The Shepherd’s Meal My Kids Beg For
I can’t quite remember when I came across the idea of a Shepherd’s Meal or Shepherd’s Feast. It’s becoming more widely known thanks to dreamy instagram reels. I don’t have a dreamy instagram reel, just a real life with 3 wonderfully busy kids that make mealtimes very hands-on!
If you’re not familiar, a Shepherd’s Feast is based on the idea of creating a meal that harkens back to the shepherds in Jesus’ time. Some families zero in on a historically accurate meal, others wear costumes, but ours might be modernized beyond recognition in those respects. We focus in on the simplicity of the meal. Here’s our rubric:
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- We turn off the lights and eat by “candlelight” (we have a toddler- they’re flameless candles). Each week while the Christmas tree is up, we eat beside the tree.
- We lay down a tablecloth (wipeable & waterproof like this adorable one) on the floor and eat family style. I use these large divider trays and everyone (including the toddler) makes their own plates (paper, of course). At the end of the meal, I shake off the tablecloth outside and clean-up is done!
- This combines with our Sabbath dinner traditions as we reserve Shepherd’s Feast for Sabbath dinner to make it extra special. To that end, we answer a few questions from our Tabletopics card deck and we spend time recording gratitudes in our family journal. <<related post Sabbath in our Christian Home>>
- We play calm, quiet music. Our favorite for this time of year is Slugs & Bugs Sing the Bible Family Christmas. (My kids have memorized many, many passages of scripture thanks to S&B!)
- FOOD. I choose from several categories, and it’s often whatever I have in the pantry and fridge… basically kid-friendly charcuterie! See below:
If you’d like a list of menu options, I created a free printable for you!
You can print my family’s checklist here for a PDF or click on the image above for a jpg that you can screenshot.
Or, you can click this link for a fully editable link that you can customize to your family’s liking! You’ll need a (free) canva account to edit.
What do you think? Have you done this? It’s so fun and my kids get so excited when I announce we are having a Shepherd’s Feast! If you give it a try, I’d love to hear your experience. Connect with me on my socials instagram / facebook.
Happy Feasting!
