Do you eat meals with your dc?

[CloudAtlas]

Mine are still very small, oldest is 2.2, and I don't normally eat meals with them during the week. I don't fancy what they eat for lunch, and if they're having something like salmon, it seems a bit decadent for me to have the same iykwim. I tend to grab a cheese sandwich or toast when they go down for their sleep. They eat their dinner at 5pm, OH not back from work until much later so we eat together then.
Been thinking about it, and think I should make more of an effort to eat lunch with them.

What do you do?

Only at weekends

Only at weekends

Elph what I was saying I consider to be weird is the way that some families have separate food for the children and for the adults on a regular basis. Can't see how this is healthy, convenient, economical or desirable.

Of course, it's not ALWAYS possible for families to eat together but it is desirable to do it as often as possible for all the reasons stated.

I don't see how the age of the child/ren matters that much TBH. We've eaten together since the children were born and now they're both at school.

Obviously, sometimes one parent may not get back from work early enough to eat with the kids. Personally, in this scenario I would generally eat with the kids and let my partner eat on his own and he would do the same because my personal priority is to eat together as a family on the whole.

I do appreciate the bear paws scenario though (I blame dp for setting this example!) and I do think that eating out together is a bit of a challenge. I intend to follow my own advice though and keep working on it.

Dp and me dont do breakfast (not good I know) but I sit and eat with ds (3.7) every day at lunch. Then we all sit for evening meal at 6/6:30. Weekends we have ds(13) and he sits at the table with us as well. Actually its the only time he does sit at a table to eat and his manners are about at the same level as ds, though maybe thats a bit of the teenagerdom as well
Having come from New Zealand I too find the concept of tea at 4:30/5. We were always allowed a snack when we came home from school then had dinner at 6/6:30 which i have seemed to carry on in our house

should read "concept of tea strange "

It makes perfect sense to me for my children to eat at 5ish because then they are bathed and ready for bed at reasonable time. Believe me try getting 4 children bathed and ready for bed in time if they are having tea at 6/7. We both work so they have to eat lunch with there dad at weekends cause i'm at work and anyway there is only my 9yr old that will eat the same as us, the other children won't eat salsd or jacket potatoes also not enough room around table to accomodate us all at the moment, we are still waiting to move house because of a lack of space. Cat64 get in the real world, children do need sleep especially when they have school the next day, so sleeping later makes no difference because they have to be up anyway. I agree with elph, also we do need time to ourselves as parents and that time for me is when children are in bed, the children have a good bedtime routine and thats very important for them also!!

During the week we all eat breakfast together at around 7.30, ds goes to school dh goes to work so its just me and dd for lunch at around 12pm and then we all eat dinner together at about 4.30. we are lucky that dh can set his own hours for work so we can all eat together in the evening, he goes back to work at about 6/7 so he gets some quality time with the dcs the only time I make different things for everyone to eat is at breakfast but the rest of the time the dcs eat what we do. (I?m to lazy to make them separate dinners!) at the weekend tho we only eat 1 meal a day together usually a late lunch cos dh works nights over the weekend.

ooh, this took off!
I think I shall try hard to change what they eat for lunch and go for more, salady type things which I like to eat and then we will eat together more. The type of food I make for my dc is more 'proper meals' iykwim, all home made, healthy and mostly organic, but tbh I just don't fancy hot big meals at lunch time. (their lunches last week: Monday:baked salmon with mash and brocolli Tuesday: pesto chicken with risotto and green beans Wednesday: Pasta with smoked salmon, creme fraiche and peas Thursday: ZDippy eggs with toast and green beans (which actually I would fancy, just out of the habit!). They're still very small, but it is becoming easier and they are becoming more open minded about what they eat.
I forgot to say that we always eat breakfast together.
Think eating dinner together is off limits though as otherwise I would never get to see dh!!

Our DSs always eat at the table. Quite often it is just the two of them for breakfast during the week, unless DH is a bit later starting work. At the weekends we all eat breakfast together.

DS2 and I always have a sandwich together at lunchtime and the boys, DH and I always have dinner together at the table. We have always done this except perhaps when DS1 was first starting solids and needed to eat earlier. In the end though it didn't feel right that he always ate by himself so our current routine evolved as a result. We eat quite late by the standards of a lot of you - 6.30 - 7pm.

The only exception is Sunday when we have the main meal at lunch. The boys have their sandwich or whatever for tea at the table, early evening and DH and I have something on our lap in front of the telly after they have gone to bed. We feel like it is our treat!

Normally we eat the same things unless it is something particularly spicy. DS1 is beginning to get a taste for chilli but DS2 is still a bit young. It will come though, I'm sure.

BITCAT well i suppose horses for courses and all that. I come from a family of 8 children and we were all bathed and ready to eat at 6pm then all in our respective bedrooms by 7:30, younger ones went straight to sleep while the older ones read or played quietly in their rooms untill we were told lights out.
Though do admit to only having one ds during the week and then dss with us as well during the weekend so slightly easier
But all is quiet in our house by 8pm so dp and me still get our time.

