Increasingly, the kitchen is becoming the center of the family home. The family kitchen has replaced the living room as the place where the family gets together and discusses their lives. The living room has become the TV room in many homes, while the kitchen really is the family room.

This is largely because of changes in kitchen design. In the past, the kitchen was separated from the rest of the home. It was a place for cooking only. When meals were prepared, they were delivered to the dining room.

Open plan kitchen designs have changed all this, though. Now the walls have come down and the kitchen is exposed to the rest of the house. All that stands between the kitchen and the living or dining room is a breakfast bar or island. The dining room is often only used for guests or dinner, but the breakfast bar is used for everything from breakfast to lunch to afternoon snacks. This gives the kids a chance to get together with their mom even while she's reaching for the kitchen hand mixer.

If she's making a cake, the kids can share in the whole experience and even help. After mom has put all the ingredients in a bowl, they can take turns on the hand mixer. Contrast this with the closed kitchen, where the kids would probably just watch TV while their mother was stuck in the kitchen alone.

Another advantage to modern kitchens is that they are so much more efficient than older style kitchens. Food preparation is much easier, as is the job of cleaning up afterwards. Thanks to modern kitchen appliances, many jobs that used to be a chore have become effortless. For instance, making rice, while never difficult, was always a nuisance because you had to keep an eye on it. With modern rice cookers, perfect rice is a snap.

When it comes to kitchen design, there are so many colors and designs to choose from, even a budget kitchen can look like a designer masterpiece. In fact, thanks to online kitchen planners, you can dispense with the expense of a kitchen designer altogether and design your own.

Yes, things have certainly changed for the better in the family kitchen. In so many ways, today's kitchen is truly the heart of the home. Not only is it the place where meals are prepared, it is where the family gets together and really feels like a family unit again. That can only be a good thing for everyone.