Candlelit Dinners

We had our first candlelit dinner at the very beginning of my blogging venture. Here’s what the candles looked like at the beginning:

Here’s what they look like now:

Last night one of the candles burned so low that it started catching the gold coating on fire. (We decided to blow that one out before dinner ended).

Here are my thoughts on our new dinner routine.

Have we had a sit-down, candlelit dinner every night since we started? -No.

Would I consider it a success? -Absolutely.

This new dinner approach has done several things for our family.

1. It’s helped tremendously with routine. It’s set a clear expectation for the kids that really only took a couple of nights for them to adapt to. They now know that they can’t get up until they are dismissed. They also know that they all are required to help clear the table- and depending on the night- to also help load the dishwasher. They know that we will read our scriptures and have family prayer at the table.
2. It’s created an environment where we actually, consistently read our scriptures. Even on nights when Ernie is working late and I’m too tired to do the whole dinner thing, we still remember to read the Book of Mormon together, in the living room.
3. The kids like the structure. No surprise there since every parenting book I’ve ever read stresses this. But still, it’s cool to see it in action.
4. Dimming the lights and lighting the candles has been a wonderful way to physically limit our family. The rest of the house is essentially dark or dim and the only place that is lit, is the dinner table. This has helped the kids (and Ernie) to stay focused on each other, not what is happening other places.
5. It’s given me a better reason to cook healthy meals. It’s so much nicer to sit down at a nice table with all the food groups. Also the kids seem way more amenable to trying new things when it’s served in a nice dish at a nice table.

It’s only been a couple of months, but it’s an encouraging start. I’m sure this will evolve over time, but I like the direction it’s taking us.