Dinner Is Served: The Importance of Family Meals

The fall season kicks off the busiest time of the year with the return to school, after-school activities, work and the holidays. In our busier-than-ever world, sitting down for dinner as a family can feel impossible.

But did you know that even one meal a week can make a huge difference in your family’s  connections to one another and your overall health?

Make It a Priority

Family mealtimes help both adults and children.

“There are a lot of benefits baked into a routine family meal, including social, emotional/mental health, as well as nutritional and physical benefits,” says David Fikes, executive director of the FMI Foundation.

Family meals are a special way to spend time together.

“Mealtimes are a great place where the family can connect, bond and talk about the day,” says Katherine Shary, registered dietitian with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s Strong4Life. “It’s a set time each day where kids know this is a positive time. It’s more than just food. It can help shape a kid’s relationship, thoughts and feelings.”

If your family hasn’t made mealtimes a priority in the past, now’s a great month to start. “Started in 2015, September’s National Family Meals Month is an annual campaign that encourages one more family meal per week, however you define family,” Fikes says. Their website offers a variety of materials, including helpful data on the benefits of family meals and downloadable Table Talk Placemats.

Make It Fun

Spending time together should be enjoyable for everyone. You want your child to associate mealtimes with fun and togetherness. Share details of your day to model how to engage in conversation with your child. Get extra ideas with conversation starters online at strong4life.com and fmi.org/familymeals or products such as TableTopics.

Beyond talking, there are other ways to spice up mealtimes, such as eating in your backyard or heading to a nearby park for a picnic.

“Sometimes, all it takes is calling up a guest from your community or friend group to add novelty to the conversations around the table,” Fikes says. “Sometimes, it’s the composition of the meal — a special dish or ingredient incorporated, a fun appetizer or dessert, or unique seating arrangements.”

Stay present during the meal. Turn off digital distractions or keep phones and screens in a separate room. The point of family mealtime is to connect to one another, not just be at the table at the same time.

Make It Easy

Meals are important to your child’s development and the health of your family. But you might be thinking, “Another thing I have to do?!” and feeling overwhelmed about adding a new task to your to-do list.

Even adding only one family meal a week to your schedule can make an impact. “It’s all about scheduling intentional times to connect around the table. Make a schedule of all household activities and tasks outside of the home that would take you away from your table. What can you plan around?” Fikes says. “One or more family meal a week can often make a huge difference in family functioning.”

Easy meals can be nutritious and satisfying for your family.

“Our children and ourselves have to be fed multiple times a day,” Shary says. “We shouldn’t be writing down homecooked meals from Monday to Friday. Plan a day for leftovers. Plan one day to have grilled cheese, a box of tomato soup, a fruit cup and some baby carrots with ranch. It does not need to be a five-star meal every day.”

Plan and prep meals ahead of time. Before going to the grocery store, take time to decide what you’ll serve in the days ahead and make a list. Consider outsourcing some tasks with a meal service or a grocery pickup order.

“Some of these tasks can be mentally overwhelming,” Shary says. “Ask your significant other or older child, ‘What is one thing you want to eat this week?’ That way, you have one meal you don’t have to think about; you just have to get the ingredients and make it.”

Depending on the age of your child, he can help with meal prep. “Meals don’t just happen when we’re sitting down and eating together,” Shary says. “Take your children to the grocery store, explore the produce section together, and let them pick one thing you’re going to take home. Depending on their age, let them participate.”

As you make family meals a priority, you will learn what your family does and doesn’t like and what you can manage. “It’s about balance. Semi-homecooked meals are OK and realistic,” Shary says. “There are lots of activities at nighttime — homework, preparing for the next day. You’re not falling into a trap if you don’t prepare a beautiful homecooked meal. Feeding your family is always a win.” Even getting take-out and enjoying it as a family counts as family mealtime!

-Emily Webb

Happy Meals: Make “Special” the Main Ingredient

Once you start the family meal tradition, how do you keep it going? To keep everyone coming back for more, up the fun factor. Need ideas? We asked moms just like you to share the unique ways they make meals memorable and festive for the whole family. Here’s what they said.

Dining Room Picnics

“Every now and then, my family eats dinner on the floor,” says Michelle Nicholasen, mom of five. “We spread out a tablecloth or picnic blanket and eat something on the ground that’s really a drag to clean up, like the rice in burritos or Chinese food. My kids think sitting on the floor is weird and fun, and even funnier that my husband and I are doing it, too. I notice that when we eat on the floor, my kids don’t complain as much about the food and they can’t jockey for seats or get up and wander around like they sometimes do. It breaks us out of a rut.”

Finger Food Fun

“My boys love to dip and dunk so I often serve finger foods such as wings, ribs, celery stuffed with light cream cheese and Greek yogurt and carrot sticks,” says Georgia Orcutt, mom of two. “I also fill a compartmentalized appetizer tray with sliced cucumbers, sliced peppers, pieces of cheese, nuts, olives, crackers and sliced whole-grain breads along with Greek yogurt, hummus, tzatziki, even applesauce. They love to play with the combinations.”

Dinner by Candlelight

“Eating by candlelight makes the dinner seem special and gets my kids to slow down, have a  conversation, and linger at the table to share stories from the day long after the food is gone,” says Pamela MacPhee, mom of three middle schoolers.

Table Talkers

“We have a ‘talk about it’ bowl, an actual bowl that my kids, and my husband and I can fill with conversation starters, such as an article we’ve seen, a photo we’ve ripped out of a magazine, or an object, like a funny sticker, to later talk about at the table,” says Jeanne Muchnick, mom of two teenage girls. “If no one puts something in the bowl, I have a list of questions I’ve typed up and folded up like Chinese fortunes that are meant to stir conversation, such as: What actor/actresses would play you in the movie of your life and why? What’s the funniest story you know about yourself as a baby? If you could change your name, what would it be? What activities would fit into your perfect day? The questions have changed as my girls have gotten older. But over the years, we’ve found out some interesting stuff about each other. This game is even more fun to do with guests.”

Storybook Dinners

“When my 6-year-old son, Franklin, gets interested in a character or a historical happening, I create a meal around it,” says Elura Nanos Kish. “For example, he’s been reading an Australian storybook in which the characters eat pavlova (a meringue-based dessert with strawberries or kiwi) and lamington (sponge cake dipped in chocolate), so we found recipes for these desserts and made them for a little Aussie dinner party, along with shrimp on the barbie. If we center dinner around a theme, it’s no problem to get everyone excited about it.”

DIY Dinners

“At least once a week, I’ll put out all the parts of the dinner separately and have my husband and son make their own version of whatever it is we’re having,” says Jill Houk. “With taco night, for example, I’ll put out corn tortillas, refried beans, Spanish rice, shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, cheese, salsa, meat and cheese. My husband and son love it because they can make their own taco combos and I love it because I don’t have to be the one to do all the work. Build-a-dinner works great with salads, pasta, burritos, pizza and even dessert with company such as a make-your-own sundae bar.”

Kid Chefs

“My girls help me plan our meals for the week,” says Christine Bolzan, mom of three girls ages 8, 6 and 3. “They’ll write the grocery list for me, drawing items if they can’t spell them. Then they’ll carry the list through the grocery store and check off items as we find them. I think my girls have more fun with dinner because they’re included in the process. They’ve planned entirely green dinners —   pesto chicken, broccoli, honeydew melon, and a salad. We’ve also had princess night in which everyone comes in costume and dinner is served on our good china.”

-Sandra Gordon