Are Family Meals a waste of time?

It seems we’re always pressed for time. We wake up in the morning in a hurry to get ourselves and our families ready to hurry out the door. Then we eat a quick lunch at work or at home and then dinner is a whirlwhind of dirty dishes, unwinding, getting things ready for the next day. Who has time for family meals these days? I do. And so do you. But only if you think it’s important enough to prioritize around it. I promise, you can get your family to sit down at the table to eat together. Even if it’s just for a few minutes. No one said it has to be fancy gourmet dinner, no one said it had to be dinner. Even a snack, eaten as a family, at a table with conversation is better than nothing.

I’ve made family meals one of my highest priorities since having Annabelle. Ours happens to be breakfast since that is the one time that we are all together every single day. On the weekends and some weeknights we have family dinners but we have breakfast together every single day. I try to have breakfast ready by 6:45am since I walk out the door at 7:15am. I aim for having a family breakfast every single day, it doesn’t always work out but on a very large majority of days it does.

It’s not a long time but in those few minutes we interact as a family, have a conversation, no matter how sleepy, and just spend time together. It’s bonding time for us. Weekday mornings when everyone is in a hurry and usually running late is still a time for us to connect before we go our separate ways. Other days when we have more time we sit around the table and talk and just enjoy our company. Even now when I go home and visit my family we can easily spend a few hours sitting around the table after a meal together, just talking and catching up. Maybe even playing board games after dinner. It is beyond important to me that Annabelle grow up with this too because to this day it is one of my favorite ways to bond with my family.

There is an abundance of research on the importance of the family meal, even if it is just one a week. Anything is better than nothing. Power of Family Meals is a great website to browse. It’s full of good information and research and even helpful tips and on how to make family meals happen, no matter how busy you are. There are even meal plans to help you through the process of figuring out what’s for dinner.

How often do you get your family around the table for a meal? Share your tips and favorite meal ideas with us! Browse my recipe section to find some great make ahead breakfasts like Coconut breakfast bars,  oatmeal ‘bread’ pudding, apple pancakes or some quick Paleo breakfasts.