April 21, 2014 by Kimberly FiveLittleChefs


This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Barilla, but opinions are my own.

Today we are getting real. A lot of times we do not want others to see what goes on behind our closed doors. But, today we are sharing with you what our table looks like at meal time.

  • Sometimes we have happy faces.
  • Sometimes we have angry faces.
  • Sometimes we have sad faces.
  • Sometimes we laugh.
  • Sometimes we fight.
  • Sometimes someone doesn’t want to be talked to.
  • Sometimes someone doesn’t want to be looked at.
  • Sometimes someone wants to be ignored.
  • Sometimes someone just wants silence.
  • Sometimes someone want to scream.
  • Sometimes someone purposely annoys another.

Do any of these ring true to you? I am confident that I am not the only one who sits at the table with these experiences. Right? Leave a comment if you have experienced one of these…just to make me feel better!

Dinner time in our house means everything stops and everyone comes to eat.  My kids come to the table happy to be fed and excited about what is for dinner that night. We calm down for a prayer and then the moment we say amen that is when it starts to get a little dicey.

Food isn’t being passed fast enough. Some don’t want to wait for their turn for a certain item of food. Sometimes we hear a lot of “please” and “thank you’s” but other times we do not. Perhaps it is because they are hungry. Perhaps it is because of the day they have had. For whatever the reason our dinner table conversation or manners are not perfect.

But, does it really need to be perfect? We might enjoy dinner better if we all kept our mouths closed and we kept our hands, legs and other objects to ourselves. But would that be a little boring? Would that be impersonal?  The truth is no matter how much we fight, argue, laugh and tease we do it because we love and enjoy each other. How else would you know which button really gets a brother or sister going? No matter how crazy meal time is deep down it is enjoyed by all.

We have moments of encouragement and moments of supporting each other. Often we share one thing that was good and one thing that was bad during the day. We praise each other for the good. We discuss the bad. It is fun to watch my girls offer guidance to one another about how to solve their bad. If there isn’t a way to solve it then we discuss what could be done a similar future situation. This is a time when they really listen to each other. Occasionally, when one of my girls miss dinner they are genuinely sad. They know they missed something special.

Once a month we get together at my parents house for dinner with all my siblings and their kids. This is something my kids look forward to. We let the kids sit at their own table which allows them more interaction with each other to create those connections and bonds. No matter what your family looks like we all seem to have a common need for shared mealtime. We all want to have a greater connection with each family member. We all need to eat. That must be why we say food is love. No matter how different we are from each other we all share a need for food.

As parents we can say whatever we want to our kids while they are shoving food in their mouths. At the same time we are showing our kids we love them by providing them with a meal.  Does it matter if it is an elaborate meal, a simple meal, or take out? Not at all. What matters is being together. Sitting together for a few minutes can bring positive change to families. Parents and children enjoy the emotional benefits of sharing a meal together.

One constant thing my kids can count on each day is that we will all sit down together as a family at dinner time. For just those few moments no matter how crazy it might become that is the time we connect with each other and feel loved by each other. Did you know that seventy-six percent of people agree? They say dinner is the most important way to connect with their families. Unfortunately one in four still feel disconnected to those living with them.

So what can we do? Barilla wants to inspire, to empower, and to support all families to share more meaningful meals together. They believe sharing the table is a vital part in developing meaningful relationships and building healthy, and strong families.

Feeding America is the nation’s largest organization dedicated to fighting domestic hunger through a network of food banks, and Barilla supports that goal. Please share what happens when you connect with your family using #ShareTheTable. We can get a glimpse into what goes on behind each others closed doors. If that doesn’t make you excited how about this….for every post using #ShareTheTable, Barilla will provide the monetary equivalent of ten meals to Feeding America, up to one million meals! Help us reach that goal before 4/30/14.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Barilla. For every post using #ShareTheTable from now until 4/30/14, Barilla will donate a monetary equivalent of ten meals ($1.11) to Feeding America®, up to 1 million meals. Barilla will donate a maximum of $110,000.  One dollar helps provide 9 meals secured by Feeding America® on behalf of local member food banks.