Categories
Family Family Dinner Love Uncategorized

Making Family Dinners Easy and Attainable

Back in the good-ol’ days when I was growing up, family dinners were something that happened EVERY night. It wasn’t just the four of us sitting on the sofa or at the counter eating whatever we wanted to eat, no. Family dinners were made by Mom and eaten at the TABLE, no exceptions.

I suspect that many of you who grew up in the 80’s may have had a similar experience. Dinner time was an important time back then. It wasn’t just about the food, but about sitting together, across from one another, sharing our days. Dinner time was usually the time when triumphs were shared (like that “A” I received on my Gold Rush report) as well as moments in our day that maybe weren’t as triumphant (like when my friend became upset with me for playing with someone else). Dinner time was a time for CONNECTION.

Today we live in a much different world. We live with a constant stream of media coming from our televisions, our phones and other devices. We live in a world where the likelihood of a stay-at-home parent is less than when we grew up, although recent polls suggest that may be changing. We live in a world where every moment of our child’s day is scheduled, not only with school activities, but after-school sports, music and dance. With all of these moments in our daily life that feel so out of control, it seems it’s more important than ever to find the time to connect with our families… truly CONNECT.

Dinner time is the PERFECT time to connect with your family. Plus, everyone needs to eat in the evening, so why not sit down around the table for thirty minutes and enjoy a meal with the people you love the most? 

You may be wondering how in the world you could possibly manage getting everyone to sit down at the table most nights every week. Here are some ideas that may help you start enjoying family dinners with your family.

Be consistent.

I know this one is hard. It sometimes feel as though it is impossible to find time every night to sit down as a family, let alone set aside the SAME time every night. However, children, and adults alike, crave some sort of routine in their day. They want to know what is coming and when. For example, having dinner every night between 5 and 6 may allow your kiddos to be more efficient with the time they have after school, and potentially be done with homework and projects by the time you sit down to eat. If your schedule really is extremely hectic, then at the very least, schedule an evening tea time, hot cocoa time, or a morning family breakfast time where everyone sits around the table, enjoying one another and their treat or meal.

Make it fun!

Family dinners should be fun. Make a meal something your children look forward to by incorporating a game or even some fun questions to ask. In our household, we always ask, “What was your favorite part of the day?” We go around the table and everyone answers the question and then explains why it was their favorite. This question alone stimulates so much positive conversation around the dinner table and will keep you engaged with your family even after your meal is complete. 

Make it easy!

Just because you are sitting down around the table does not mean that you have to toil away at the kitchen for hours before. In fact, if you do spend a lot of time creating a meal for your family then you may begin to feel burned out fairly quickly, meaning your family dinners may not be consistent. Instead find some easy recipes by doing a simple search online. There are a great variety of recipes out there today including those that will satisfy any food allergies and avoidances. For health reasons, a few in my family are both gluten and dairy-free, but even with those restrictions, we can easily find recipes that the whole family can enjoy. I have also recently found several sheet-pan dinners that not only allow you to get dinner on the table in around 30 minutes, but that are super yummy too. The easier you can make your dinner preparations, the more likely you will be to continue the effort. Should you have an exceptionally crazy afternoon and you know that there is no way dinner is going to make it onto the table by your hands, that’s ok too! With the amount of apps we have today that allow food to be delivered wherever and whenever we wish, you are covered there too! Ordering everyone’s favorite grub can be a fun break and it will still allow you to sit around the table and have that precious family time. 

Being together as a family is more important than ever. Taking a moment to connect and laugh together each and every day will continue to create strong bonds within your family that will last a lifetime. Dinners, breakfasts, or tea together will give your family the time to reconnect and truly enjoy one another and the life you have built together.

Cheers!

~Meghan

Categories
Education Family Love Preschool School Valentine's Day

New Ways of Sharing the Love with Little Ones this Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day is the perfect opportunity to teach your little ones how to share the love with everyone in their life. Everyone deserves some love this season, from the neighbor down the street, to the grade school teacher, to others in your community. Here are FIVE ways to show love this Valentine’s Day.

