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OUR TOP 10 IDEAS FOR MAKING EATING TOGETHER MORE FUN.

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We get that getting your kids to the table and keeping them there can be a pretty tricky task, so here are our top 10 ideas for making eating together a whole lot of fun:

1. Decorate the table. Eating is way nicer if the table looks good. We have given you fun placemats to design and colour. You can have a stash ready for each meal or laminate a few if you are feeling fancy so they can use the same ones over and over.

2. Play a game while eating. Super simple ‘Guess Who’ can be a fun one. Pick a category … you can keep it food related if

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you like and they can choose to be a type of food. You have to ask questions until you guess correctly who or what they are.

3. Have fun. Presenting the kids food in a shape or design or on different plates or boards keeps them guessing and entertained. Lettuce leaves make great rabbit ears and a tomato makes a fun nose. You can make nearly every meal into a random picture if you fancy getting creative 😊. Gold plastic plates instantly turn a meal into a banquet.

4. Grasp the opportunity. Sit down and eat with them. Even if it is just a

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mini tea ahead of a bigger meal later. Talk and engage with your children. If you stay at the table, they are much more likely to and you might just learn something lovely about their day.

5. Eat like the French. Serve the dinner in little ‘courses’ rather than an overwhelming plateful. You can give them the exact same meal but split into 3 little dishes … carrot sticks to start, a little ‘main’ followed by a little dessert.

6. Dress for dinner. Maybe not every night (!) but perhaps for Sunday lunch or a special meal. Make it into a big

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deal that you want them to look fabulous while dining with you!

7. Cook together. We have given you a video workshop and a recipe sheet for a fun and simple 3 course feast to cook together. You can also look the part with the chef hat making. If they have made the food they will be curious to try it. Encourage your children’s interest in food and get them helping you prepare meals. This is definitely a long-term win if they start cooking your tea in a few years!

8. Switch it up. We all find it hard to sit still. So switch seats between courses.

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Everyone gets to legitimately get down for a moment or two and then they get a new chair. Simple and effective.

9. Make some fun drinks too. A great healthy but vibrant one is making watermelon juice. You literally blend a watermelon (without the skin!!) and it makes beautiful pink juice which tastes amazing.

10. Have your children be the waiter. They can serve every course and the next one can’t come out until each course has been eaten – they will be much more eager to finish!

 

Essentially you want the table to be a positive

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place for your family where good things happen. Have a go and just remember on the trickier days, you are aiming for long-term benefits. On the days when only a sofa meal will do, that is ok too. You are doing great.

Linda x

The Positive Family Academy.

SelfishMother.com

By

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- 26 Sep 19

We get that getting your kids to the table and keeping them there can be a pretty tricky task, so here are our top 10 ideas for making eating together a whole lot of fun:

1. Decorate the table. Eating is way nicer if the table looks good. We have given you fun placemats to design and colour. You can have a stash ready for each meal or laminate a few if you are feeling fancy so they can use the same ones over and over.

2. Play a game while eating. Super simple ‘Guess Who’ can be a fun one. Pick a category … you can keep it food related if you like and they can choose to be a type of food. You have to ask questions until you guess correctly who or what they are.

3. Have fun. Presenting the kids food in a shape or design or on different plates or boards keeps them guessing and entertained. Lettuce leaves make great rabbit ears and a tomato makes a fun nose. You can make nearly every meal into a random picture if you fancy getting creative 😊. Gold plastic plates instantly turn a meal into a banquet.

4. Grasp the opportunity. Sit down and eat with them. Even if it is just a mini tea ahead of a bigger meal later. Talk and engage with your children. If you stay at the table, they are much more likely to and you might just learn something lovely about their day.

5. Eat like the French. Serve the dinner in little ‘courses’ rather than an overwhelming plateful. You can give them the exact same meal but split into 3 little dishes … carrot sticks to start, a little ‘main’ followed by a little dessert.

6. Dress for dinner. Maybe not every night (!) but perhaps for Sunday lunch or a special meal. Make it into a big deal that you want them to look fabulous while dining with you!

7. Cook together. We have given you a video workshop and a recipe sheet for a fun and simple 3 course feast to cook together. You can also look the part with the chef hat making. If they have made the food they will be curious to try it. Encourage your children’s interest in food and get them helping you prepare meals. This is definitely a long-term win if they start cooking your tea in a few years!

8. Switch it up. We all find it hard to sit still. So switch seats between courses. Everyone gets to legitimately get down for a moment or two and then they get a new chair. Simple and effective.

9. Make some fun drinks too. A great healthy but vibrant one is making watermelon juice. You literally blend a watermelon (without the skin!!) and it makes beautiful pink juice which tastes amazing.

10. Have your children be the waiter. They can serve every course and the next one can’t come out until each course has been eaten – they will be much more eager to finish!

 

Essentially you want the table to be a positive place for your family where good things happen. Have a go and just remember on the trickier days, you are aiming for long-term benefits. On the days when only a sofa meal will do, that is ok too. You are doing great.

Linda x

The Positive Family Academy.

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Mum to 3. Wife to 1. Founder and creator of The Positive Family Academy. Inspiring families to reclaim quality family time and have a whole lot of fun in the process.

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