I have found all kitchen-related duties an invaluable asset for fitting in some extra face time with my kids. From meal planning to grocery shopping, cooking to washing dishes, each task provides an opportunity for quality time with one or more of my children.

I always try to include my children in my work. As a part of this household, they are responsible for learning its ins and outs. What better way to achieve this than with hands-on experience? Plus, they really do view the extra mom time as a privilege.

I spend a good portion of every day in the kitchen and all of my children love to help out in any way they can. I like to think I have made the kitchen the true heart of our home and they truly enjoy being in there with me. They would all choose helping me cook over just about anything else. And because this is where I spend so much time, if I really want to make quality time a priority, I need to provide a welcoming environment in my kitchen for the whole family.

Cooking with the kids is a lot of fun, especially when making their favorite meals or a specifically “kid-oriented” recipe. This face-time avenue requires patience, an unhurried attitude and a willingness to accept mistakes. The pride that my children take in helping me in the kitchen, and the joy that they get in spending quality time with me, makes any extra effort exceedingly worthwhile.

Here is a week’s worth of fun dinners to make with the kids.

Here are a few other fun recipes that I’ve stumbled across that would be great to make with the kids.

*Chicken Toes

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Combine the crushed corn flakes, bread crumbs, brown sugar, salt, pepper and allspice in a shallow dish or bowl.

3. Evenly pour the vegetable oil over the breading mixture and stir to combine thoroughly.

4. Put the flour in a second bowl and the eggs in a third bowl. Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour, then the eggs, then the breading mixture. Place the chicken pieces on a cookie sheet and bake at 375 for about 15 minutes, until cooked through and browned.

(This recipe is adapted from Cooking Rocks! Rachael Ray 30-Minute Meals For Kids)

The “Face Time With The Kids” End 08 Great challenge is all about spending some real, quality time with our children. It is so easy to get caught up in all of our day-to-day duties that sometimes spending time with the kids can get pushed aside. So let’s take this opportunity throughout the next month to put our children front and center in our everyday activities. Let’s build some memories and tie some heart strings.

If you do not have children, we encourage you to join in also. Surely there is someone in your life who would greatly benefit from some quality time spent with you. This month, we challenge you to make them a priority.

Won’t you join us this month as we challenge you (and ourselves), to spend some quality face-time with our children? To join, simply write a post on your blog about what you will be doing this upcoming week in an effort to fit in that special quality-time, or let us know what you are already doing. Then leave us a comment or send us an email and we’ll share your efforts in a carnival-style post so that we can all encourage and be inspired by each other.

And for more Menu Plans, make sure you visit I’m An Organizng Junkie.

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