Evening meal 6.30 for 9&11 yo DC's is NOT 'too late'...

[wol1968]

I'm fed up of DH chuntering and grumbling if I don't get the DCs' dinner done before 6pm. I do aim to do it, and we all do have dinner eaten and cleared up before 7pm on most nights. But with the best will in the world, I get days when my timing slips. Interruptions happen, preparation takes longer than intended, sometimes I'm not on form, I get sidetracked and my organisation is crap. AIBU to get really annoyed when 'D' H starts rolling his eyes and making critical mutterings about what I should have done when and know darn well exactly what I should have done when but I was being crap and didn't ? AIBU to be even more annoyed when we then get an 'unexpected' phone call from MIL (who always did 'tea' at five when hers were kids) in the middle of our meal, and H then has to disappear into the next room with the phone, pretending to have eaten, with me being the one to keep the kids quiet in the kitchen?

He says he does this so his mum doesn't tell him off. I told him it was none of his mum's business what time we had our evening meal. And I don't think 6.30 or thereabouts is that catastrophic for 9-11 year-olds anyway, is it? 7.30 might be taking the mick a bit on school nights, I suppose...

Off to keep up with the ironing.

[MirandaWest]

We eat at different times depending on what activates the DC have. Tuesday is early as DD has Brownies at 6:30 so eat about 5:45 ish. Wednesday is about 6 as DS has cubs at 6:45. Other days are around 6:30 to 7:00 ish. DC are 9 and 7

[arabesque]

Tell your DH that times have changed. The days when mothers all stayed at homd, served up dinner during the day and had the children's tea on the table the minute Blue Peter was over are gone. Nowadays a lot of mothers are out at work, at least part time, and are only getting home at about 6 o'clock (if they're lucky). As a result a lot of fathers now get involved in making the evening meal as opposed to complaining if it's not on the table at the same time every evening. And a lot of people have now got out of the habit of eating very early in the evening ( and as a result raiding the bread bin or biscuit jar at 8pm) and are quite happy to eat later or keep meal times a bit fluid.
As for lying to his mum in case she tells him off for not having dinner over by 6.30 - does she also pop over every evening to read him a story and iron his shirt for tomorrow?

[fryingpantoface]

How odd! We don't have dinner until 7-8ish, quite often that's DS 20 months too. If he's tired and hungry because he's not napped, he eats earlier before going to bed, but for the most point we all eat together. I like it.

I grew up with always having dinner at 6. Dad would walk through the door at 5:45 and mom would serve dinner not long after. It was nice, but it doesn't work for my family

[LifeHuh]

Always interesting to see how other people live!
We have never eaten before about 6 - we ate together when DH got home from work,with a bit of juggling if anyone was exceptionally hungry or tired.
Neither DD or DS went to bed before 8.30-9ish,even (especially!) when they were babies,DD particularly treated an early night as a late nap for years and would be wide awake and raring to go just when we wanted to sleep....
I can't get to 8ish without eating without getting really tetchy,but couldn't eat at 5 either!

DH should cook tea himself if he wants it done earlier,and man up and admit to MIL that no,he can't talk because you all are eating.What can she do,for heavens sake?

[Wolfiefan]

My 3 year old needs to eat at about 5 or 5:30. My 9 year old could happily wait. If the kids aren't shattered (at 6pm I'd say unlikely!) or fading away from hunger, then what's the problem. Why should anyone who doesn't live in your house dictate when you eat?!? Weird!

[LadyClariceCannockMonty]

'But your husband is a cock. Tell him to get his pinny on if he wants it earlier.
Good Lord, sometimes I come on here and thank my lucky stars I don't have some knob of a husband to answer to.'

EXACTLY. IfNotNow, you're my new hero.

[Londonseye]

630 used to be "very late" when my kids were younger. But the older they get the less late it seems. We eat at 5-6pm ish as that suits us. Sometimes we don't have a dinner time at all and eat on the go! Glad my MIL couldn't care less, but if she did, she would be told to mind her own.

[Lweji]

I've never had dinner before 7:30 and that's when DS was younger too.

Surely 5pm is tea time (meaning light snack in the middle of the afternoon), not dinner.

[HerrenaHarridan]

Pretending to his mother he has eaten is pathetic and spineless.

My 16mo eats dinner at 18.30 as a matter of course.

If he wants it serves at a particular time he had best cook it.

*disclaimer my ex regularly used to serve 'dinner' at 1 am by which time I hd usually given up and gone to bed. He would considerately wake me for it though

[wol1968]

Cheers everyone, thanks for the perspective! I've always thought H was a bit neurotic and OCD about some things. He's not lazy and he doesn't sit around - in fact, sometimes I wish he did, he's always on the go in the evenings with allotment stuff/DIY/household accounts etc. etc., all very thrilling and fascinating as I'm sure you can imagine ...and of course he's better at housework than I am - he's a great one for finding corners of dust behind heavy cupboards that I haven't been able to get to, not being much of a weightlifter. And of course, all this busyness in the evenings makes me feel much too guilty to sit and relax. Hence Mumsnet when he's not here.

I'd love for us to actually go out somewhere to enjoy ourselves. Nothing much. A film, maybe, or a concert, or a meal out of an evening. But I know what he'll say. 'We can't afford/justify it'. Miserable sod. Last of the big spenders, us...

[ChazsBrilliantAttitude]

Surely, if you can afford or justify something is a joint decision. Do you get a say in the household accounts and how the money is allocated. I do the household accounts side of things but DH has an equal say on what we spend and how we spend it. We both also have some pocket money each month that we spend how we like.

[valiumredhead]

Can't we all be different?
We eat any time between 4 and 7 depending on activities/work. We eat together. If I eat late then I snack before so I prefer to eat early and it works for me if I'm exercising/working later. If the kids eat early they'll have a snack when they get in later too.
I have lots of friends who eat late, but feed their kids earlier. Or all eat later. I used to think people who ate later were either foreign or posh, but then I grew up a bit!
I think the real issue is your dh, ruled by his mother and quite happy to treat you like crap.



This ^

[DollyClothespeg]

I'd class 6.30 for tea late, as they're usually in bed for half seven in this house (yes, even the 9 year old!
We usually have tea about 5ish. Any later and they're declaring they're dying of hunger.
It's absolutely bog all to do with your MIL, that'd wind me right up! Everybody's different. Just because she did it at that time doesn't mean you have to.

[IfNotNowThenWhen]

Why thank you ladyclarice!

[KatyTheCleaningLady]

I'm rarely home by 5,and neither is dh!

If you are eating so late the kids aren't getting enough sleep, then it's a problem. Other than that, it's whatever works for you and your family!