With all of the obstacles in life, it is getting harder for families to spend quality time together. With work, school, after school activities, friends and all of the other things in life that take up all of our time, we see less and less of our family. A great way to make time for everyone is dinner time. A nice meal at the dining table allows everyone to catch up.
Cooking at home teaches our kids the value of family time. Setting aside time to help with the preparation of dinner allows the kids to express themselves. Give them different options on what they might want for dinner. Spaghetti and meatballs, macaroni and cheese, rice and chicken or what ever our kids like to eat. Allowing our kids to make the choice will not only give them the sense of accomplishment but it will entice them to want to be there. If they are old enough, they can chop the veggies and toss the salad or they can season the meat. If they aren’t old enough, they can get the veggies from the fridge and watch you chop them.
Eating dinner at the dining table is the best time for families to communicate. You can talk about your day or the weekend coming up. If there is a special event everyone can be in the loop and contribute. It also shows our kids the importance of “family”, teaching them by example that there is nothing more important.
Another great reason for making dinner time a tradition is that you know exactly what everyone is eating. We can teach our kids healthy eating habits. We can regulate what and when they eat making sure they get their daily fruit and vegetable servings.
Taking the time to teach our children the value of family at an early age is the most important thing we can teach them. Food is one of those small things in life that we can use as a teaching tool.