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Original poster

If your family all eat dinner together at what time do you do it?

37 replies

Flum · 06/05/2008 17:04

My kids are 4 and nearly 2. I usually feed them at 5 ish. Then DH and I eat about 8.30pm.

I would lurrrrrve to cook just one meal and then close the kitchen but DH just isn't hungry earlier.

At weekends I sometimes persuade him to do an early meal at say 6 or 6.30pm.

I have tried a few combinations. I think the ideal for me would be 6pm so I could get the kids ready for bed then dinner all together then pop them into bed.

It should work for us as DH works from home but I can't seem to get him really into it.

I want the family thing and the less work thing. Would it be awful for me to just announce that dinner will be at 6pm on say 3 nights a week and him have to lump it.

I don't really want to force it on him as I ain't his mum but maybe I should just introduce it for a trial period and hipe he likes it.

Maybe I should just make it 7pm and get the kids to bed later....

OP posts:

mankyscotslass · 06/05/2008 17:08

Dh is usually home by 6 so I do tea for us all then. I have a 5yr old, 4 year old and a 2 year old. Dh is not that keen on eating that early, but does it for the sake of sitting as a famliy. It's also cheaper and healthier for us as he tends to want take away if we don't do that! It's a bit of a rush to eat and get the kids in bed, but at least this way we arent starting over with tea later on, and we get some nice time together.

VanillaPumpkin · 06/05/2008 17:10

5.30pm. DH walks in the door and we eat.
Make him do it. He will get used to it .
Only prob is when we go out for a meal we are starving way before the table is booked for. Doesn't happen often though .

BettySpaghetti · 06/05/2008 17:14

We tend to eat together around 5.30-6.30 ish. That way once the children are in bed we are free to unwind and don't have to start cooking for the second time.

QueenMeabhOfConnaught · 06/05/2008 17:14

7pm - but my children are 11 and 8.

VictorianSqualor · 06/05/2008 17:15

I do dinner for 6pm, DP gets in then so it is ready almost as soon as he walks in the door, he'll let me know if he is going to be late.
I'd tell DH that dinnertime is something you believe to be important to share as a family, plus are fed up cooking two meals so it will now be at 6pm.
He shall have to eat less at lunchtime, and have a snak at supper if he is hungry later.

brimfull · 06/05/2008 17:15

6-6:30

dc's are 5 and 16

FluffyMummy123 · 06/05/2008 17:16

Message withdrawn

francagoestohollywood · 06/05/2008 17:18

We eat together at 7, it's incredibly early for an Italian family, but having lived in the UK for quite a long time, we came to this compromise

Original poster

Flum · 06/05/2008 17:19

ahh Cod great answer, praps we should eat separately. My friend has dinner with kids and then leaves her DHs for him to have on his own later!

I think that is a bit tough.

Mind you if he is away I always eat with kids or just have cereal in bed at 9pm hee hee

Its nto the eating together thing I am so bothered about its the not having to come down from putting kids to bed and get another meal ready.

OP posts:

VanillaPumpkin · 06/05/2008 17:19

Oh I LOVE my child free meals. I savour them!
I sometimes cook a curry on a Friday (or takeway) and we eat later without children and it is bliss.

FluffyMummy123 · 06/05/2008 17:19

Message withdrawn

Original poster

Flum · 06/05/2008 17:20

I'm going to go for family dinner on Mondays, Fridays and Sundays and kids v grown up dinners on the other days. That way everyone is a winner eh!

OP posts:

FluffyMummy123 · 06/05/2008 17:20

Message withdrawn

Original poster

Flum · 06/05/2008 17:21

Tea at 6pm for all makes me think of the 1950s for some reason.

OP posts:

Mercy · 06/05/2008 17:21

Weekends and holidays only I'm afraid (the children love it though)

BecauseImWorthIt · 06/05/2008 17:23

We eat later, sometimes not even till after 8 pm, but my boys are 16 and 13!

Why don't you give them a snack - like an afternoon tea - to keep them going, so that you can eat a bit later, altogether, with DH. I'm with him I'm afraid - I wouldn't be ready to eat that early.

BananaPudding · 06/05/2008 17:23

I do dinner around 5:30, if dh isn't hungry he doesn't have to eat, but I would be shocked if he actually expected me to prepare a whole other meal for him later on! If he wants to eat later than the rest of the family he can heat it up later or fix himself something else. FGS I can't imagine fixing two evening meals, would drive me crazy. DH is an adult, he can feed himself if he doesn't want it when it's offered.

Rhubarb · 06/05/2008 17:24

6pm. Usually because that's when dh gets back from work and the kids have let off steam after school.

We all eat together at the kitchen table.

I think it's important. Eating.

RosaLuxembourg · 06/05/2008 17:24

We try to all sit down together and eat at 6pm. Tonight it will be 6.45pm as it is roast pork and I only just got it into the oven a few minutes ago (forgot to factor in after-school clubs). When the children were younger we did often feed them first and eat later, but as DH works from home it makes sense to do this - and it is nice to all sit round and discuss our day.

FluffyMummy123 · 06/05/2008 17:25

Message withdrawn

OhYouBadBadKitten · 06/05/2008 17:27

We do 6pm, dh gets in just before then. I quite often have a meeting at 7pm so it works well for us. I like eating together. We are all so busy so quite often its the best chance we get to talk. Also have breakfast all together but we tend not to talk then, we grunt.

BananaPudding · 06/05/2008 17:28

Yes Cod you're right there usually is a bit of "it's chicken, you like chicken, eat the chicken, no you cannot have a coke drink your water" etc. I still wouldn't want to cook twice! Or plan two meals. Urg and clean twice.

OhYouBadBadKitten · 06/05/2008 17:28

lol Cod - sounds a bit indigestion making!

Rhubarb · 06/05/2008 17:29

We develop selective hearing at the tea table.

VictorianSqualor · 06/05/2008 17:29

Lol Cod, I wouldn't have thought you were th type to put up with multiple toilet breaks

I think maybe the reason we eat dinner together is because once it was just me and DD, so we ate the same thing, together, as she grew up I got DS1 and DP, and now DS3(though I try not to feed him at dinnertimes, it's hard eating and bfing, especially if you need to cut something) so whoever came along jsut had to fit into when I cooked dinner, if it had been me and DP eating after work etc first, before DC's I'd imagine it could be different.

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