Food

I was sure I had blogged about this, but I can't find it so I'm going to risk a double entry because I'm afraid if I don't write it down I'll forget it.  Terry came up with this notion one day and I think it's brilliant AND I have tested it and it WORKS.  Teenaged boys only have about 3 things consistently on their minds  (I won't actually mention them ALL, don't worry...)  BUT  ONE of them is food.  They are obsessed with food.  (This isn't the big THING... hold on, I'm getting there.)  How I didn't think of this before because it really is obvious :  THAT'S  how you keep them engaged.  FOOD.  Specifically, Terry and I think that it really has to be achieved through home cooked meals.  Cook it, and they will come.  And they will stay for seconds.  AND they will engage.  There will be banter.  There will be family time.  And sometimes, they will slip up and say something that has not been censored by their auto-censoring ability and you learn something new about them.  Oh, dessert (or at the very least : cookies) are a must.