To think my kids should eat the same as me and dh?

[Iwillsurvive1]

So we have friends staying with us who find it absurd (their word) that I expect my dd1 (8) dd2 (5) and ds1 (2) to eat the same meals as me and dh and don’t cook separately for them? I work full time and get home at 4:30 so I cook 1 meal like spaghetti bolognaise, shepherds pie, lasagne etc that we all eat together at 6 ish when dh gets home. My ‘friend’ thinks this is too late for the kids to eat (they go to bed between 8-8:30) and that I should make them something quick and easy so they can eat at 5 before me and dh, she also thinks I should let them choose what they want to eat even if they all want different things but I think this would just make them fussy eaters which I never have a problem with at the moment, obviously if I know they don’t like something I won’t make them eat It like if me and dh have fish or curry they will have something like fish fingers or chicken nuggets something that me and dh wouldn’t want but why would I cook them something different every night? So AIBU?

We don’t do kids meals at all. Even if the adults need to eat later, we all eat the same thing. My kids eat anything and we generally try new dishes once or twice a week.

Feels like your friend should practice not vocalising everything she thinks! What a dull houseguest

What?!?! Your friend sounds like a moron! You have the perfect set up right now!

I'd be delighted if my kids would eat what we had. But they are fusspots and are chewing their legs off by 5. So they eat at 4.30 and we eat at 8.30. I'd love to do only one dinner (rather than 4!). Why does she care?

I grew up eating what my parents ate and it was fine from the food perspective but because they ate at 8pm it was too late for me really and i was tired the next day.

6pm sounds like the perfect time. I'm jealous!

Six is not late to eat, if they are fine why should she have an issue with it? It's not her routine.
My son eats a whole range of food because he largely eats the same as me.

My child eats the same as me. Sometimes we want nuggets and sometimes spag bol. We eat it when we are hungry and dependent on what else we have on that evening (cubs etc). Everyone is different.

I know I’m repeating others but it works for you so why on Earth is your friend bothered? Bravo for having two children who eat healthy sensible food without a fuss.

Does your friend think she is an interfering cow ? Because I do.
You are not bu- also nice that everyone eats together.

It's lovely that your children eat a proper meal and that you have dinner together as a family.

Eating together brings a family together. My grown up kids say how much they valued that time to talk. We usually ate at 6-6.30. They are now replicating that precious time in their own lives with their families.
Well done you, keep it up.

You are doing absolutely the best thing, your kids will grow up to very unfussy eaters
They will also learn good manners, and not be stroppy little tow rags!

Why is the choice 'eat what the adults eat' and 'eat crap'?

DS will eat chicken dippers (only actual Birds Eye ones, no generic nuggets of any sort), waffles and fishfingers, but they're the only really stereotypical 'childrens meal' crap he'll eat. He'll usually happily have a cheese bagel with avocado, carrot or red pepper (sometimes all three), or roast chicken and boiled potatoes and broccoli. I wouldn't roast a chicken just for him, but if we've eaten it the night before and there's some left it's easy enough to pop onto a plate for him and a cheese bagel is hardly difficult.

I wouldn't pay any attention to her TBH. If she is happy to make her kids different things then thats up to her. Back in the day no one got seperate meals they just go what mum cooked and bread and jam if they didnt care for it (if they were lucky). So no I think its perfectly right you should let the kids eat with you and get used to different foods.

My friend used to have opinions like this about every little thing. She's not your friend she just enjoys having someone to boss about

We also ate as a family at 6 when dad got in from work. Once heard our ndn complaining to her mother that it wasn't fair that they didn't get to eat dinner with their dad like we did (and we ate outside in the summer sometimes). In this very tiny sample size, my sister and I will eat almost anything, and the ndn kids were very fussy, to the point they would bring sausages/nuggets over if they came over for dinner with us.

I'm not saying that the choice is eat what adults eat or eat crap. It's just that this is how it can so easily be. I'd rather spend the time with my dd and let her eat slightly later than have to cook two different meals. The one night she has to eat separately from us, she seems to want to eat tinned spaghetti hoops so I dread to think what she'd live off!

Both of my children basically ate what we had from about 1 year old! They wouldn't have it any other way, refused their own plate and kept pointing to what we were having 😊Of course I left out the 🌶 for them 😊

I have seen a few people who do this separate meal for children thing and I think it's weird. Ours have a snack at about 3.45 (something like rice cakes) and dinner at 5.30. They only tend to eat with us at weekends, but that is due to OH working nights not through preference. I grew up eating pretty much the same meals as my parents,which were nutritionally balanced. Most 'children's food' is nutritionally pretty much empty. So if you want to raise malnourished, anti social, entitled children who are picky eaters, please go ahead and follow your friend's advice.

We have 80% of the same meals as out two DC, similar age to yours

YANBU at all. I’m actually envious that you’ve got a toddler that eats the same thing as you. I still cook two different meals. Keep up the good work op