Do you or did you eat dinner with your children?

[RedRobyn2021]

DD is 3 and we always have eaten breakfast lunch and dinner at the table together (unless she's at preschool then she has lunch there). This does mean dinner for her has been quite late so she could eat with her dad when he's home for 5:45/6

I've noticed a lot of parents don't do this, that their kids eat early and then the parents eat later

Just wondering what other people's set up is and why you've chosen that way

During the week the kids (3&8) have dinner around 6pm, youngest has tea at nursery at 4pm so rarely wants more than toast or cereal. DH and I eat around 8pm, often something more complex than they’d eat.

At the weekend we try to eat lunch together, and I’m trying to involve them more in the process so they can try new things, but it’s so difficult. They’re both quite picky and the 8yo has a small appetite so never really wants much. I envy people with foodie kids!

DH used to get home at 6:30 and we would all eat together then. My son asked why we had to eat together when he was about 13 and I told him it was an opportunity for us all to see each other and find out about each other’s days and to check in. Years later his GF was helping him set the table and commented how she loved that we all ate together as her family didn’t. But I suppose it’s a case of the grass being greener. It’s easy to think that your DC are ok, in their rooms on their devices, all eating separately but they are still children needing guidance and support.

About twice a week. I prefer eating with my husband later but if I've made a family meal we all can eat, we will eat together.

Always eaten together and the same meal. The only exception was two days a week when DS went to after-school club and he had tea there so he just had a snack at home later. That was only for two years though when he was 4/5 and then he moved to a new school and they didn't do that anymore.
Even now he's 16 we eat together most evenings. Sometimes he's out with friends so reheats his when he gets home.
I've always considered it very important as we share our day over food and sometimes it's the only opportunity we get for a chat.

No, not when the DC were young as DH would typically not be home until 7 ish which was a bit late for them. We do now they're teens.

We rarely ate together. I was never hungry when she was, but we never ate together as a family when I was a kid. Maybe me and sister did but my parents ate at different times. I’m weird but I prefer it that way, I like eating at my own pace and not feeling forced to make conversation .

You could tell them not to speak with their mouth full and to not slurp, slush, sniff and gulp. Or you could just leave them feral.

DD is 2.5
B- don't normally eat together or the same things
L- one of us often eats with her and sometimes the same or similar
D- one or both (depending on DP shifts) aways eats with her and we have the same thing. Dinner is 5pm or occasionally very slightly later as she is in bed at 6:30pm currently.

I dont have children.
But the parenting ive seen over the years feral kids sound tame.

My kids want to eat beige food ( and pizza)

When DD was tiny she had never tasted beige food, so she never knew any different. It wasn't until she had started school and been to parties at soft play that she got to eat it.

School days kids eat at 4ish and sometimes I eat with them otherwise me and dp eat later after 7 once he's home from work

Weekend we all eat together

If you can possibly eat dinner together, do so. It's great for family bonding.

DD is 2.5 and loves her beige food or pizza, sometimes we have that for dinner- fish fingers and chips tonight, sometimes we have curry/stir fry/stew etc and sometimes she will try that (might even eat all of it) sometimes she won't. I just make sure she has a safe food on the plate (often bread) so I know she has eaten something.
If I only ever served her beige food then that's all she would eat?

🤣🤣

I wish we ate together more, but the idea of dinner at 4.30pm honestly blows my mind- that's mid afternoon here!

My dp was often home very late when mine were small. I used to sit with them and have a cup of tea/glass of wine while they had tea, then had my dinner with dp when he came home.

Yes we eat as a family, nice time to get together and have a chat about the day.

When my kids were in primary school they had tea at five o'clock. My husband had a long commute and didn't get home until after seven at this time in our lives.

By the time they were teenagers he had moved to a different job and got home around six so we all used to eat together then.

We very rarely eat together; we have 2 DC aged 3 and 7 and they eat at about 5 which is far too early for DH and I. We still sit at the table with them and have the TV off and have a chat, we just eat our dinner at 7-7.30 once the kids are asleep. As they get older and their bedtimes get later, we’ll start eating together but this is currently what works for us and I like that we still get to chat and have a catch up but I don’t have to eat dinner so early!

We always eat dinner together. Sometimes lunch, rarely breakfast.

We’ve always eaten together around 6.30 pm, since DC were babies.

DD is only one but we all eat together. Hope to continue this as she grows older.

I wish we ate together more, but the idea of dinner at 4.30pm honestly blows my mind- that's mid afternoon here!

Yes, it's far too early for me. DD used to have a snack to keep her going.

In the week, I leave for work before everyone gets up and I just have a glass of water in the kitchen (we eat all family meals in our kitchen). DD12 gets up at 7 usually so she has her breakfast alone but if she starts school at 9 instead of 8 then she gets up at 8 and has breakfast with DS11 and DH. DCs eat lunch at school on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. On Wednesdays, DD had lunch with DH (I'm at work) and DS has a packed lunch at his afternoon activity. Every evening and for lunch and dinner at weekends we all eat together except on Thursdays when I play sport in the evening so I miss dinner.

Mealtimes are great, we have a laugh together and catch up on our days, etc.

Ate with the chi!dren about 6ish every evening, except Saturday, when they would have an early tea, and DH and I would have a later dinner of perhaps steak and wine.... It was our 'date night'!