We were in a rough habit with our kiddos. We brought their tablets with us whenever we would go out to eat. We are not very strict about tv at home throughout the week, but we do limit their time with devices. And so, they quickly caught on and demanded their screens at every restaurant.
I’ll admit that it sure does make the meal more pleasant. Dadlando and I would finally have a chance to relax and catch up on conversation. I wasn’t worried about the people around us getting annoyed or glaring at us. But something nagged at me in the back of my mind. We weren’t teaching them how to actually be out in a restaurant! We weren’t teaching them how to be patient and wait for your food, or have conversation with family, or enjoy the time together. It bugged me. I needed a fix.
And then we came across a travel version of Table Topics. I believe it came in a kids meal bag! The sample size card pack posed questions that we’d read aloud for everyone to answer. Questions could be anything like ‘If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?’ or ‘What do you want to do when you’re older?’ The kids were enthralled. They’d ask me to ‘do questions’ to them all the time. And once we ran through the pack (it was pretty small) we’d make up our own questions. I ran out of ideas pretty quickly after ‘If you could have a pet dinosaur, what color would they be?’
I realized this was the solution I had been looking for to get them off their screens when we were out to eat. I went on Amazon and researched some packs and threw them in my shopping cart. Once the cards arrived I split them up into small sandwich packs to throw in my purse and in the diaper bag. When we go out to eat they still ask for their devices but when I mention that I have ‘questions’ they instantly cheer.
I hesitate to even share my brilliant hack here. Because yes sometimes we still bring their devices with us. But I can tell you it has drastically changed going out to eat with the kiddos. I love to hear their answers to the questions and how it sparks conversation between us.
Want to try it out? Here are some conversation card packs for you to choose from:
Little Talk
This is the pack I purchased for us! It has a focus on emotional and meaningful conversation. We all know I love talking about feelings!
Table Topics – Family Edition
This pack has a great range of topics – from silly to deep and meaningful!
Table Topics To Go
Already in travel pack size all ready for you!
Family Time
Fifty thoughtful and playful questions about the past, present, and future to inspire your family conversations!
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