THE SPAGHETTI CHALLENGE

We hear it all the time - families that do things together end up being healthier physically and emotionally, and we all know it is true. But. . . we are all busy, and sometimes it is can be easier to sit in front of a tv, go off to the gym ourselves, or grab a meal on the go. Although my clan are a highly emotional bunch, and we are far from perfect, my family does a pretty good job of doing things together. Still, we can get caught up in the hurried family effect. Tonight, we did something that made me realize how important family time is to our children. Last night at supper, my hubby and I were comparing our cooking skills, all of sudden our youngest came up with the idea to have mommy and daddy have a spaghetti cook off. The banter started. And when there was any inkling that the event wouldn't happen the kids became outraged. The event was happening, and that was all there was to it. We set out this morning, each with a purpose to make the best damn spaghetti we ever made. Highly emotional yes, overly competitive definitely! We kept our ideas close to our chests, and the cook off began. We had a great dinner, with each of our two children scoring us on presentation, taste and style. I regret to say the winner was DAD, but after he was declared the winner, they both stroked my ego by saying they really liked mine too. It made me realize that in our hurried lives sometime my kids want to drive the car, and sometimes we even want to go were they are going. Do you need to be reminded from time to time to enjoy your family and just slow down?