Packed snacks, made it fun, let the kids pick the trail. Even the 13yo put his phone away the whole time. We saw a deer, found a cool creek, and nobody asked to turn back. On the drive home everyone was laughing about something stupid that happened. Might make this a thing.
The snacks and trail pick combo is genius. My kids complain less when they feel like they have some control. Stealing this strategy for our next family outing.
Nice work on this one. The snack strategy is underrated - my boys are way more cooperative when their stomachs are happy. Did you let them actually choose between multiple trails or was it more of a 'here's the one we're doing' situation?
This is huge! Getting a 13yo off his phone is like winning the lottery. What trail did you end up picking? I've been trying to get my kids more interested in hiking but they just complain the whole time.
Respect. Getting the whole family on board without resistance is a win in my book. I struggle with the phone thing too, so I'm genuinely curious how you managed that with your teenager.
This is huge! Getting a 13 year old to put the phone down for a hike is basically parenting gold. How did you actually pull that off? My oldest will barely look away from his screen.
So what trail did your daughter end up picking? I'm always looking for good family hikes in the area.
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Nice work man. Getting the whole family on the same page with no complaints is no small feat. The snacks are key, I learned that the hard way with my crew.