20 Family Resolutions to Make for 2019

Can you believe that 2019 is right around the corner? With a new year comes the chance to make meaningful changes in your family's lives. In honor of the season of improvement, we've got the top 20 resolutions that are guaranteed to give your family something to smile about all year long.

Let 2019 be the year of fantastic adventures. Whether it's a family trip to sunny Hawaii or a staycation that involves exploring an area close to home, an adventure will inspire your family to step outside of your everyday bubbles to experience the wide, wonderful world in all its glory. Plus, having something exciting to look forward to is a wonderful way to boost your family's morale while creating shared goals.

Childhood can be rough—and adulting? Even rougher. Break the day-to-day stress with a promise to laugh and be silly with your family, each and every day. Not only will regular bouts of laughter help you bond with your children, it can also alleviate stress, which is known to cause health problems. When you think about it, laughter really is the best medicine.

There's a reason children love to play: It helps develop their cognitive abilities while also building their emotional and physical well-being. Plus, it's fun! Make one of your resolutions for 2019 to have regular play time with your children. For kids who are old enough to play board games, a weekly family game night might be the perfect way to stick to this happy resolution. You'll build wonderful memories together and have something positive to look forward to.

In our technology-drenched world, it's easy for families to spend more time looking at their screens than each other. In 2019, you can change the status quo by limiting your family's screen time and encouraging more authentic, one-on-one interaction. While internet connectivity is awesome, so is connecting with your family, face to face, and creating memories in real time.

Does your family struggle with getting on the same page? Is discipline more of a spur-of-the-moment thing rather than an established consequence? An easy and powerful solution is to make a family constitution. Starting with your family's mission statement, the document also details rules and consequences for breaking them. Not only can making and abiding by this document help unify your family, it can also be a good way to incorporate everyone's voice and ideas.

Busy families often rely on quick, high-calorie foods to get them through the day. In 2019, make a commitment to feed your family more nourishing and nutritious meals. Along with being better for our bodies, fruits, vegetables, lean meats and, yes, even healthy carbs are important for brain and body development, energy, immunity and overall health.

Take control of your family's fitness in 2019 by instituting daily and/or weekly group exercise sessions. Running, brisk walking, skating, climbing, swimming and more are all great ways to get your hearts and blood pumping and increase everyone's overall health. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends children get one hour of vigorous physical exercise per day and adults get at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise each week.

Kids might be a little messier and require constant supervision, but that's no reason to prevent them from learning how to cook. In 2019, make the resolution to get your kids in the kitchen to teach them how to prepare the family recipes they love. Not only are you providing them with life skills, you're also helping to build their confidence and creating lasting memories.

Did you know that kids who eat dinner with their parents have larger vocabularies and better diets? It's true. What's even more fascinating is that it doesn't necessarily matter what you eat, including takeout or home-cooked meals. Make 2019 the year your family eats together and reaps the benefits from this simple and positive mealtime ritual.

We shouldn't wait until we're old and gray to start accomplishing our long-held dreams. Before your children grow up and move away, create a family bucket list of things everyone would love to do—and then, actually do them! Whether it's seeing historic landmarks like the Taj Mahal or simply tasting a new and unusual food, everyone in your family will benefit from a bucket list of hopes, dreams and experiences.

Stuff: It's everywhere and it's time to get rid of it—well, most of it. Let 2019 be the year your family cleans out the closets, garages, toy bins, attics and basements in favor of a lighter load. Not only will your family have more room to move about, but they can also donate the higher-quality items to charities and thrift stores to give them a second chance and make someone smile.

Whether your child is an infant or teen, dedicated reading time together can make a powerful impact on how they see the world. A Scholastic study shows that parents who read early and often with their children create stronger familial bonds and raise more empathetic future adults. Make a resolution to read to or with your children each day in 2019. Along with positively shaping their developing brains, you'll both reap the benefits of enjoying a new story together.

For families with slightly older children, a great 2019 resolution is to volunteer together. Participating in an act of service—whether it's a neighborhood cleanup, time spent at a pet shelter or cooking meals for the homeless—can help children develop a natural sense of empathy and kindness while allowing them to do something meaningful in the world. Plus, it teaches children that no matter how old they are, they can always make a difference.

Chores are a beautiful thing when they're shared equally with family members. Even toddlers can participate in helping out around the house. This year, make a commitment with your family to evenly disperse the daily chore load so that everyone is contributing and no one (we're talking to you, Mom) feels overburdened.

A rainy-day fund is an excellent way to teach kids the benefits of saving while also creating an excuse to have a good time together. In 2019, make the resolution to put all of your loose change in your family fund (which can be a piggy bank, a jar or even a leftover shoe box) to be used for a day or two of entertainment and family fun throughout the year.

Here's something many successful companies know that could benefit families: Common goals create a sense of unity and purpose, and can foster more positive attitudes among team members. This year, begin the annual tradition of selecting a project that unites your family and allows each member to contribute to its successful completion. Whether it's a garden, building a birdhouse, creating a photo album or more, these projects can bring a sense of togetherness to your family that lasts all year long.

It sounds so simple, right? Kindness may be easy in theory, but putting it into practice, especially after long, difficult days at school or work, can be extremely difficult. In 2019, make the family resolution to be kinder to each other every day. By sowing the seeds of kindness in your own home, you're creating a foundation for your family to branch out and be kind to others, which is one of the easiest ways to make the world a better place.

If the hurricanes, floods, earthquakes and wildfires of 2018 have taught us anything, it's that we need an emergency plan for our families now more than ever. Instead of putting it off or hoping you'll never need one, take advantage of the New Year by creating a plan of action for your family in case of emergencies. Along with deciding on where to meet and how to contact each other, families should also have an emergency bag with first-aid supplies, nonperishable foods, chargers, medicines, batteries and more.

Even if your family is already recycling, chances are you can probably do more to make a smaller footprint on the planet. With the recent release of the National Climate Assessment, it's clear none of us are doing enough to curtail the damage being done to our environment. But it's not too late. Make 2019 the year your family reduces, reuses, recycles and respects our fragile ecosystem in order to keep it thriving for generations to come.

No matter our age, we're never too old to keep learning. One brain-building resolution your family can adopt in 2019 is to make each day an opportunity to learn. Thanks to the internet, we've got a world of information at our fingertips and can easily access facts about any subject we can imagine. Make the resolution even more fun by letting each member of your family take turns picking the topic you'll be learning about.