Din-ner!

So much of our life from the time we are little is centered around the kitchen. It's the heart of the home. You know how it is at a party...where does everyone end up?  Yep you got it. In the spirit of K.I.S.S. I wanted to focus on this all important room and the activities in it.

DESIGN
I love our kitchen. Tom took two years to come up with the perfect design to meet our wants and needs. Together we picked finishes to match our personality. Most important...we kept it simple.
It's not a huge gourmet kitchen but it is perfect for us. We only have two overhead cabinets because I'm a shorty. We keep all our plates and bowls in lower cabinets. We have a wide countertop perfect for sitting with coffee, doing homework, or socializing as I cook. The penisula makes a perfect serving area. Our garbage is next to the sink, which is next to the dish washer, which is next to the plate/bowl drawers and glass cabinet.Tom insisted on the hot water dispenser and pot filler which I now admit I love.  We have a roomy space in the middle which occassionally becomes an impromptu dance floor.  The kitchen is the center of our home where we turn on the coffee every morning and sit for family dinner every night. It makes us happy.
DESIGN TIPS:

-design for your needs and habits now and for the future. This means picking a fridge that can take large platters for all that entertaining you do, or having a big microwave for all those frozen dinners. For us having a large open storage pantry has been key. It means we don't over or under buy supplies and takes away the need for an overabundance of kitchen cabinets.

FAMILY TIME

Our little family of four is pretty blessed in that we genuinely enjoy each other's company. Also our children are polite, respectful, and know how to carry a conversation.  How do you do it? We've been asked.  Simple!....its called dinner. It is the one meal a day that we share. This time is sacred to us. We do our best to plan activities so as to not interfere with this time. It doesn't always work that way but when I compare it to other families we know, we're doing pretty good.  You can find the statistcs out their about families that regularly share dinner have less incidents of drug/alcohol abuse, have children with higher esteem, and have healthier eating habits.  But forget the numbers. Keep it Simple right? So I'll tell you what it means for us.

Its also a time of family cooperation. The kids set the table and get the drinks. I cook dinner and Tom cleans up. Like a well oiled machine.
Its family meeting time. The kids catch us up on their day, they gripe about so and so  who did what and how life can be unfair. They celebrate an achievement they or someone else made. They plan for the future. As parents we listen and give feedback. It's also a time for us to use the kids as a sounding board. We bring them up to date with the events of the family and the world around us. We discuss issues like "where do you want to go on vacation" or the controversal (at least in our house) bedtime. In other words...WE HAVE A CONVERSATION! Simple, right?  I know, for many that is not the case. It's just that we have made dinner a priority. Once that is done, everything else falls into place. As the kids get older this will be more difficult but I'll hold on to it as long as I can. The groundwork is done. Even if we get one or two nights a week together in the future I'll take it.

FOOD
I am admittably not the best cook but I'm working on it. KISS is definitely strong in this area.
First off, we go by the "if you don't like it, you don't eat". I refuse to make multiple meals. The only exception is that I recently went vegetarian and the rest of the family didn't. I simply substitute the meat portion of the meal with something vegetable based. Our menu has always included vegetables so its not that difficult.
Second, and this was hard to accept, a meal does NOT have to consist of a protein, a vegetable, and a starch. (I think I just heard my mom gasp.) I grew up that unless it was spaghetti and meatballs (no one called it 'pasta' back then) you had to have three things on that plate AND you have to eat that plate clean.  I do make sure to have vegetables with every meal but now I'm not burdened with having to make potatoes, rice, or noodles every night too. We are also FORMER members of the clean your plate club.
Next, try your best to make just what you need. Plate up at the counter and leave extra portions on the stove or counter. If someone wants more he or she has to make the effort to get up and get it. Makes for thoughtful eating.
Finally, have a leftover night. We typically have small portions of meat or vegetables left over. On my more tired nights, I turn these into quesadillas.  I have learned that tortillas are the single greatest food invention ever.

So I know this blog is a bit longer but I think you can see I'm a passionate on this subject. The next one will be posted shortly and will be all about the holidays. Kisses!