time i could not understand why we were forced to sit there and talk to each other, especially as i hit my stride as a young teen; i hated eating with my parents. but now that i am older, i get it – it gives a family time to learn about what is going on in each other’s life, for parents to maybe catch a glimpse into what their kids are doing and for kids to feel like they are taking part in family decisions. i think this is an important thing for families to try to do as spending just this 45 minutes or so together every night (when 