---
title: "Editor's Letter: Outdoor Adventures Bond, and the Best Gift You Can Give Your Children Is Your Time"
description: "Outdoor adventures, bedtime stories, paternity leave and Christmas: Marina Nani introduces the November 2026 edition of Rich Dad Magazine."
author: Dr Marina Nani (Editor-in-Chief)
date: 2026-11-06T17:47:18.002Z
updated: 2026-11-06T17:47:18.015Z
canonical: https://richdadmagazine.com/article/editor-s-letter-outdoor-adventures-bond-and-the-best-gift-you-can-give-your-children-is-your-time
image: https://cdn.nanimediahouse.com/rich-dad-november-2026-card-16x9-1920x1080-1.webp
categories: Fatherhood
content_type: Letter from the Editor
publication: Rich Dad Magazine
schema_type: Article
---

When did you last spend a whole afternoon outdoors with your children, with your phone left at home?

Most of us mean to. Then the week fills with work, school runs and the long list of things that cannot wait, and the weekend is gone before it begins. Yet the moments your children remember are rarely the ones you planned for weeks. They are the afternoon on the riverbank, the walk that turned into an adventure and the swing in the woods where everyone laughed.

We have called this edition Outdoor Adventures, and every story in it starts from one idea: the bond you build with your children grows strongest when you share your time, your attention and a little fresh air.

Start outdoors. Our guide to [fishing, hiking, camping, kayaking and cycling](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/outdoor-activities-dads-and-kids) shows how outdoor adventures build your bond with your children. Our cover story tells you how [a father's swing for his daughter](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/outdoor-adventures-bond-the-swing-that-brings-fathers-and-children-closer) became the SOLVEJ swing, a sensory swing that calms busy minds and is made to be handed down. If your children love nature, [start birdwatching before they turn 11](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/birdwatching-children-europe-autumn).

Some of the best ideas this month are also the simplest. [Making your children laugh](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/humour-laughter-father-child-bond) strengthens the father-child bond at every age. [Reading the bedtime story](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/benefits-of-fathers-reading-to-children) gives your children seven benefits that last long after the light goes out. [Girl dads make more committed partners](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/girl-dads-study-daughters-fathers-partners), and we look at what having a daughter changes in a father. Our step-by-step guide shows you how to [teach your child chess](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/how-to-teach-your-child-chess) tonight.

Fatherhood looks different for every man. If you see your children at weekends, our [weekend ideas for single dads](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/weekend-ideas-for-single-dads) make that time count. Four in five step-parents are men, and we look at [what makes a good stepdad](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/how-to-be-a-good-stepdad). Becoming [a father after 40](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/becoming-a-father-after-40) changes your money, your health and your time. If your son has [fewer close friends](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/loneliness-in-boys-7-ways-fathers-can-help), we give you seven ways to help him.

Work and family pull in different directions. Fathers want [six weeks of paternity leave at 90% pay](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/paternity-leave-review-six-weeks), and [self-employed dads will get paternity pay](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/self-employed-paternity-pay-2029), though not before April 2029. Year-end pressure brings [Q4 burnout](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/q4-burnout-parenting-nine-ways-to-recover) to working parents, and [the 777 rule](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/777-rule-for-couples-busy-parents) gives you a simple plan to stay close as a couple.

Christmas is closer than it looks. We have [presents for dads who say they want nothing](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/christmas-presents-dads-who-want-nothing), [birthday presents for 11 and 12 year olds](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/birthday-presents-for-11-and-12-year-olds) under £50 and ten tips for [Christmas shopping with your children](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/christmas-shopping-with-kids-tips-for-dads) without a meltdown. Bring your children into the kitchen too: [children who cook with you](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/cooking-with-kids) eat more vegetables, and our [anti-inflammatory winter meals](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/anti-inflammatory-winter-meals-for-families) are made for sharing. Then put the phones away with [eight rules for screen-free family evenings](https://richdadmagazine.com/article/screen-free-family-evenings).

You do not need a mountain or a long holiday. A park, a garden or a tree with a swing is enough. Choose one adventure from these pages, put it in the diary for this weekend and keep that date as you would any meeting.

Go outside. Leave the phone at home. Make them laugh.

Then write and tell me where your adventure took you. I would love to hear how you are getting on.

Marina Nani Editor-in-Chief