Let's Talk Seriously about Family Mealtime

First of all, "Hi", Thanks for taking the time to read this, really - Thank You.

This is me...   Hi, I'm Kerry.  I blog here at Snappily Ever After.

I am married to Joseph, who is the most patient man alive and I adore him. 

We have a gaggle of children - and they came in all shapes, ages and sizes. 

We've even added another one since this picture was taken. We are our own little army. 

A few years ago, I was the subject of an article that talked about why I write here at this blog. It has a little bit of my story and a lot about my desires to feed my family better. 

Here's the Link to the story if you want to read it. 

Now that we are all caught up, or introduced, I want to talk to you about Family Mealtime. September is Family Mealtime Month, and I really want to use my voice here to spread the word about how important and amazing the simple act of having dinner with your family can be. 

This is my Family Mealtime Manifesto! 

And here is a shorter version that has some Very Important Reasons why you should eat as a family. 

Having dinner together as a family, as little as three nights a week, can be the single biggest act that you can do to have a positive impact on your children. It will change ever aspect of their lives for the positive. Those is a shocking phrase to say, but it is 100% true. 

They'll do better in school, they'll be more well-rounded socially, teens engage in less risky "social behavior" (drinking, smoking, sex!) Everyone eats healthier and so your entire family lowers their risk for heart disease, diabetes type 1 and 2, obesity, cancers and any other chronic illness that has been associated with poor nutrition.

There is not one way the lives of the people that you love most will not be better if you have family mealtime together as often as you can. 

I know that it is hard - believe me, I do. And I still struggle to do it. But I have learned a little bit along the way here. 

Here are a few "secrets" to get your started. 

And Here is a blog post that I wrote when I was having a really hard time getting it done, but I really wanted to - you can read this when you are struggling. 

And the biggest thing that we have overcome so far, in our mealtime togetherness - Making it a Positive Experience. and not "torture around the table" 

But you can do this, I can do this - but you (me) have to Commit to It.  

There is no way that something this important can be left to chance.  2 or 3 of you might end up at the table at the same time, but that isn't the same.  You don't have to do it every night, but the benefits start to happen at 3 nights a week.  If you can't make nights, have 3 breakfasts together. It just has to be MealTime.  And it just has to be with the people that you love.