To ask for your weird family behaviours that you didn't realise weren't normal until you were older?

[Coffeebiscuitsrepeat]

1. We called a toe poking through a sock hole a "potato".

1. Whoever made the most mess at the dinner table "won the prize"... And the prize was to clean up the mess!

Always ground ginger on melon when I was a child, it gave a nice extra zing to honeydew melons. I still usually add a little sugar to a bowl of strawberries and leave them to macerate, I think it improves them.
Nothing very strange about my childhood (born mid-50s) except perhaps that my parents never hit us - sadly I know that was unusual. My father was much more hands-on than most dads, on Sundays he sometimes took me and my brother to feed the birds in St James's Park and then to his favourite patisserie in Soho, for coffee and croissants. We didn't have much money at all, but he clung to some of the good things in life!

The toe through the sock potato one rings a distant bell - as does ginger on melon. Maybe would help when the melon, despite feel and smell, doesn’t deliver and is disappointingly turnipy

My DM is very regimented around food. On Sunday we ALWAYS had a roast. Even though it's only her and my stepdad now they will still have a roast on Sunday and she was shocked and disappointed with me when she learned that I rarely bother!

Friday dinner is ALWAYS fish, despite the fact that we aren't Catholic and my DM is actually an atheist. Not only that, but she would always declare that it was because we are 'good Catholics'

My parents still to this day fill up the bath with cold water on hot days to "cool the house down". 3yo DD sees it and pulls the plug out 😂

@Tittie

Broccoli as a side dish for most dinners. Chicken korma? Serve with broccoli. Spag Bol? Serve with broccoli. Chicken nuggets and chips? Serve with broccoli. It turns out my parents didn't think it was normal either, but it was the only veg they could get me and my brother to eat. I wish they'd told me it wasn't normal before letting me go off into the big wide world on my own.

To be honest, I serve broccoli a lot as well because it's the only veg my four year old will eat. And if we are having salady food, he has a load of cucumber instead.

I'll be sure to tell him why when he's older!

When we had visitors my mum would offer them a biscuit. We were offered but were trained to say no, as there wouldn't be enough to go around.
I was conditioned to refuse anything offered to me. I thought it rude to say anything other than 'no thanks'.

The remote control was the clicker.

Oranges were cut into wedges and we were given a saucer of sugar to dip them into.

We never once had a Sunday roast. I'm actually glad that my Mum didn't waste her Sundays making one.

One thing I believed until I was embarrassingly old was that babies couldn't be conceived unless a couple loved each other. Thanks Mum.

@katew355

We called them potatoes too! Our weird thing was using one of my dad's socks as a stocking at Christmas. It didn't really hold anything other than a tangerine and a 10p coin. My mum also used to put powdered ginger in melon which I've never seen anyone else do x

We had powdered ginger on melon too - I had totally forgotten that over the last 30 years or so!

My mum always made a proper meal from scratch. Always sat at a set table. No tv allowed, definatly no ketchup.
She used to work on a Thursday evening. She would leave all the stuff for dad to make a proper meal. He used to come in from work with a couple of frozen pizzas and a tub od ice cream and we would eat them on the sofa watching tv.... he would then walk the dog before she got back with all the packets and the stuff for the other meal in a bag for a bin down the rd! 🤣
I'm sure she still doesn't know about this.

Regardless of where we were going on holiday (always in the UK, usually within a 2 hour drive) we used to set off at the crack of dawn to 'miss the traffic'.

We'd be bundled into the car around 5am to arrive, absolutely knackered, at 7am.

Then the long interminable trudge to find a cafe that was open.

A cup of tea and a bacon sandwich would revive us a little, and then another long walk to track down a hotel or bnb that was within budget, looked suitable and had vacancies. God knows why we didn't book, I think my dad liked the 'sense of adventure'.

Once a bed for the next few nights had been secured (usually after much debate before going back to the first one they'd found) it'd be down to the beach until check in time. We would be dressed in summer clothes with no regard for the British Weather, so a lot of the time we were freezing. Mother, in a triumph of hope over experience, would occasionally say 'it's brightening up!' in attempt to assuage our complaints about being sat in swimming cozzies in the drizzle.

There would be a picnic. Jam sandwiches (full of sand), a carton of juice, a scotch egg and a flapjack.

I do have fond memories of those holidays, but the first day was so needlessly awful, and I didn't realise it didn't have to be until going away with friends for the first time...

Set off at 11am, checked in by 1pm and straight into enjoying ourselves!

I've put this elsewhere, but I'm curious to see if ANYONE did the same. When we had stew, Mum would put dumplings in and we'd eat them first, taken from the gravy, put in a pudding plate, and sprinkled with brown sugar (or golden syrup).

Please tell me I'm not the only one!

Saracen yep, we couldn't lock bathroom door either so shut door equaled "occupied" here too. I always felt a bit panicky locking a loo door in someone else's house in case I couldn't get out and often lock and immediately unlock a loo door to check it works (then obv lock again) so I can relax and pee.