1. One of the best ways you can encourage your child to show love to those in the community is to deliver handmade crafts to those who might not receive much on Valentine’s Day. Choose from one of these amazingly easy crafts and take them over to your local nursing home or children’s hospital. Share with your child how much it will mean to those individuals to receive something so special, and how easy it is to spread the love- even with a simple craft!

2. Pets need some love too this Valentine’s day! Use this recipe for homemade dog treats and deliver them to your local shelter, or you can bring along used blankets, pet toys, or any other pet materials you may have on hand. Call ahead of time and find out your local shelter’s policies on children interacting with the animals. Who knows – they may even let you cuddle a kitty while you’re there.

3. When you look around your community, you’ll realize there are lots of people who could use some love this Valentine’s day. Make a list with your child of who those people might be in your community and buy a batch of single stem flowers to share with them. Some examples include your neighborhood postal worker, trash collector, your teacher, or your local barista!  Pro tip: Do this a day or two before Valentine’s Day to avoid the dreaded “empty buckets” at your local flower shop, or find a blooming field nearby (if spring comes early in your neck of the woods) and pick your favorite wildflowers! Keep it fun and easy for the whole family!

4. Make a Valentine treat for your neighbors or nearby friends. Everyone loves something sweet on Valentine’s day! Think cookies, brownies, cake pops, or any other sweet treat your little one would love to make. Explain to them while you’re mixing the ingredients who you’ll be giving these treats to, and ask them how they hope it will make those individuals feel when they enjoy them.

5. With the excitement of potential valentines, treats, and the feeling of love in the air, it can be easy to forget to show love to those right in front of you. Gather the whole family at breakfast or dinner to share attributes you love about each family member. As you do this, write the “love-ly” sentiments on a heart-shaped card or pink construction paper for each family member to hold onto. Encourage your child to share the distinct qualities they love about each family member. For example, instead of “I love that Daddy kills bad spiders”, help them to reframe the sentiment as “I love that Daddy protects me.”

We hope you and your kiddos have fun with these easy crafts and activities that show love in all of its wild ways this holiday, and every day. Those of us at Theory Preschools hope you have a Valentine’s Day filled with lots of ooey gooey love and joy

Categories
Childcare Education Family homeschool Leprechaun trap School St. Patrick's Day

Building a Leprechaun Trap for St.Patrick’s Day

My children have been making Leprechaun traps for years, and even though my two eldest are about at an age when this shouldn’t be deemed “cool,” they are still all in. Maybe it’s for the sake of my youngest… but regardless of age, this activity is just FUN.

Luckily, St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner and designing a Leprechaun trap is the perfect activity to focus on to bring some joy back into daily life.

To start some background information.

If you were unaware, Leprechauns come into the human world only once per year, on the evening of March 16th. On that evening they search the world for children who are trying to trick them with a trap (Leprechauns cannot resist a sneaky challenge). It has been our experience that they always leave evidence of their tampering with the traps either through a dusting of glitter, a knocked over trap, or maybe some green footprints. However, the very best part is that the Leprechaun leaves a special treat behind for each child. If yor child seems concerned about the well-being of the Leprechaun, you can let them know that Leprechauns are resistant to all human viruses.

Now it is time to get building!

Since Leprechauns are small you do not need to build anything too large. Just grab any cardboard box that you have lying around. Add a door, maybe a room or two, along with some tricks for your Leprechaun (they love shiny things) and you’re done.

Place the trap (or “playground” as my eldest daughter has always called her trap) somewhere that your child thinks is accessible to Leprechauns on the evening of the 16th. Once your kiddos are asleep create some Leprechaun havoc and don’t forget to leave a small treat or prize behind.

Your children will wake up excited to find what the Leprechaun has done, and will be thrilled to have received a special treat from him.

Now get going… there is not much time!

Suggested supplies:

-cardboard box

-jars

-glue

-pens or paint

-glitter

-safe scissors

-anything else you have laying around (buttons, fabric, popsicle sticks, etc)

Check out these traps for some inspiration and have fun!

~Meghan

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