Today we are going to talk about the battle of keeping the art of family dinners, fun, fresh, inspiring and essential. I am done I am finished I am over it Uncle Like many of you I am so sick of cooking three squares a day So I have stopped That is right Like much of family life during the time of Covid 19, I have learned you have to pick your battles So I have decided breakfast and lunch, my family, they are on their own I will be there to guide, to heat up a quick grilled cheese, to toss a few veggies together But for a full blown meal ….. Nope, no more …. Instead, I have chosen to focus on dinner because there are powerful reasons for families to spend time around the dinner table THE SET-UP: For one People make better food choices One study from Stanford University reported that kids who eat family dinners are less likely to grub on fried food and saturated fats, while seeking out stuff like fruits and veggies . It can restore order to an otherwise chaotic day Fifty-one percent of families admit they don’t eat regularly around the dining table due to busy schedules, but regularly sitting around the table can be the one aspect of a busy day that you actually have control of. It allows for time away from all the screens, and a moment of ‘reality’ It’s no secret that in an age where technology is at the forefront of most people’s lives, many find themselves glued to their screens at all times of day and night. It creates a sense of routine in this crazy time It can build self-esteem Dinner is a perfect opportunity to build self- esteem in children as you discuss the goings on of their day. And I have chosen to make sure those dinners are really memorable Just think about some of the great dinners of all time The Last Supper The First Thanksgiving The dinner where George Bush vomited with all camera’s focused on him at a state dinner seated neat to the prime minster of Japan Or the infamous time Cleopatra sat at a dinner table and took a pearl from her earing and dropped it in a cup of vinegar and when it dissolved drank every last drop. Or the dinner where our founding fathers Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton and James Madison decided to move the capital from Washington to Philadelphia The idea of mixing education and television came from a dinner in New York City in 1966 where Lloyd Morresett a Carnegie Foundation executive complained how is daughter loved to watch TV (like all kids do!). The hostess of the party, Joan Cooney a PBS producer got the idea to investigate how to make educational programming fun for children to watch. This evolved into a series with colorful monsters, and human characters called Sesame Street. THE FAMILY DOINGS: I know, I know my family meals even on the best of nights may not be this epic, but I have some tips and tricks and can make the never ending, night after night Quarantine Family Dinners memorable. One of the simplest ways is get some interesting conversations like: Do you know the story about how your parents met? Do you know how your name was chosen, or how your parents’ names were chosen? Do you know some of the lessons that your parents learned from good or bad experiences they had during their childhood? Do you know some of the jobs that your parents had when they were young? What is the earliest story you know about an ancestor? Pick one person to be the interviewer and come to the table with a series of questions to conduct family interviews Discuss a historical figure Present a morally ambiguous or thought- provoking situation ask your family to give their opinion. There’s often not a clear “right” or “wrong” answer, so these should generate some interesting debates. Try exploring mystery foods. Take your children to the supermarket and ask them to pick out a fruit or vegetable they’ve never seen before or never eaten at home. I mean do you think anyone in your family has ever cracked open or let alone cooked with a coconut? Ask your kids ...
