Planning Family Dinners   When my husband and I first got married 12 years ago, we were already committed to having family meals together. In our younger and freer days before having kids, we used to walk to dinner at 10 pm many week nights. Those spontaneous days are behind us now that we have two young daughters, but we are more committed to family meals than ever. The logistics are infinitely more complicated now though. That’s why when it’s 4:30 on a weekday, the last thing I want to be asking myself is “what’s for dinner?”   It’s time to stop the weekday afternoon panic by getting organized and planning in advance. I’m going to share my menu planning strategies with you so that you too can get organized with a family-friendly dinner menu plan that will support you in having family meals.   Family Meal Motivation Before I delve into how to become an expert menu planner, I want to make sure you’re sufficiently motivated to actually sit down with your family to eat! We all have our own personal barriers that prevent us from regularly getting a good family meal on the table. My barriers are disorganization and not having a lot of time. Other people’s barriers could be a lack of confidence in the kitchen, a near-empty pantry or fridge, a family of picky eaters, a busy family schedule, or even not being in the habit of eating together. However, the benefits of everyone sitting down to a meal together, especially a homemade meal, are enormous. Keep in mind that although dinner is the focus of this newsletter, any meal can be a family meal—breakfast may be easier than dinner for many families, and if you can make both breakfast and dinner family meals, that’s even better! Research shows that children who eat meals with their families perform better in school, eat a better diet, have better mental health and verbal development, and are at lower risk for obesity, substance abuse, and other risky behaviors. Family meals help children learn to like new foods by exposing them to variety and adult role models who hopefully eat and enjoy an array of foods. Adults who eat with other people tend to have better mental and physical health, stronger social connections, and have a lower risk of high blood pressure and obesity. I hope that’s sufficient motivation for you to start making family dinners a priority.   You need to know that family meals are a commitment. Eventually they become second nature, but in the meantime, there are plenty of ways to get derailed. I hear from many people who get so bogged down with nutritional rules that they become paralyzed when it’s time to actually plan a meal because they are afraid that something won’t be healthy or that their child will eat too much or not enough. Sometimes, kids behave badly at meals, or even refuse to eat something you’ve worked hard to make. Yes, all of these things can be discouraging, but don’t give up on your commitment! Approach this with a positive attitude and resolve to enjoy your work--including the planning, shopping, cooking, and eating parts. This is important parenting because you’re facilitating structured family time that will provide exposure to new foods, social support, sharing, connection, and opportunities to model positive eating habits for your family.   If you’re child’s behavior or eating habits are preventing you from even wanting to have family meals or are making your mealtimes together unpleasant, here is a life-changing strategy called the Division of Responsibility from the feeding expert Ellyn Satter: It is up to the parent or caregiver to decide what, when, and where kids eat and it is up to the child to decide whether and how much to eat. Everyone has a job to do with feeding and eating. Do yours respectfully and trust your child to do theirs in order to bring the joy back to mealtimes. To lear