No drinks with dinner either except at Christmas as would often have visitors. Oh and no talking at the table so I couldn't wait to leave home and do things my way. I knew this was not normal and Christmas day is raucous now to make up for all the silent ones.

Black bagged hay bales were cow eggs and now I say that to my DD and if we see pink bagged hay bales it's flamingo eggs, or mint green ones it's turtle eggs etc so I'm sure she'll carry on the fun 😀

@Bargebill19

Car parks were called par carks in my house too! It came from a sign in one of those “what is wrong with this picture?” puzzles.

Birthdays would only be birthdays if the birthday child was blindfolded for a little while. Unable to see, they would hear the presents being brought in, and a few decorations put up (or they might be led into the decorated room). They'd have to feel each present, and eyes had to stay covered until everyone had sung happy birthday. If a birthday outing was involved, the birthday child would always be blindfolded for some or all of the journey there.

I never heard of other families doing something like this. We loved it, and it made it fun for the unbirthday children. The being blindfolded before presents only lasted about three minutes, but I remember it feeling like an eternity! I asked my parents why we did this; they said it was to build up the excitement.

Powdered butter in the cupboard, in a little blue plastic shaker. I remember it clearly, and I've never seen anyone else have it. As an adult, I have learned that while it's commonly used in industrial baking and can be bought in sachets in baking shops, but no one else I've met used it in sandwiches (like the previously mentioned sugar sandwiches). I used to live on the things in my teens.

I've been tempted to get the sachets, but I've learned that many things I had as a kid don't taste as nicely as I remember so haven't yet risked it.

Half a glass of Guinness every day with my nanny from age of 2 😂 wouldn't get away with that one now. She drank it for iron

Gosh- this is making me worry about what my kids will laugh about in 20/ 30 years!!
Plenty I am sure.

@0blio

My mum also used to put powdered ginger in melon which I've never seen anyone else do x

This was quite popular in the 70s, well it was in our family

We had sugar on tomatoes and it's actually delicious.

I'm sure I've posted on here about this before but when we had days out when I was a child, my parents would pack a picnic with a primus stove, a kettle full of water and plastic cups to make tea.

When we were finished the hot water left in the kettle was used to wash up the cups in a washing up bowl in the boot of the car. The cups were then dried with a tea towel before being packed away.

My parents were bonkers

I think it's lovely making tea like that and having a picnic - and pretty sensible not to be dragging dirty cups home.

I grew up in Leicestershire. My Scouse partner thinks it is off to have a slice of bread and butter with a bowl of tinned fruit (with evap milk). I am sure it was a regular East Midlands thing. Anyone else?

This is so interesting, i didnt have sunday roasts, i didnt really know about eating meat roast untill i met my then boyfriend at 21 now husband and i learnt all bout different sauces that go on meat, my dad was vegetarian and wouldnt allow meat cooked in house, mum wasnt a cook so she would give us boil in bag and microwave meals. We had potatoe waffles with ever meal and fridays was always pizza jacket potatoes and beans. We also never went out to restaurants, i love them now as adult. And miss it during lockdown. We also used same bath water for everyone and i wouldnt dream of doing that now, think it was to save money as when i got to teenager i would get told off as wanted a shower few times (when i say shower i mean crappy rubber thing that goes over taps.

Food was always around the table.
Sunday dinner was/is EVERY Sunday, no exceptions.
The remote control was the doodah.
My mum used to make me cheese and pickled onion (sliced thin) sandwiches and one day Over a friends house her mum offered me cheese and pickle sandwiches...I was most horrified when they appeared and had some sort of brown chunky gloopy mess on them. Still can’t eat Branston Pickle.

We never had takeaways and I didn’t have a MacDonalds until I was old enough to go into town with my friends.

Oh and remote control was changer i still call it that now and husband hates it! Also my bedtime was really strict, had to go bed at 7.30 up to age of about 16 , it wasn't surprising i left home at 18!

@lyralalala

We weren't allowed drinks with meals as it would fill you up then you wouldn't eat your dinner

Same - even now my parents are a bit astonished if you offer them a drink when they are here for a meal!

We didnt have any affection or praise. At 40 still trying to deal with the effects of that one. I dont think as a child I realised that other parents liked their children! Certainly not doing anything because the children wanted to. So no days out, if we ever went anywhere nothing from the gift shop, didnt buy ice creams or meals out as "a waste." No interest in what I was doing at school or at all...

Growing up, our schedule of doing things was very rigid. Lunch was at 12:30, dinner was at 5pm. The whole meal preparation process was worked backwards so we'd be sitting down to eat at the precise time.

Bedtimes were also to the minute. Even now, my mum gets up to go to bed the second the clock clicks over to 10pm. Not a minute before, or after. Since leaving home, that's never been my habit, and my bedtime is purely decided by my level of tiredness/boredom. Any time between 9 and 11pm suits me.