When Moms Attack. Episode I: The Dinner Table

In our house, kids eat at the table only. They don't carry food through the house.
Family meals are for food and conversation. No television, no radio.

Kids can have snacks between meals, but they eat them sitting down, at the kitchen table.

It works.

Dinner has been and is together on the table - all the years I can remember. (With the exception, sometimes, that I eat my supper sandwiches in the kitchen, alone, but on the table, too.)

We eat dinner at the table most of the time (occasional exceptions).

Sozlet often eats breakfast in front of the TV, though (I wake up before her and eat breakfast first and bustle around with making her lunch and stuff while she's eating). That started before she could read, though, I should probably re-think it.

I have found that it is comfortable
to eat in bed (never any crackers nor crums),
sometimes while watching my HDTV.

When something is particularly flavorful,
I turn off the sound, and concentrate my fullest attention
to my sense of taste.





David

I do believe it is what you are used to. My husband and I grew up eating at the table so not eating at the table just does not appeal. I am sure if we grew up watching TV together while we ate we would think eating at the table sounded horrible. We cling to what is habit.

I love the idea of making mine sit at the table to eat snacks though...I just bet they would do better. AND I wouldn't find apple cores sitting on the side table. Yuck. They get in trouble for it...but it still happens...I wonder why I haven't done that before?

Typically because of our schedules - during the week the kids either eat at their grandparents (at a table) when school is out. When school is in - the two kids eat together (or else they would be eating at 8:30) - usually with one or both parents in the kitchen with them. I like to sit with them while they eat or I will be in the kitchen cleaning up. This gives us more time with the kids, reviewing their homework, playing a game, reading and other bedtime routines.

Once the kids are in bed, mom and dad cook a meal together and we have mommy and daddy alone time.

On the weekends we usually have family dinners at the table.

And we do not have any weight issues - just seems to work for our family.

My husband and I do that at least once a week. Feed the kids - sit and talk to them while they eat then put them to bed. We have a nice dinner and wine - without all the noise. It's a good thing I think.

I keep threatening to get rid of the tv. I did cancel the cable while the kids and hubby were out of town. Unfortunately we still get the channels they like even without the cable box. I've been trying to get rid of the damned thing since my husband and I moved in together.

And to the point of boomer's thread, it is the biggest problem we have with dinner too. The kids will come to the table but can still see the tv in the other room. You'd think I was abusing them the way they go on when I turn it off during meals.

As far as the TV, when we have family dinners, it is turned off.

here too. We did family dinners nightly at the kitchen table until a couple years ago when jobs, cars, boyfriends, friends, and everything else under the sun took priority over being at home. No TV, no answering the phone allowed during dinnertime.

I still tend to make dinner most nights and anyone who is here is welcome to eat. Generally for the girls, however, coming home includes a stop through some fast-food place or another. I still pull rank and call for family dinner occasionally but it needs to be scheduled days in advance.

OK, I'll come clean.
We often have dinner while watching TV.

Thank you, George! I don't feel quite so...... ummmm.... alone now.

Mr. B ususally doesn't get home from work until 7 PM so getting dinner ready, eating, cleaning, hustling Mo into the shower, me into the shower, getting the house calmed down, reading with Mo for a while..... the actual sitting down and eating in peace was getting lost in the shuffle.

I can tell it's going to take some effort to get everyone on the same timetable but I think it can be done.

Thank you all for your responses!

And I'm not saying we don't watch TV while eating - often my husband and I do - just when we have family dinners, we do not.

Family dinners are always the most peaceful time of day for me.

We all share the details of our day. Nothing's better than Bowring family time.

Growing up, we all ate together at the dining room table every night, and it was the most stressful, humiliating, and anger filled time of the day.

Today, I eat meals in whatever room I feel like eating them in. I read, watch TV and/or fed the cats part of my meal from a plate I'll put next to mine. I eat alone if I'm hungry before someone else is, or after if I'm not hungry when they are. I'll talk to someone while eating, or not talk.

Meals are very pleasurable today.

Good point - I can see family dinners being stressful. It shouldn't be - but if dinner rules are too strict, or discussions turn to arguments, yeah I wouldn't enjoy it either.

My kids seem to love it - they even ask for family dinners.

It's just normal for us...we laugh and talk and eat. Some nights are better than others but it's not stressful. I guess it could get that way...but I hope not. I will be as flexible as I can be - It is not a rule..it's just where we eat.

I don't remember it being stressful growing up either...unless I was made to eat liver....that was stressful. We don't eat liver. yuck.

What I do is pay attention to everyone's schedule, and then a day or two out when it looks like no one has anything pressing going on one night I will make sure. If I am right I will tell everyone that that night is a family diner. From that point on they must keep that hour or so free. As the kids get older and move out (1 is gone so far) and get more busy family meal happens less. I almost never get the resistance to them now that I once did.

So Chai Too is here, Yayyy.