Family Time

By Emily Grussing

Billy bursts through the door, dropping his equipment bag in the mud room and taking a swig from his water bottle, simultaneously kicking off his cleats and proceeding into the kitchen. He walks to the dishwasher to put in his now empty water bottle as his sister.

Jennie, walks in yelling her thanks and “see ya later” to a minivan full of third grade girl scouts in green vests and sashes through the door. The sound of the minivan driving away is met with the sound of a car door shutting in the driveway.

Bob enters his bustling home dropping his briefcase on a nearby chair in the mudroom, taking off his loafers and the light coat his wife advised him to wear as she kissed him goodbye this morning on the very same threshold.

As Bob walks in he strolls over to his wife, Martha, who was taking lemon-dill marinated chicken out of the oven and placing it on the table along with the rice pilaf, washed red grapes, and asparagus.

Padding down the stairs comes Maddie, texting fiercely on her sliding keyboard, then, with a look from her mother, turning it off and taking her spot at the large table in the blue dining room along with her brother, in soccer uniform, her younger sister in a green vest with patches describing many accomplishments of a girl scout, a father exhaling and seeming to relax and let go all the stresses of the workplace as he joins his family whom he deeply adores, lastly, at the head of the six person table, sat down Martha, a stay-at-home, devoted wife and mother, and also, on the side of her busy life, an accomplished comedy writer about the life of now-a-days moms and the struggles they face daily. Some, even called her a modern day Erma Bombeck.

The sound of plates , “can you pass the----" and milk pouring into glasses and knifes hitting plates, cutting the chicken and spoons lifting rice into the hungry mouths of a modern day family. This scenario may be hectic, unorderly at times, and impossible to master but in the end, everyone ends up at the table, joining together, even for just 30 minutes to share stories of crazy days to math tests, what Laurie said at lunch today, or talk of promotions available after a co-worker had to relocate for another family member.

You see, in families like these, where each member has their own separate life and such, these dinners are extremely essential. When you find yourself frustrated, and immersed in your own problems it helps to sit down, sharing delicious food and kinship, bonding you all together. Imagine if instead, this family didn’t have this special time to share and instead they were all left with their own problems and schedules.

Now, they all form relationships and can empathize with each other and discuss logistics for the weekend camping trip in Maine. It’s so important to have this time, to not only establish relationships, but healthy eating habits and portions for real-life experiences, not just pizza and ice cream at birthday parities. What most children don’t understand is that there’s so much more beyond that! Its not just junk food, but real food, healthy, succulent, food that you can enjoy so much more, and with these healthy family meals, hopefully kids and parents will understand all the importance they have to offer on so many different levels.

This is why you should try to achieve at least 3 family dinners weekly where everyone in the family can sit, and share, and learn healthy eating with great food. And maybe, just maybe, you will then, like our friend Martha, pull off raising a healthy, happy, and connected family that loves and helps each other through all the hard times, and helps celebrate the good.