"Family Table Time is a practical tool that provides any family with a route to the healthy growth of each family member, as well as enriching the family unit itself."
--Dr. Art Cross, President, Cross Learning Associates, Inc.

"You will LOVE this book. We've been loyal users of the Family Table Time Kit for many years. And the results are astounding. Our family looks forward to meals... to discussion... to debate... to celebration. We make time for each other. This book makes a great gift for your family and friends."
--Peter Urbain, Western Springs, IL

Meet the Kimball's

Neal and Jill Kimball love their family. Their intent is to do what they can to nurture their family as well as share the importance of healthy families to the world. Their Goal: To restore the family table to its traditional role as a gathering place where parents and kids can rekindle what seems to have become a lost art: communication.

The Kimball's have seen how important meals with the family can be. When the demands of "corporate life" caused them to question what was really important, they resolved to take their family back – and decided that dinnertime was going to be the place. To make the time together more meaningful and fun, they developed "Family Table Time" – a weekly family meeting kit that's simple, practical and fun. What began as an idea to help their family re-knit has become a way for all families to plan activities, build values and strengthen family unity.

Their Journey

It was during a family vacation/road trip in 1999 that the Kimball family came up with the idea for Family Table Time. Neal and Jill asked their kids, Caitlin, 11; Maggie, 9; Kyle, 7; and Jimmy 5, what they could do to make dinnertime more fun for them. They came up with the idea of drawing pictures and writing down memories on a tablecloth! They also decided that a weekly family meeting would be important. And in the process, they created a way for families to plan family activities, build core values, strengthen family unity, and create positive family memories.

On this same vacation, they found out that they were not alone! They shared their situation and ideas with the friends they visited. "They echoed our concerns! While we were still in Chicago on vacation, we brought together some of our friends—nineteen families in all—and shared our idea of making mealtime a priority. They all agreed to test our "Family Table Time" idea for twelve weeks," shares Jill. The "test" included: (1) eating meals together as a family as often as possible; (2) conducting a family meeting once a week; (3) creating a family mission statement; and (4) jotting down memories on a tablecloth. "Armed with a white vinyl tablecloth, agenda sheets and some permanent markers, we all took the plunge," states Neal.

Jill loves telling their story. "Some families felt they were strong but liked the idea of the keepsake of the tablecloth, some families had always wanted to have family meetings but had no tools and some wanted to get their spouses home for dinner! All nineteen families kept in touch through e-mail. We shared stories, tablecloths, and mission statements. The mission statements were written on the center of the table cloth and reflected each family's focus. Ours was (and still is): "Living our lives like Jesus so that when we get to Heaven, He will say, 'Thanks.'"

When they first tested their idea in their own family, the Kimball family made a commitment to have at least one meal together each week. After recognizing the value and fun of family meals, the Kimball's now eat together as often as they can and do Family Table Time once a week. "We have made our dinner table a "safe zone," where feelings can be shared, thoughts can be communicated openly and honestly, and where everyone is valued and heard. It is a fun and relaxing experience—something our kids look forward to and enjoy, says Neal. A father using the Family Table Time tool shared with the Kimball's that he had rarely made it home for dinner during the week. After experiencing the time around the table with, he was so fulfilled from spending this quality time with his kids that he started come home for dinner much more often.

The nineteen families in the test group experienced so much success with implementing the idea that they urged the Kimball's to create and market a kit to enable other families to do the same thing. " What used to be so ordinary and natural in families—eating meals together—is becoming less and less of a reality, so we hope that our kit can help families put their desire for regular meal times into practice, " says Jill.

"It is all about helping families draw closer together and keep open the lines of communication," says Neal. The Kimball's believe this kit can make a big difference in the lives of those who want to build core values, improve communication, create family unity, plan family activities, foster self esteem, recall family memories, and share stories.