I was going to reply as much as possible but DH sometimes home too late for evening meal. But then I realised many people include breakfast. It never really crossed my mind to include it.

I can't remember eating breakfast as a family when I was a child except on special occasions because with 5 people and 1 shower and school buses at different times, it just wasn't practical. Of course, my memories only go back to when I was old enough to get my own cereal. Often there would be someone else in the kitchen either eating or making their sandwiches.

Am repeating the same pattern now, DH prefers not to eat as soon as he wakes up so he showers while I eat breakfast with the DCs who like something straight away. DCs and I dress after breakfast while DH is eating. I am not depriving them of their father, he is a grunting caveman until the first coffee has kicked in!

This was one of the founding principles of our family, one of the very small handful of issues on which I would not and never have budged since we first knew we were expecting our first. We have always, and always will, eaten supper together. It is an opportunity to exchange information, laugh, tell jokes. We eat around 7:30 and the children used to go to bed shortly after when they were small.

I have not read the entire thread, forgive me. I should also mention that I grew up in France.

Also should say they have always eaten not just when we eat, but also what we eat. Always have. Less fuss, less cooking, potentially more appropriate foodstuffs. I've always thought it odd that some families have several sittings like a restaurant, with completely different food served. Not very convivial somehow.

We always eat at the table with DD sat between un in her high chair, 90% of the time shes eating the same as us.
Its nice to sit and talk away from the distractions of tv, phone, computer etc.

i love dining alone, the only time i get to myself. can also have odd lentilly concoctions that nobody else will touch. we do all eat together every meal fri-sun and if dh and ds are having the same food they eat together on weekdays.

We have scrapped the idea of a nightly bath which helps lots. DD now has a shower every other day when she does her hair too, and rest of time it is a wash at the sink. So we now have plenty of time between 6:30 (dinner time) and 7:30 (bedtime) for DH and DD to interact and play, and to fit in a bedtime story. Granted we only have one child which helps massively too I do homework and reading with her before dinner time, after school.

Always eat breakfast together. Lunch children are at school. Evening meal we eat about 5 pm. We have always eaten with the children and eaten the same food. I agree with Hurricane - if one parent is home late we feel it is much more important that the rest of the family all eat together, instead of children eating earlier and the parents together later.

If my husband is home late, the children and I eat together. Surely it's better for four out of five people to sit around a table together. Then as and when my husband arrives I will sit and chat to him while he eats his meal, and often the children will be in and out of the room too talking to us.

at eating every supper at 5 with children

No need to eat at 5. My 10 and 8 year olds don't get home from school until 5, they have a snack, then we eat together at 7.30ish. But this is the norm in France, where feeding children at 5 is just not done!

So what exactly is so wrong with sitting with your children in the evening when they are eating and then eating with your DH later ... why is it assumed that if you're not all "eating together", you've got your children sat eating whilst you're watching telly or similar?! I sit with my children but don't necessarily eat with them. My DDs are both starving and exhausted when they get home from school and nursery. They have their tea between 4 and 5 and have a bit of a play, bath and bed. In bed by 7 for youngest (she's only 18 mths) and 7.30 for oldest.

I can understand that some people might find the concept of "tea" weird, especially if they grew up in another country but it doesn't mean it's wrong.

We eat together at breakfast and lunch time where possible (eg if they're not at school). I cook the same food as much as possible but if we fancy lovely spicy curry, they're not going to have the same. (And they have excellent table manners.)

castille - by the way, I do like the idea of snack and then eating later ... think mine are just a bit too young at the mo.

The "go to bed later, wake up later" theory has never worked with mine. I just get grumpy kids.

wishingchair, I actually think that 'sitting with' children is very different to 'eating with' them. Eating with them allows them to see you eating a good range of food, the same food that they are eating. Otherwise it reinforces the idea of 'children's food' and 'adult food'. They can see how you eat and conduct yourself at the table. It's not quite the same if you're merely at the table with them. In your case it sounds like you do eat some meals together, but in many families the parents rarely eat with the children and I do find that sad.

Eating at 5 isn't a children thing with us, it's actually what we did before having children and we will continue to do long after the children have flown the nest. If we go out for a meal we like to sit down by 6 or 6.30 if we can find somewhere that serves food then!

We eat with our children most of the time. It depends on the schedule. When I work Tues-Thurs I skip breakfast and buy toast at work but DH eats with them. Mostly on the other days we all breakfast together, although one of us might have a lazy Sunday.

I eat lunch with DD on Monday and Friday, and with DS and DD on Saturday (DH at golf) and all of us on Sunday. We usually eat dinner together at some time between 6 and 6.30, nearer 6 if DD hasn't napped because she needs to be in bed earlier. If the DC have friends round we will eat seperately later.