Laurie David

It’s an all-too common scenario today. Due to a nonstop stream of scheduling conflicts, distractions from the TV, computer, Blackberry and other devices, the regular family dinner has become the exception rather than the norm. Do any of the following scenarios sound familiar? Dinners eaten standing up in front of the microwave… in the car on the way to or from an activity…several different meals prepared to accommodate the likes and dislikes of different family members…everyone else done with their meal before you’ve even sat down to eat yours?

Laurie David, activist, and author of The Family Dinner, would like to change all of that and have families sit down together again. Research has proven that everything parents worry about—from drugs and alcohol, promiscuity, obesity, academic achievement and just good old nutrition-can all be improved by the simple act of eating and talking together around the table.

Laurie speaks from her own experience confronting the challenges of raising two teenage daughters. By starting to do family dinners and making them a priority, she saw a shift in attitude (from her kids and herself). Dinner was no longer a chore to get through—it became a daily gift of quality time with her girls to look forward to. As her daughters got older, she saw how the dinners kept her family connected, through good times and challenging ones as well.

With her realistic, practical, fun and creative advice, Laurie shows audiences how the dinner table can be a place for lively conversation, a secure place where family members can express feelings, a place to practice how to listen, debate and discuss. It is where kids can develop healthy eating habits, an appreciative palate, green values and become truly engaged.

It isn’t about adding more “shoulds” to your life or feeling guilty about what you have or haven’t done. It doesn’t even require hours of preparation or an apple pie in the oven. It doesn’t even have to happen at night. It’s about recapturing the superbly simple practice of sitting down and eating together…as a family.