Home Improvements

Do you remember the tv series "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition"? My family and I loved watching that show! We watched the before pictures, heard the stories, and then watched in amazement at the transformations.

Although we can't promise you Ty yelling in a bull horn and making your dreams come true, we can give you some promising statistics that will bring improvements into your home. The kind of improvements money can't buy and you can't put a price on.

Some of you may already be doing this, some of you may have gotten away from doing it and some of you may want to make it more meaningful. One proven way to help keep your children off of drugs, give them a sense of stability, and a greater connection to you and each other is through having dinner together. Not a drive-thru on the run kind of meal. But a sit down at the table dinner.

Where do you start and is it too late? As long as someone still lives in the house it's never too late to start. Dinner can (and probably should) be the most important meal of the day. It's the "capping off" of the day and getting ready to rest or wind down meal. 

First, set the dinner "rules" or dinner standard. The standard in our house is that dinner means no electronics (adults included). If nobody can live without their phones (or tv) for 30 minutes then there is a bigger problem - seek out a Dr. Phil! 

We don't discuss discipline issues, broken rules, or engage in arguments. The dinner table is a safe place. We do talk about family values (respect, honor, fun, forgiveness, generosity...). We have our Grateful Journal where we write what we are grateful for that day. We will even pick a family member and tell one thing we really like or appreciate about them. The world tells us (and sometimes screams at us!) how inadequate we are, we want to build each other up. 

Other meal time discussions can include talks about being safe and what's healthy. Ask your kids scenario and thought provoking questions. "What would you do if you were asked to take a candy bar from the store without paying for it?" We also tell our kids stories from when we were kids, what we were going through, and what we did for fun.

Weather permitting we take dinner outside or we have a "picnic" on the living room floor. As for what's on the menu, it doesn't have to be complicated or elaborate. Last night we had breakfast for dinner. Tonight my husband requested salad. Tomorrow on this blog we will give you some easy meal ideas for the week.

Remember the best home improvements don't involve a contractor or a demo day. They involve regular maintenance of the most important meal of the day - dinner with your family.

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