new

With this being the start of the new school year, we decided to start a new routine at our house. It has always been a goal of ours to eat as a family together and we have eaten together as a family as much as we could over the past few years, although that often took many different forms. Sometimes it is me standing at the counter while the kids sit on bar stools and eat; sometimes it is kids eating dessert while David heats up his cold food after getting home late. Every once in a while we would all make it over to the breakfast room table.

We decided this year we are going to eat at least 3 dinners a week in the dining room! Yes, the special room that has been only used for Holiday or parties at our house over the past 3 years since we have lived there. I mentioned this to the kids last night and they got so excited! Even the complaining about having to wait until 6:30 to eat (when David usually gets home) was minimal. The girls got very involved in setting the table, and no one once asked to turn on the T.V. last night. David and I are hoping it will be a good opportunity to practice manners and actually remaining seated for the entire meal (a challenge for all of our kids!), catch up on our days, and enjoy special family time. Life gets busier and busier each year and we want to make the most of the time we have together as a family. We are really excited about our new routine! I am hoping the 3 nights will turn into even more, but wanted to have an attainable goal to shoot for in the beginning, so that is where we are starting...