Where Families Connect

In 2005 a study by National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University confirmed a link between family dinnertime and better grades for teens.  As parents fret about working in dinner time as their children get older, Sharefam thinks this study may prove that the time spent eating together may result in a better return on investment of time for college admission than all the extracurricular activities.

According to the study, teens are 40% more likely to get A’s and B’s (basically a prerequisite for college admission) when they sit down for dinner at least 5 times a week.  Our assertion that the return could be better than other extracurricular also weighs in the differences in alcohol and drug use.  Two key issues to both better grades and better behavior.

“At a time when kids are under a lot of stress for a lot of different reasons, having that regular mealtime that they can count on, that their parents are there for support — that can be very helpful,” said David Elkind, a professor of child development at Tufts University in Massachusetts.

For more information on the study, check out The 5 Benefits to Eating Together - Six Wise.com or Family Dinner Linked to Better Grades for Teens.

Whether you are starting a new tradition of having family dinner at the dinner table or your family has been doing that for a while now, you might be looking for ways to liven it up a little and initiate some new conversations.  We came across an interesting post on the blog Gomestic by Kristie Leong on fun family dinner games that would be great to create an enjoyable and relaxing atmosphere at the table.

To me, the most intriguing game was “Who would you invite to dinner?” because you pick people from history that you think would be interesting at your dinner table.  I would enjoy this game because I would learn about history at the same time as I was learning new fun tidbits about my family members.

In addition to the game ideas, Leong made some noteworthy remarks on the importance of connecting with your family.  One point being that eating together at the dinner table is one of the best times to have quality family time. It helps open the line of communication and create stronger bonds between one another. 

If you play any dinner time games, please share!

Spending quality time is important for communication and creating good relationships with your family.  It’s hard to find the time, so take advantage of your dinner time and make it a regular routine to eat together.

Family Guide mentions many benefits of regular family meals: 

• Keeps the doors of communication open
• More likely that meals will be healthier and more balanced
• Teens who do not have frequent family dinners are three-and-a-half times more likely to abuse drugs
• Girls who have five or more meals with the family are one-third less likely to develop unhealthy eating 

Family Guide also included topic ideas for discussions at the table. These included what the challenges of the day were or letting the kids plan the next family meal.  In my family, everyone used to talk about one thing they learned that day.

The next time you are planning your week, consider trying to find the best night for you and the rest of the family to sit down together for dinner. You could find that this ends up benefiting the whole family more than you think. 

To assist our families in connecting, we want to tell you about a wonderful product calledThe Chatterbox. 

“The Chatterbox helps families enjoy great conversations and play fun games all while learning important life skills that are not traditionally taught in school or at home in any planned or organized fashion.”

To checkout The Chatterbox, click here.

This week we will be exploring How Families Connect around the Dinner Table.  As many of you know, the Dinner Table is the focal point for Sharefam.com, because we want to promote the type of family interactions that happen around the dinner table.  As you will see this week, there are many reasons to have Family Dinner Time – improve communication, manage behavioral and emotional issues, and simply add stability to a child’s life.

What stories do you have to tell about Family Dinnertime?  Do you have any traditions that could help other readers build a great atmosphere around dinnertime?

Take a chance to share your personal story below by adding a comment.

It’s finally Halloween and Sharefam.com wants to remind everyone to be extra safe tonight and keep a watch out for children in the roads. 

One of my favorite things to do on Halloween is check out the local pumpkin carving skills in the neighborhood. People really get creative with their pumpkins and take great pride in showcasing their talent. So I’ve put together a list of some very neat looking pumpkins I found around the web! Hope you enjoy them and have a Happy Halloween! 

And I must give credit where credit is do… I found these on Home-designing.com

Spider man!

Cheese!

Wicked Witch! By: Honey Moon Phase

Cheshire Cat! From: The Fun Times Guide 

Also from The Good Times Guide

Parent Hacks has done it again…they have created another great “Best of” list, but this time it’s for Halloween!

This is definitely worth check out, the list explains everything from how to prolong the life of you pumpkin, to the best Halloween books for kids, to what to do with your leftover candy.

Still trying to figure out what to dress your kids up as for Halloween?

Go vintage - check out this collection of old photos from Wired.com of children and adults in their Halloween costumes. Yes the picture quality may make it seem a little creepy, but it just goes to show how popular this holiday has been throughout America’s history.

Carmel covered candy apples are one of those treats that go hand-in-hand with Halloween. They are as beautiful as they are delicious… and messy to eat.

They are also a really fun activity to do with your kids. Check out this recipe and some of the beautiful candy apples I found on Your Homebased Mom.

According to MadTomato nearly 1.2 million U.S. computer users suffered almost $929 million in losses caused by phishing, and another 3.6 million adults lost $3.2 billion due to an escalation in phishing attacks last year.

Phishing is a form of identity theft, using fake Web sites, e-mail and sometimes even phone calls to lure you into disclosing personal information.

During October, Sharefam.com is recognizing Cyber Security Awareness Month by reminding you how not to become a victim of a phishing scam.

Here are some tips to help you stay cyber safe:

• Always use up-to-date anti-virus, anti-spyware and personal firewall software.
• Be careful about clicking links and opening attachments sent via e-mail.
• Do not respond to e-mail requests for personal information.
• Only use the phone numbers printed on your account statements when contacting organizations with your personal information.