Home for Dinner: Mixing Food, Fun, and Conversation for a Happier Family and Healthier Kids

Has your family dinner table become a landing spot for junk mail, homework, and bills? Is scheduled dinnertime in your home 6:00 for mom, 7:00 or later for dad, and . . . are the kids even home tonight or do they have another activity to get to? Because with sports, activities, long hours, and commutes, family dinners seem to have gone the way of the dinosaur . . . And it’s time to bring them back--before it’s too late!Studies have tied shared family meals to increased resiliency and self-esteem in children, higher academic achievement, a healthier relationship to food, and even reduced risk of substance abuse and eating disorders. Written by a Harvard Medical School professor and mother, Home for Dinner makes a passionate and informed plea to put mealtime back at the center of family life and supplies compelling evidence and realistic tips for getting even the busiest of families back to the table.Parents looking to make family dinnertime more than just a fantasy will find inside this invaluable, life-saving resource highly relatable stories, new research, recipes, and friendly advice to help them:• Whip up quick, healthy, and tasty dinners• Get kids to lend a hand (without any grief!)• Adapt meals to the needs of everyone--from toddlers to teens• Inspire picky eaters to explore new foods• Keep dinnertime conversation stimulating• Reduce tension at the table• And moreBoth parents and kids need a family mealtime environment that allows them to unwind and reconnect from the pressures of school and work. More than just offering them nutrition and energy for another intense day of jet-setting about, the incalculable family therapy provided for all will far surpass the small sacrifices it took to gather around the table for a short time. Review "In this wonderful new book, Home for Dinner, Anne Fishel, PhD makes a compelling case for us to reconsider our priorities and put mealtime back at the center of our family life....Her book includes recipes for quick, healthy, tasty meals as well as advice on inspiring picky eaters to explore new foods." Work and Family Life"I recommend this book to mothers and fathers or grandparents who are looking for ways to make a stronger connection amongst the family. It's also a good book for those adults who did not have family dinners with their families as kids or teenagers. These adults may not believe in the power of the family dinner, and this book will help put them on a journey of discovery." Seattle Post-Intelligencer"... shares accounts of healing, bonding, and communication when families gather together over a meal...author goes beyond and demonstrates solid tools and encouragement for implementation. Recommended with gusto." Library Journal Book Description Sports, activities, long hours, and commutes-with so much to do, dinner has been bumped to the back burner. But research shows that family dinners offer more than just nutrition. Studies have tied shared meals to increased resiliency and self-esteem in children, higher academic achievement, a healthier relationship to food, and even reduced risk of substance abuse and eating disorders. Written by a Harvard Medical School professor and mother, Home for Dinner makes a passionate and informed plea to put mealtime back at the center of family life and supplies compelling evidence and realistic tips for getting even the busiest of families back to the table. Chock full of stories, new research, recipes, and friendly advice, the book explains how to: Whip up quick, healthy, and tasty dinners • Get kids to lend a hand (without any grief) • Adapt meals to the needs of everyone-from toddlers to teens • Inspire picky eaters to explore new foods • Keep dinnertime conversation stimulating • Add an element of fun • Reduce tension at the table • Explore other cultures and spark curiosity about the world • And more Mealtime is a place to unwind and reconnect, far from the press