Talk to Cadbury’s about your family nights in and you could win a £200 Love2Shop voucher NOW CLOSED

[AngelieMumsnet]

Cadbury’s Marvellous Smashables have asked us to find out how you get the whole family together for a cosy night in.

Here’s what they say, "New Cadbury’s Marvellous Smashables are a fun way for all the family to get involved, so we’d love to hear from Mumsnetters about how they encourage the whole family to enjoy a family night in."

So, what do you do to ensure your busy family spends time together? Do you make sure everyone's favourite meal - or dessert - is on the menu? Perhaps there's a TV show that's guaranteed to gather you all in one place? Or do you use more direct tactics like bribery?! Maybe you cut off supply to the wifi or have made the lounge or kitchen an irresistably cosy place to congregate?

Everyone who posts on this thread will be entered into a prize draw to win a £200 Love2Shop voucher!

Thanks
MNHQ

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We spend every evening together as a family, we're lucky the kids are still at an age where they want to be with us, The Bake Off was a major evening at ours, and they would choose something from an episode to make at the weekend, weekends are special, we'll be more relaxed about what time they go to bed, eat the outcome from Bake Off, watch movies (or now Strictly, dressed up in our frocks, sitting with snacks), Sunday is Board Game night, where they get to choose a game, the best night we had was when we had a power cut and we played Scrabble by candlelight, toasting marshmallows and making Smores on the log burner!

We tend to have treat nights if Dad has to go out or away with work - I always try and make it nice for the little ones then. Our favourites are getting a chinese takeaway and eating it on our laps (for the kids, a real treat not to have to sit at the table) while watching a new DVD. Then we snuggle down to watch the rest of the film with a few sweets and choccie treats to nibble on.

We have a Saturday night ritual of a takeaway curry and either a film or something like Strictly. My DC are still young, so they're quite happy to have the treat of sitting up a bit later with us and eating in front of the TV.

We make it regular. Everyone in the family knows that at 8pm each night we gather in the sitting room to chat and watch tv together. We do this every night

We love snuggling on the couch with a good movie, some popcorn and chocolate. My favourites are Buttons and Twirl bites.

Saturday is my favourite family night. Usually homemade pizza, salad & chocolate fingers. DS picks the Tv or a film. And we eat in the lounge -the only night of the week it's allowed! And of course a few glasses of red. We're doing it tonight as DS and DH are on Cub Camp for the weekend! What will I do!
I think it's these little family routines that memories are made of. When I was a kid we used to toast bread on the fire in the lounge and eat it I first if Ski Sunday. My mum would wheel in cake on her trolley!

Sunday nights are our family night in, we record something on TV to watch that everyone agrees on, school work is finished and bags packed ready so we can just veg out and relax. Phones turned off and no one is allowed to look at emails/f-book etc.

We love a Saturday night in... usually have Fajitas, as they are the kids favourite, then it will be either games or movie night. The kids like the Cadburys bags like Crunchie Rocks and Twirl bites, their (my) new favourites are the Boost bites! DD9 gets small bowls out and shares them out equally between us, any odd ones leftover sneakily go in her mouth!

At this time of the year, we spend our weekend evenings on the sofa with blankets, hot chocolate and either Saturday night TV or a family film on a Sunday. We also like to play board games. Monopoly is a favourite in our house!

Sunday night is film night - so whatever else we have been doing, we try to make sure that we are able to stop and put time aside for this. Family favourites, old classics, with each of us taking turns to pick.

Children are too young to have a full family night in but time spent together with everyone happy usually involves playing a game both DC can join in with.

A meal everyone likes usually curry/roast and a movie together, sometimes a board game but they can end in tears!

Pyjamas, blankets, roaring fire, popcorn & strictly.

We have started a tradition of having film night once a week which our DD and DS (5 and 7) love. They take it in turns to choose a film and then we have homemade pizza and popcorn. They love it, and I really enjoy the quality family time. It's a great way to end the week too.

We like to get together with the grandparents for a proper special evening in. They lavish heaps of attention on our little one, while Dad and me watch happily with a big glass of wine and finally get a chance to relax!

We can't really have 'cosy night's in' at this stage, our dd's are still too young to sit through a whole movie together without getting distracted and entertaining each other.

However we do love to have some family fun time. We clear a big space in the living room and just run around wild. DD's love it when me and DW pretend to be monkeys, we leap over the furniture and shout our heads off, then dd's join in, by the end of it we are al rolling about laughing.

Cosy night's in tend to involve dd's screaming about what they want to watch (Dora being the program of choice just now).

When OH has a rare day off from work I like us all to have as much family time as possible, we sit & eat a meal together & watch films or do crafts, or just sit & chill out :)

My kids are a bit young (8, 5 & 2) for "nights in" I think. But we have afternoons in! Usually I make a big bowl of popcorn and we sit on the sofa watching Despicable Me again a film

Or we all play Caracsonne together, except the 2 year old who thinks running off with the pieces is the best game ever

A family meal typically roast chicken with all the trimmings. Good manners and conversation. Finished off with a game of dominos or monopoly and or some chocolates in front of a family friendly movie

We do afternoons in, or lazy mornings where we all stay in pjs and cuddle into our bed watching something (usually 3 year old's choice!) on netflix and eating snacks. Baby dd loves the attention of all being together and the toddler has great fun bouncing on the big bed! She loves to "get cosy" in mummy and daddy's bed.

My DC are still at the stage where they enjoy spending time with me. During the autumn/winter months we have a family tradition of watching Dr Who/GBBO/strictly together on a Saturday evening.

I usually cook early and we have supper early then pile into bed with snacks and drinks and snuggle together to watch one of the above (currently it's Dr Who, we do occasionally have Pride and Prejudice marathon or the BBC adaptation of the Narnia tales, have it on box set and it's our run up to Christmas tradition).

It's fun and bonding,my girls and I started doing this when we were going thro a pretty horrific time. It's comforting being together and snuggling together.

Mine are still in primary school, I may look back in a few years and laugh at my naivety, but at present we eat a family meal at the weekends, and we all sit together for a meal. They also like playing board games, Junior Monopoly is a big hit. Occasionally we watch a movie, but it's not a sure fire way to keep them together, at least one gets bored half way through usually.

We have to get all the plastic animals out and make a zoo. We then get turns to be in the 'zoo bus' that tours the zoo. Oh, the joy of having a 4 yr old mad on animals!

Movies, preferably ones we will all watch, and popcorn. Occasionally chocolate too and if we're feeling really indulgent some posh ice cream (bowls for the DCs and the rest of the tub between me and DH).

We play Monopoly if I get my own way. I'm the banker and I only cheat a bit. A lovely tub of Heroes always helps things along.