TABLE TOPICS: Perfect for the Family Dinner

Since reading Laurie David's FAMILY DINNER, I've been extra focused on making meal time as fun and meaningful as possible.   TABLE TOPICS are a wonderful way to get the ball rolling. 

Each box contains 135 question cards.  The box itself is a shiny clear lucite cube that is good looking enough to leave out on the table and would also make a lovely presentation for a gift ideal for hostesses and holidays.   It has weight and feels good in your hand.

Family Gathering Table Topics would be wonderful at larger family events, taking the pressure off and encouraging conversation destined to bring people closer, recalling fun memories and lightening things up with humor.

The Family Edition has been on our table for a good week and it really has sparked some fun conversations.  If you are using them with young children, you could easily rotate a couple of different themes (Family Edition and Original , for example) as answers will change and questions will be forgotten. 

My son is crazy about these.  Now when we sit down for a meal he asks excitedly, "where are the questions?"  We took them with us to the Thai restaurant and not only did it occupy him while we waited for our food, one of the owners of the restaurant was fascinated with them and wanted some for her family.   Find them HERE.


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Rethinking that Thanksgiving Turkey or, Guess who's Not coming to dinner

Each year over 46 million turkeys are killed for Thanksgiving dinners.   I haven't eaten turkey since I was a kid and I promise I do not feel a void. I've enjoyed my Thanksgivings every bit as much, and really feel that the turkey is an irrelevant, cruel and outdated tradition.  Our festive organic vegan dinner will include some delicious whole grain stuffing and miso mushroom gravy, roasted root vegetables, steamed broccoli, a big organic salad, and pumpkin pie.  Sounds yummy, right?

Turkeys are not stupid as we have been told.  They're very social creatures enjoying the company of other turkeys and other species, including humans.  They have relationships and show affection just like our cats and dogs and enjoy having their feathers stroked.  They have good hearing and vision, see in color, and have great geographical and communication skills.   Wild turkeys can fly short distances at speeds up to 55 mph and they can run on the ground at 25 mph.

Domestic turkeys cannot fly because they weigh too much.   Factory farm turkeys suffer tremendously during their short painful lives.   They have their beaks and toes cut off, they suffer painful health effects from being bred to have abnormally large breasts for white meat, they can no longer breed naturally because of this physical issue so breeder turkeys are kept locked up in a confined space, and they are killed violently and inhumanely.  The whole thing is so flagrantly disrespectful and barbaric, I believe if more people realized the backstory of their Thanksgiving turkey (and also the amount of pharmaceuticals and pesticides they contain), they would make the effort to find a truly free range local organic turkey or forgo it altogether.

It just seems to me that Compassion would go hand in hand with Gratitude, right?  Maybe a compassionate meal would make that point a little better.  Gratitude for our limited resources, gratitude for life and other living creatures.  And gratitude for our loved ones and being able to share this moment in time together, gratitude for the love in our lives...it really has nothing to do with the turkey.  For more on this topic, check out GENTLE THANKSGIVING or watch this horrifying video of turkeys in a factory farm.

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Happy New Year's Everybody!

It's New Year's Eve--it's the beginning of a new decade and to top it off, we get a Blue Moon. The gods must be conspiring in our favor.

Thank you all for your support dear readers, I'm so grateful for you. Wishing you all a happy, healthy, lighthearted New Year's Eve.

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24 Penguins Before Christmas Advent Calendar

I've always loved the thrill of an Advent Calendar. Here is a contemporary take on an old tradition from the French author/illustrator team Jean-Luc Fromental and Joelle Jolivet who brought us the fabulous 365 Penguins. 24 Penguins Before Christmas is modern and fun and very European in its unique 3-D diptych format.

The Calendar features the characters from 365 Penguins, and comes with a tiny little book, a page to be read each day corresponding to the advent window and the little surprise dwelling within. Amazon has it right now for a steal, you can find it HERE.

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