Family Time

We had a nice evening yesterday. Good quality family time. We ate dinner together at the big table and after I cleaned the kitchen we watched Chicken Little down in the theater. Everyone. Even Ron.

While I still have a lot of things to do, I feel less pressured in the summer. Like I have more free time on my hands. Ryan and I have been playing cards a few afternoons a week after the girls go to Grandma D's and before I make dinner (or while dinner is cooking). I felt inspired to have a nice family evening even though we have Full Moon Day on Tuesday and will be doing a special activity then. Not sure why it seems like more time/less stuff to do. My daily tasks remain the same - cook, laundry, dishes. I still have 3 kids. But somehow not having to take them to school opens up more time. I have no idea why that works but I'll enjoy it while it lasts.

So the whole Big Table thing... at last month's Full Moon activity (spending the night at the condo) we were eating all together there at the table. I don't remember how the subject came up but we were talking about how we don't eat together at home. Ron said it was because the big table is always covered with my junk ( a true fact). I said it was because Ron wouldn't sit with us even if the table was clear. So a challenge was issued... If I clean the table, he will eat there with us. Ron figured he was safe since we have eaten there maybe 10 times since we got the table a few years ago. Little did he know I had been wanting to have more family dinners, now that the kids are getting older and it is more important to have family time each day. I was just afraid that he wouldn't participate. Now I know that he will. So I cleaned the table (which has been done before) and have kept it clean for a couple weeks now (which usually doesn't happen). Now I just have to figure out a good schedule for having the girls here for dinner a few times a week. Usually they are at Grandma D's in the evenings. Of course, we will be gone for awhile this summer so it won't matter. Once school starts it will be easier to set a schedule that the girls will be home early on school nights and we will eat together then. The other nights we can do our usual "eat on the couch/kids table/computer table and watch TV" dinners.