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Summer is still in full swing. And if you're from the Carolinas, you know the heat down South is nothing to play with. One of the measures I've been taking to keep the house cool is taking a break a from turning on my stove. I may not be cooking as often these days, thanks to Wildscape, family dinners have been going strong still. Eating dinner as a family is the one thing, I refuse to give up. While there are tons of scientific and medical studies about how beneficial family dinners can be for children, I'm sharing 3 of my own personal reasons why family meals are so important for my family.
3 Reasons To Eat Dinner With Your Family
It's not what's on the table that matters, it's who's in the chairs.
So it definitely matters what's on my table because I have picky eaters, but it definitely matters that we all eat together. When I became a mom, I made a promise to myself (and my children) that we would always eat dinner as family no matter where we are. And I can say without doubt that I've done a great job of keeping this commitment. I can count on one hand the number of times my kids and I haven't been able to eat dinner together so far and I'm hoping to keep it that way.
While I always had dinner with my siblings growing up, it wasn't until I reached junior high that my mom's work schedule allowed her to consistently be home in time for dinner. Breaking bread as a complete family definitely mattered. It always felt incomplete those nights she wasn't there. And I know that it matters to my kids that I'm sitting with them at the dinner table every night.
Some of the most important conversations I've ever had occurred at my family's dinner table. -Bob Ehrlich
The first time Moo told me she hated public school was during family dinner. We had just finished saying grace and I had asked her to tell me about her day at school. I knew kindergarten had been rough, but she'd absolutely loved her first grade teacher and I thought she was adjusting well to second grade. That summer we moved and it was during family dinner again that I told her she could homeschool with her brother.
Family dinners have a way of putting us at ease and giving us the courage to be vulnerable. Shoot thinking back on my own life, I can count numerous times when I had serious and important conversations with my mom and siblings while sharing a meal together. There's just a comforting intimacy when it comes over us that comes with sharing food as a family.
This much I know. If you are what you eat, then I only wanna eat the good stuff. ~Ratatouille, the movie
Somewhere between going off to college and before having kids, my diet and eating habits were crappy at best. Having kids, especially kids with food allergies, forced me to really take a hard look at what I was not only putting in my body but on our dinner table overall. I quickly found out that all frozen and prepared meals weren't made equally and it wasn't long before I was cooking breakfast, lunch, and dinner from scratch 365.
Thankfully, frozen meals have come a long way and we now have brands like Wildscape who understand the importance of frozen meal options made with natural ingredients that I can actually identify and name. They have 6 different recipe options to suit different dietary needs.
- Gochujang Cauliflower: Gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegetarian. Does contain soy and cashews. (P.S.-This one is my favorite! It's spicy but not overwhelming.)
- Peri Peri Portobellos: Dairy-free and vegetarian. Contains coconut flakes
- Seared Steak: Gluten-free, nut-free, and dairy-free. Does contain soy. (This is the kids' favorite.)
- Togarashi Beef: Dairy-free and nut-free. Does contain soy. (I can't wait until my store gets this one.)
- Cilantro Lime Chicken: Gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free, and dairy-free. (This is delicious by itself, but it's even better when poured over some tortilla chips.)
- Chimichurri Chicken: Dairy-free. Contains almond butter. (Waiting for my store to get this one too.)
The best part of these meals, besides the natural beef and antibiotic-free chicken, is that each meal takes under 6 minutes to cook in the microwave. And Wildscape has layered each meal in a special way to make sure everything maintains its proper texture and you don't end up with chewy meat or mushy veggies. Did I mention how I love that the bowls are resealable as well as recyclable?
This is perfect since we've been doing a lot of eating outdoors and have been working on reducing our waste even more.
Wildscape Meals are available at Publix, Harris Teeter, H-E-B, and AmazonFresh. Click here to find a store near you so that you can pick some up for your next family dinner. Be sure to follow Wildscape on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date on new product releases, sales, and more.
Do you do family dinners at your house?
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