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Dinner Together Newsletter	November 2009, Family Issue

NOTE FROM KATHLEEN
 
Happy Thanksgiving!  I love Thanksgiving and I always have.  I have
wonderful early memories of spending the holiday at my
grandmother's house.  Then when I was in college, I would look
forward to going home for the first time in the semester.  In
recent years, I have taken on the hosting responsibilities for the
holiday in my family.
 
I enjoy the food of Thanksgiving, but I especially love the holiday
for making us pause and honor thankfulness.  This month's
"Something To Think About" focuses on how to incorporate gratitude
into your holiday, and everyday, rituals with your family.
 
And a big thank you to all of you.  I truly appreciate your taking
the time to read and share this newsletter and for all the positive
feedback I've received throughout the year.
 
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT...


Fostering Gratitude At Thanksgiving And Beyond

Psychologists have studied gratitude as its related to mental
health.  People who are in the habit of recognizing things they are
grateful for are less depressed.  In fact, people who are depressed
can sometimes be trained in the practice of gratitude, with the
result being an improvement in mood.  

It may not always come easy, but it's so worth it to try to make a
conscious effort to be grateful.  And it's important to foster a
sense of gratitude in our children.  In my family, we frequently
work in my favorite conversation starter, "What are you grateful
for today?" at family meals.  For some other ideas about gratitude
at the dinner table, see my previous blog post on the topic.
 
I haven't decided what we'll do this Thanksgiving, but at previous
Thanksgivings we have done some decorative craft projects in which
we ask each person at our gathering to write down something they
are thankful for. One year we each wrote on a feather made out of
construction paper for our "turkey."  Last year we decorated the
dining room wall with strips of paper declaring our thankfulness. 
Unfortunately, removing those strips also removed paint from the
wall - so we won't be doing that again!  If any of you have
creative ideas for a thankful Thanksgiving activity, I'd love to
hear them and share them with the rest of my readers.
 
But whatever you do, make it a joyful experience.  Practicing
gratitude loses some of its shine if it's done as a guilt-inducing
activity.  So instead of scolding, "you should be grateful for all
that you have," why not encourage and model.  When you practice
gratitude it becomes a habit.  For some ideas on how to make
gratitude practice a routine in your family, check out this article
from one of my favorite blogs, Half Full: Science for Raising Happy
Kids.
 


ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER
A warm welcome to any newcomers to the Dinner Together newsletter. 
Each month there are two newsletter issues, one focused on the
kitchen, and one focused on the family.  This is a "family" issue. 
In the family issues of the newsletter, I hope to provide you with
information that you can use when thinking about how to feed your
children.  This will include ideas about raising successful eaters
as well as ideas for promoting positive experiences for everyone at
the dinner table.
 
If you know someone who you think might enjoy this newsletter,
please forward it to them and let them know they can sign up for
their own free copy at www.dinnertogether.com.  Your questions,
comments, success stories, recipes, tips, and other suggestions are
always welcome.  Please feel free to contact me any time at
info@dinnertogether.com.
 
For more tips and recipes follow my blog at 
http://www.dinnertogether.blogspot.com
 

 
 
Kathleen Cuneo, Ph.D.
Director
info@dinnertogether.com
(845) 521-6045
 
 
ABOUT KATHLEEN
I earned my doctoral degree in Applied Developmental Psychology
from Fordham University.  I have worked with children and families
for the past two decades in a variety of settings.  I worked at a
primary health care clinic for over ten years.  I have worked in
both special education and regular education preschool programs,
and for the last several years, I have done early intervention
therapy and parent counseling in the homes of my clients.  I have
counseled children of all ages and I have worked extensively with
parents on issues of raising emotionally healthy children. I am
also the mother of three children and an avid home cook. 

I founded Dinner Together in 2008 for three major reasons.  First,
I saw that a lot of my clients, my friends' children and my own
children had behavior problems related to eating, such as
restlessness at the table and picky eating.  Second, in researching
these problems, I learned that, even though pulling them together
is a challenge, family meals are meals are important for the health
of children.  And third, I have had success in addressing these
issues with my family and some of the families that I have worked
with and I wanted to share my success with more families. 
 
 
 
 
I can be contacted at info@dinnertogether.com.
 
 
Call for a consultation if you're struggling with making family
meals a reality in your home or if you're facing challenges with
your children's eating behaviors.
(845) 521-6045
 
Visit my other website www.drcuneo.com for information on how to
become a confident, empowered parent.
 
 
 
My Links
http://www.dinnertogether.com
http://www.drcuneo.com
http://www.dinnertogether.blogspot.com
 

 
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Find out more about raising successful eaters.
 
Stop the battles over food.
 
Learn tips and techniques for pulling meals together.
 
http://www.dinnertogether.com
 
http://www.dinnertogether.blogspot.com
 
Conversation Starter of the Month	  
What are you grateful for today?
 
	
info@dinnertogether.com
 
Group presentations
Individual consultations
Phone consultations
 
 
To view past issues of this newsletter go to
http://www.aweber.com/z/article/?dtnewsletters
 
Forward this newsletter to your friends and family!
Sign up for your own free subscription at www.dinnertogether.com.
 
The information contained in this newsletter is meant to be
educational in nature.  It is intended to inform readers of issues
related to feeding dynamics in general.  It is not intended to
replace specific advice from a health care professional.
Copyright (c) 2009 by Kathleen Cuneo, Ph.D., Dinner Together, LLC