bows and she can go to town.

Then I figure we’d get in our snuggly pajamas and take silly pictures of our hairdos together.

Some of these may seem simple and ordinary, but with a busy lifestyle we’ve definitely been concentrating on fitting in family time with the four of us and not nearly enough one-on-one time. I’m definitely excited to try these mother-daughter date ideas with my girls!

Which mother-daughter date ideas did you like the best? Do you already have mommy/daughter dates that work for you, I’d love to hear about them!

Looking for mother-son date ideas? Click here for 55+ activities for parents and kids to do together.

Heather lives in Florida with her husband, two girls and two pups. She is a lover of most things in life, too many to name here without scaring you, but a few include working out, learning new recipes, Pinterest, organizing (yes, it’s true!), home decor and learning to lead a more minimal and purposeful life.

She started Just Becoming Me as a venture to better understand herself and what will lead her towards a more fulfilling life. Her motto is: “We only have one life, and I want to learn to live mine in a way that gets me excited to jump out of bed.”