Tired of the same old meals night after night?  Spice it up with theme week: let the kids help choose the theme, from sports night (hot dogs, fries) to book night (choose a favorite book and cook a meal a character would eat). Be creative!  The more involved the kids are in planning the meal, the more willing they are to try new dishes – and help with preparation and cleanup.

By Jenny Tananbaum

Jenny Tananbaum is a writer, wife and mom to three. suburbanmom@njkidsonline.com