How do you plan your evening after nursery?

[1dilemma]

I posted this in parenting a couple of weeks ago and got some good responses so please don't be cross if you think I'm asking the same question over and over!

I'm trying to work out what to do when we got home from nursery/school.
Oldest is in yr 1 and youngest 18 months. DO you cook a meal or give a snack (what?) or nothing? what time is bedtime? does everyone go at the same time? bath for everyone?

we are currently feeding everyone a meal despite little one having had a cooked lunch and a tea (sometimes beans on toast/scrambled egg) and I think it is too much food and everyone is too tired.

Just trying to work out how to make everyone happy, thanks

Does it matter what anyone else does? Honestly? Do what feels right for you!

Nursery tend to feed ours a main meal (usually roast dinner, lucky sods) at lunchtime, and then something known as "nursery tea" at our house, usually fruit, sandwiches and cake. On the days dd (age 2) is there, I usually give her something before bed, jam butty or cake, occasionally chips if I'm having any with my dinner!! she thinks this is great (apart from the chips) along with a milkshake, cup of tea or hot chocolate or whatever.
Ours all get bathed at 6:30, ds1 in yr3 is allowed to stay up 'late' [what a con, he goes to bed by 8pm!!] whilst the other two age 5 & 2 go to bed at 7, and as they are usually completely knackered they fall straight to sleep after their drinks and story. ds1 gets to watch some nature or science type thing on tv (his fave) or read with me, just so he is treated as 'older' than the other two.

gawd that does not make sense...
sorry

but ilove what I posted was that what we do isn't working and I would value some ideas from others.

I'm not trying to 'copy' people in some weird 8 year old girl in playground way

giggle makes sense to me thanks do you eat at 7ish then?

unfortunately we can't seem to get our mealtime 'right' (i'm permanently starving anyway)
The boys get their evening meal at 5ish, with whoever has got them, 3 days a week it's a granny. We found that if they get it any later, they are so tired that they can't eat properly. When it's me giving them their meal, on my days off / early finishes, then i eat with them. And often regret it tbh, but that is another story!! I'd rather get my meal in relative peace, later! One day a week my mum tends to cook teh evening meal for around 5.30, I get dd from nursery and we all eat at mum's house, but we only give dd the tiniest of portions or a yogurt, and her dessert.
Once you find something that works for you, regiment it (ok may sound bad) and stick to it. Things get much much easier.

DD2 is 19 mo. DSs are 17 and 21.

We get home from work/ school/ nursery just before 5pm. We have dinner at about 6pm, and despite having had dinner at 12.30 and tea at 4pm DD will still eat our dinner as well.

She doesn't always get a bath because DH works nights. She and I go to bed around 10pm -10.30pm (obviously not tonight..we are just about to go up )

Hi - my two (9 months and 3) have lunch and "tea" at nursery (tea at 3pm) so I always give them something else at about 5pm. It is something light and I use it as a way of getting more fruit and veg into DD.
DH and I don't eat until 8pm when they are in bed. He doesn't get in until 5.50 and thie bath is at 6.15 so we don't eat together in the week.

We get home about 6 (me and dd 2.6) but has been the same since she was 18 months. I cook a meal which we eat at about 7pm. On nights my husband is not back it is a real struggle as she is quite ratty by then so is hard to prepare something decent. After dinner we normally play for a while then its bath at roughly 8pm and in bed by about 8.30. A lot of friends/ family find it really shcking that she goes to bed so late but if she did not we would have no real quality time together other than at the weekend and I think that a sit down family meal is so important. She has a tea at nursery similar to what other posters have said so some days she doesn't eat much other days she wolves down what I've cooked. As she's eaten I don't worry too much about quantity but is a good chance for her to learn table manners (yeh right!) and to eat a variety of different foods.

When I was working we got in at 6.15pm and I would put some kind of food on table - reheated leftovers or sandwiches / egg on toast. They dd (3) and dd (1) often don't want it but occasionally scoff the lot. I feed them because it feels like an important part of mothering them to me - but to be honest we could prob skip that bit most nights. They would then have a bath at about 6.40pm after which dd1 is stuck in front of TV and I get dd2 to bed then dd1.

We now also have ds1 in the mix but as I'm on maternity leave I start the whole thing rolling at 5.30pm and it is sooo much easier and more fun. [not looking forward to going back to work emoticon]

When DS gets in from nursery he gets to watch telly while I cook or get other stuff done (when he was littler I'd have him in a highchair in the kitchen with me). He has a drink and a small snack.

Usually we all have a meal at 7 when DP gets in, then it's bath/bedtime. As it's later, DS is hungry enough by then. Sometimes though, eg if we're going out or want to eat later, I give him a snack tea on his own (crackers, cheese, cucumber, apple, hummous etc). Both work pretty well. But after nursery he is tired and has eaten a lot and I don't worry if he won't eat much.