How to Have Peaceful Family Dinners.
Imagine this:
You cook a great meal for hours, imagining your family having a peaceful family dinner together, connecting and laughing. REALITY: Food is being thrown, children are bickering, and your patience is lost.
Pandemic confession: my husband and I wholeheartedly enjoy dinners alone at home, after the kids go to bed, so we needed a solution where we could still sit with our children as they ate dinner and connect. The kids and I have been together a lot….all day, every day. With the weather getting colder, we are spending more time inside, which means simpler dinners that can often feel rushed.
Do you want the key to peaceful family dinners?
Connecting during meals is important. When we do sit down as a family, we try to incorporate a family meeting about anything relevant: ideas for how we can keep legos cleaned up, discuss new foods we want to try next week, or brainstorm what we should get Grandma for her birthday.
If your family dinners feel rushed and chaotic, when your goal is to connect and have a peaceful dinner with your family, I have a solution for you!
Geared towards children aged 3 and up, try Kids TableTopics. These conversation starters will help your children practice dialogue and listen/respond to others point of view. Kids Table Topics encourage children to offer an opinion and hear other opinions that might differ from their own. Your child will learn social skills such as waiting for a turn to speak and asking follow up questions. Of course, the topics are much more engaging to listen to instead of….”mommy, more milk….I need a fork…I don’t like green beans….can I be done!?” 🙂
OTHER IDEAS FOR MEAL TIME SUCCESS:
- Give your children paper and have them draw placemats for each family member.
- Set realistic expectation for yourself and children: a 2 year old can last around 10-20 minutes sitting at table, reasonably.
- Keep a routine around mealtimes so children understand expectations.
- Tell a pretend story together. Each person goes around the table and adds a sentence or two to the pretend story.
Cheers to peaceful family dinners!
