Most of us feel like this. Then by the time the weekend rolls around, there are all the chores, bits of maintenance and any renovations that need to be done around the house. But who’s to say that while you are doing these things around the house, you can’t get in some QT with your son (or your daughter for that matter). Here is some DIY advice for doing renovations with your children:
Introduce the tools:
When it comes to DIY advice, you want to give your kids the full low down on which tools are used for what. It’s also a very good time to teach them about safety and which tools they are allowed to use at their age and which they aren’t. You can even do this by getting them to help you organise your tool box, or buy buying them a child-friendly toolkit of their own. Then let them try some of the tools out under your supervision, making sure to guide them as they go. Once you feel that they have the hang of it, let them do some real little tasks. For example, when you are putting up pictures, show them how to use the bubble level or let them screw in some screws for bits and bobs around the house (you might just have to tighten these screws later).
Image Credit: webdesign.com
Teach them the basics:
Again, this would be age dependent, but while you are doing some renovations around the house, it would be an excellent time to give your children some DIY advice and tips. Show them how to do useful things such as: how to wire a plug, how to change a battery on a watch and how to sand wood properly (these are obviously age dependant). And as they grow older the things you teach them can get progressively more complex.
Let them get involved:
While it may be tempting to purely ask your children to be ‘assistants’ in the entire process, you may find that they lose interest pretty quickly. Some of the best DIY advice for doing renovations with your children is to really let them get involved. Let them paint and varnish (kids love doing this, just make sure they get the paint where it needs to go) let them sand a piece of wood, or apply glue to an old appliance that has broken. If you really want this to be a bonding experience, let them get involved with some of the smaller tasks and let them have fun.
Give them a job to do themselves:
Another great piece of DIY advice for dads is once you have explained all the basics to them, go out and get them to tackle a task by themselves. Obviously keep it straightforward and age-appropriate, such as taking measurements with a tape measure. You could even set an initial task where they have to go around the house measuring different things and recording them. If they are making any mistakes you can gently show them what they are doing wrong, or how to do something better.
Image Credit: bri-land.com
Get them thinking about safety:
By far one of the best pieces of DIY advice is even when they aren’t able to actively do something themselves make sure they are involved in the task and thinking about safety. For example, if you are doing something that needs a step ladder, you can ask them to help keep it stable, or you can ask them to help you put on your gloves and goggles before you weld something and possibly ask them to leave the room.
If you are thinking about buying a holiday home that you and your kids can work on together, then you should look at one of the best family vacation destinations in the world: the Costa Blanca in Spain. Contact us to get more information about the Spanish property market, or to have a look at our incredible portfolio of property in Calpe.
