Tea, a drink of relaxation, calm, peace, tranquility; it is a drink to share with loved ones. Cocoa, sweet, warm, and it's chocolate, need I say more?

When trying to find moments with family during busy seasons it is comforting to have even just a few minutes time to spend together. Schedules today keep us busy from dusk till dawn. Sometimes it is just before bed when we realize we haven’t said more words to each other than a hello, good-bye, or did you get your homework done?

An easy habit to form is a bedtime ritual. Most parents do a story, some never forget the prayers. One ritual that has been rewarding is a nice warm evening beverage to bring calm to the house. Something to sip and savor as the night takes over the house. This is a special time for you and your older daughters, when younger siblings have turned in for the evening.

Daughters grow up fast and soon there are no bedtime stories and they say their prayers on their own unless they need comfort and want to share. To encourage a sharing time to make sure we don’t miss something while they grow up, I find sharing an evening tea or cocoa just the thing.

You can keep it simple and make it special at the same time. For tea, honey sticks are a great addition to swirl around the hot tea; or a spoon of jam. If you have a cocoa kid on your hands whip cream does the trick for a smile. What growing girl doesn’t need a little more calcium in her diet anyway? Flavored syrup over the whip cream running down into the hot beverage gets the same effect as drinks served at a fancy coffee house.

In keeping it simple this is the time were it isn’t necessary to have a snack. That is a habit we don’t want to institute too late at night. Hopefully your child’s fourth meal has filled her and this is just a bedtime brew and talk time to go over the day.

Make sure the TV is off. The house should be settling down. Topics to discuss are school, friends, upcoming projects and events. Play around. Do a word game or twenty questions. Listen to the radio.

Whatever you do it is just a few moments together, a mother and/or father and their daughter, or daughters, enjoying each other.