It’s Time To Bring Back The Sunday Dinner

How often do you eat together as a family? If I’m being honest, it’s not as often as I would like. This past weekend I made everyone sit down together, mentioned how happy I was, and my kids both rolled their eyes — yes, family dinners are important and we need them.

I grew up where we ate dinner together almost every night. We didn’t take a plate to our room or sit in front of the tv.  With the exception of those famous TV dinners on those TV Trays in the living room. Ah, the memories!  LOL.

An article I noticed making the rounds online speaks of the importance of family dinner time. The tradition of the Sunday family dinner.

It’s an important way to stay connected to family. It’s time to bring back the tradition of gathering around the dinner table.

Studies show that there are cognitive, psychological and physical benefits of dining together. One doctor and parenting expert says “The family that eats together thrives together,”“Mealtime has historically been a time of family togetherness.”

And it’s not about what’s on the plate, it’s being together. It’s the environment you create that makes all the difference.

And there are so many benefits.

Cognitive ones – young kids having bigger vocabularies and older kids doing better in school.

Physical ones – better cardiovascular health, lower obesity rates and eating more of those fruits and veggies.

Psychological – lower rates of depression, anxiety, eating disorders, substance abuse and fewer behavioral problems in school.

So how do we make it happen?

First, it doesn’t have to be Sunday and it doesn’t have to be dinner.  Pick a day and time that works for you. Dinner, lunch, brunch – whatever!

Keep things casual. Get everyone involved in planning and cooking and cleaning so it is a family affair rather than mom and dad doing all the work.”

Say no to electronics.

Plan ahead. Schedule it. Make it happen. Make it a priority.

Read the full article HERE — Sunday Dinner – The Family Tradition We Need To Bring Back

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Categorised in: Afternoons

This post was written by Carrie Buchanan