One of my favorite family priorities is to have dinner together. I was writing a chapter in my book about it, and then my laptop died. So I decided to write about it here.
I've done a little digging into current research and the value of family dinner- and it's amazing! Teenagers who reported eating dinner with their family 3-5 times a week are A LOT less likely to experiment with drugs, alcohol, or sex.
There's a lot more neat research. But- for my family, the greatest benefit is the routine closure. We can have a crazy, fun, amazing day out playing on the lake... Or we can have a stressful, tiring, work-filled day at home together- but family dinner is our normal. We come together, eat food (sometimes good, sometimes iffy), and talk about our day.
We like to do what we call a "question of the day." Somebody new chooses the question each day, and it can be anything from, "What's your favorite dessert?" to "What would you do if this... happened to you?"
Everybody gets a chance to answer- we work on taking turns, though sometimes do better than other times. All the while, we're passing food, drinks, ketchup and ranch around the table.
As far as making dinner- that's where I set my priority list. Some seasons are harder than others. And sometimes my kitchen looks like this minutes after I start cooking:
That one added a good 15 minutes to the prep time... And I was feeling rather frustrated that nobody jumped in to help me clean it up (or offer to get dinner started while I cleaned it up). But in the end, the food came together, and dinner was as it always is: family.
I would LOVE to hear from you about your own experiences (tips, tricks, ideas) for family dinner!
Oh man! You broke a dish! I get most enjoyed at myself when I break a dish, but I never get mad at the kids if they do.
ReplyDeleteYep. I'm the same way- I tell the kids, it's okay it was an accident. But if I break one I'm all grrrrr...
DeleteI love dinner with my family. I used to hate it as a teenager and loved the days we didn't have to eat at the table, but now I love the time together. We have a question jar, my children groan when I pull it out but it generally gets conversations rolling when we have a slow day, then I don't care if the question was answered or not. I think tech. makes us forget how to talk to each other and really connect. I have seen studies about ways and things it helps, but I know statistics can be made to say whatever you want. My personal experience is I wouldn't trade dinner time for any other time of the day.
DeleteRegular dinners are great! I love that the kids are now in charge for a week in the kitchen and make the menu, make dinner (some with more help than others), set/clear the table, take out the trash, unload the dishwasher (I load it and wash pans), and clean the floor. It's taken a lot of pressure off of me and if there are foods certain kids don't love, they don't have to make them during their week. They rotate between kitchen, bathroom, family room, and living room. Everyone brings laundry to the laundry room and they all put their own laundry away, but I am usually the one doing it and always the one folding it, but I enjoy that.
ReplyDeleteBroken glass is not any fun, but at least it gets the floor nice and clean. Usually I'm most upset about breaking a bowl that's sometimes part of a set and most likely to be my favorite one in the set (isn't it weird to have a favorite? Some are just a better size than others.)
Is your dinner spanish rice and quesadillas or something else? I'd love to see a list of the kinds of foods you make in your chapter about food and grocery budget.
Family dinners worked best before our kids got into Middle School. Then they got on shifts. Lots of microwave reheating. The boys learned to make things they liked to eat. Girls too! Good skills to have when it was College and Mission time.
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