What to do with Monday nights

July 11, 2025•2 min read

We used to have one of those tacky FHE board in our house with everyone's name on a wooden tag. You know the ones, where we switch them up to assign duties for the weekly family activity. I made it at a Relief Society craft activity (cause that's what was supposed to make women fulfilled - craft nights - lol!). There was Prayer, Song, Lesson, Activity and Snack - and probably more that I can't remember! It's been a minute...

Even though that board was supposed to help lighten the load, I always felt guilt if we didn't do it. If someone forgot to do their assigned role, who had to fill in? MOM. It was basically home church, but mom was the bishop. LOL!

**Maybe you loved FHE and it was something you all looked forward to. You liked the opportunity to have a formal lesson and activity that was on your calendar and became a habit. You would KEEP it.

**Maybe you dreaded it and couldn't wait to get rid of it. It was work, the kids complained, and no matter how much effort you put into making it fun, it always fell flat. You would DUMP it.

**Maybe you liked the IDEA of a family night, but the formal structure or something else just didn't work for you. You would like to replace it with something else. You would REPLACE it.

The most important thing to remember is that building a relationship with your children should be number one. Rather than preaching a lesson that could lead to eye rolls and sighs (thinking of the teenagers here!), keep it light and memory building. Here are some ideas for Monday nights:

Game night! Take turns playing everyone's favorite game!
Movie night. Everyone gets a turn to choose.
Goal setting. Share goals and ask how you can support each other.
Hobby night. Free time to work on individual hobbies, but together. You could even take turns each week teaching each other your hobby.

Try out one of these ideas, and talk to your kids about what they would like to do. Connecting with your kids is the best parenting strategy, but sometimes the most difficult!

Let me know how you handle Monday nights!

Cheering you on.

~Audra

P.S. Have you had the difficult conversation with your kids about leaving the church? Maybe you're still in the habit of doing family activities on Monday nights? I created a course that gives you a 3 step formula for having this tough conversation with your kids. I share my story, including my own mistakes in this process. You will learn how to connect, how to listen, and how to make a plan to move forward together. Check it out here!

Audra Phelps

I am a mom of 3, teacher and school administrator. I have seen a lot of good and bad parenting come through my classroom and office - and I have also been an energy-depleted mom looking for a better way to parent. After leaving the LDS church, I knew I wanted to raise my kids differently than I was raised. But I had no idea where to start, no one to mentor me, and no resources specific to this transition. I understand the frustrations and the reasons why we resort to parenting tactics that are more damaging than we like to admit. I will share with you what I have learned through raising my own kids, and observing the affects of different parenting styles on the students I work with. When we know better, we do better - and I am here to help you learn a better way to raise independent kids without the guidance of the Mormon church, and while rediscovering your authentic self.

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