Posts Tagged ‘family dinner’

Family Dinner: The Screenplay

Wednesday, August 31st, 2011

FADE IN:

EXT. BACK PATIO – EARLY EVENING

A late-summer evening in a typical suburban backyard. A family of four is gathered around the dinner table. MOM is serving salad on each plate. DAD has just finished filling water glasses. KID 1, age 7,  is fiddling with his vegetables while KID 2, age 4,  has pulled too many napkins out of the napkin holder and is trying to replace them. The yard has some toys scattered around, but you get the sense that the commotion of the day has subsided, albeit briefly.

KID 1

When you grow up, can you do karate as, like, your job?

MOM

Wait – didn’t I put the parmesan cheese out on the table?

DAD

I just saw it here, somewhere. (Lifts up pile of napkins) Hiding right here.

(Everyone settles in and begins eating)

KID 1

I mean, would someone pay you to just do karate?

MOM

Well, you could be a karate teacher, right?

KID 1

I don’t know if I want to teach it. I just want to do it all the time.

DAD

Lots of grownups take karate before or after work, or with their kids, or join karate clubs…

KID 2

Did you know that Saturn is a planet? It has rings. And Earth is a planet too.

MOM

That’s right – we just read that in the space book last night. I think when we go camping we should look for stars and planets and maybe meteor showers.

KID 1

When are we going camping?

DAD

Not this weekend but the weekend after that. Let’s remember to look at the star charts before we leave so we’ll know what to look for.

(Forks clank on plates, eating continues)

MOM

So, did anyone laugh really hard at something today?

KID 1

I wasn’t laughing at first, but there was a kid at lunch who was laughing and milk came out of his nose. That made ME start laughing really hard.

KID 2

Milk came through his nose!?!?!

MOM

One time when I was a kid, my brother started laughing at dinner and by accident he spilled his grape juice all over his plate of spaghetti. Grandma was SO mad.

KID 1

Did he get in trouble?

MOM

I don’t remember – I just remember a big mess. And I remember that I had to walk away because I was trying not to laugh too.

KID 2

I was laughing today because there was a boy who was trying to put a pair of shorts on his head.

DAD

Shorts on his head? Doesn’t he know that you’re supposed to wear shorts on your ears? (winks at KID 2).

MOM

OK, so who had a good day today? Raise your hand.

(Four hands shoot up into the air)

FADE OUT

****

Folks, family dinner doesn’t have to be pretty or fancy or serious, or even Oscar-worthy. It’s just about sitting down together to eat. And you can talk about spilling grape juice in spaghetti, or wearing shorts on your ears. Just talk.

Want to read more? See the Blog for Family Dinner.

Posted Under: Just For Fun, Parenting | Tags:
This post was written by jollytomato on August 31st, 2011

Family Dinner: The Survey

Tuesday, April 5th, 2011

Do you eat dinner as a family? If not, what are the challenges you face in getting everyone together at the table? Our friend Grace Freedman over at EatDinner.org (Research, Education, and Resources on the Benefits on Eating Dinner With Your Family) wants to know, and you can help her with her research by taking the Family Dinner survey. The short survey is completely confidential and the results will be aggregated to show trends (not any one person’s experience). If you take the survey, you can add your experience to the mix, which can in turn help family-dinner advocates map out strategies for helping more families. We say – go for it!

(Photo credit: Morguefile)

Posted Under: Parenting | Tags: ,
This post was written by jollytomato on April 5th, 2011

Friday Food News Wrap: April 1

Friday, April 1st, 2011

There’s some news this week that we’d like to think is just an April Fool’s prank, but sadly, it’s not. At the top of the list is the vote by an FDA advisory panel that there is no proof that artificial food colorings cause hyperactivity in children, so there’s no need for special warning labels (via the New York Times). The vote comes after the FDA conceded for the first time that the dyes may cause problems for children with existing behavior issues. The ruling is a disappointment, but remember that parents can still exercise their clout at the supermarket by refusing to buy foods with artificial colors.

Ronald McDonald Lives: Next, you may have heard speculation that McDonald’s was retiring spokesclown Ronald McDonald. But no – guess again! He’s back and clown-ier than ever in a new series of ad campaigns urging kids to go online to share pics and videos (via USA Today). Sigh.

Banana Wrap: In one of the most wasteful food packaging efforts we’ve ever seen (and no, this is really not an April Fool’s prank) Fresh Del Monte is now selling single bananas wrapped in plastic packaging (via Shine Yahoo!). So the peel isn’t enough?

Feed Hungry Kids?: Hartford Courant columnist Susan Campbell got an email asking why we continue to “blindly fund” school lunch programs that have “morphed” into school breakfasts and even dinners. Campbell gives a passionate defense of these programs, arguing that the cost to society of kids going hungry is “incalculable.” A good read.

Family Dinner: What’s a simple way to get at the problem of childhood obesity? The Family Dinner’s Laurie David and Eat Dinner’s Grace Freedman write in the Huffington Post about the power of the family dinner: “The ritual of eating meals together as a family, be it one parent at the table or both, has been shown to greatly improve healthy eating habits.”

Tonight at the Jolly Tomato household, we’re going to follow this advice. We’ll gather our family around the table and eat these meatloaf cupcakes together in honor of April Fool’s Day. Then, just because we’re feeling a little crazy on this sunny Friday, maybe we’ll follow it up with grilled cheese sandwich cakes for dessert.

Happy Friday to all!

Posted Under: Childhood Obesity, Government Regulations, Nutrition | Tags: , , , , , , , ,
This post was written by jollytomato on April 1st, 2011
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