Making Mealtimes Meaningful with Teenagers with Mardi Gras Napkins

Thank you Mardi Gras Napkins for sponsoring this post. Learn more about Mardi Gras Conversation Starter Napkins here and grab your coupon today!

Let’s be honest.  Being a parent of a teenager and preteens can be hard.  I’m a single mom with 2 girls – one a teenager and one a preteen, so some days – whew.  I sometimes don’t know how I survive it, but I do, and we are our own tight little tribe that sticks together with us.  However, being a single mom with two busy girls, life gets straight up crazy some times! I feel like I’m a full time taxi service, and there are SO many activities that sometimes I literally need to be in two places at once.  When things get THAT crazy, it can be really hard to connect.  Some of my favorite moments as a parent is those times when it’s just me and the girls, talking about silly things, telling stories, and just being together.  That’s where really connection takes place, and sometimes it’s super easy for them (and me) to mutter (and accept) a “fine” to “How was your day?” and move about our busy schedule.  But connection is so important, and one way that the girls and I like to connect is to pile into the kitchen and prepare a meal together. We all love to cook, and we can all help out – it’s a great time to reconnect and get those conversational juices flowing.  

That’s why I was super excited to get to try out a new product from Mardi Gas Napkins – their new Conversation Starter Napkins!

They LOOK like ordinary napkins from the outside, but in the inside – well, there’s a whole lot of fun.  These cool (and affordable at about a penny a napkin) are a serious boredom buster and are going to make meals across America a LOT more fun.  These awesome Mardi Gras napkins have all different prints featuring clever conversation starters – check out our three napkins from our most recent family dinner!

I just love the mix that we got – not only did we have prompts that encouraged us to use our imaginations and steer our conversation into places that it might not otherwise have gone, the “What’s the most outrageous thing you saw today?” was a great way to connect with my girls about their school day.

It definitely makes mealtime more fun – although it’s HARD not to peek at all the prompts when setting the table! Katie tried REALLY hard to only look at her own napkin!

Make sure to click here to get a Mardi Gras Coversation Starter Napkins coupon!  You can pick them up in 200, 250, 500, and 700 count packs with a variety of conversation starter prints in each pack.  Let us know in the comments what ideas you have about connecting with teens and preteens, and how Mardi Gras napkins could make your mealtime more fun!