Do you sit around the dinner table with your kids?

Do you and your kids sit at a table together for dinner?

  • Yes, 6-7 days a week

    Votes: 28 59.6%

  • Yes, 4-5 days a week

    Votes: 9 19.1%

  • Yes, 2-3 days a week

    Votes: 6 12.8%

  • Yes, 1 day a week

    Votes: 1 2.1%

  • No, we do not sit around a table together for dinner

    Votes: 3 6.4%
  • Total voters
    47
When the kids were at home, we all ate at the table. At least those whom were at home at dinner time. With all of the after school activities, it normally pushed our supper time to 7-7:30pm. Now it is just the wife and I most of the time, we do not eat at the table, usually living room on TV trays or what ever you call those small folding tables are call. On Sundays all the kids, son in laws and grandkids come over for dinner. Everyone sits arounds the tables to eat.
 
Dinner is always together, always at the table. If someone isn't there bc of some activity they miss out, rest still do.
And it's not just that we sit in the same place.... We talk. I ask the kids what happened at school, wife may talk about something crazy at her work, often some random niche sciencey question comes up like "why can't you hear a fart in space". And that's the only time a phone is allowed.... To Google the answer or find more to share w the others.

The exception is Fridays or occasionally Sat, which is movie night (or lately we've been working through The Simpsons), that's the only time we'll eat while watching TV.
 
Growing up we are at the table as a family every night, and you ate whatever was made, no special requests for anything, and if you didn't like it you still had to sit at the table and you went to bed hungry. I'm 40 to put that in perspective. We don't have kids, but my wife and I eat at the table every night, no TV on and phone only if we have to look something up or show each other something, even when either one of us aren't here we usually eat at the table.
 
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We cook 99% of our meals and try to time each other's to be done at near the same time (wife is allergic to many foods as well as soy, so different surfaces and pans are needed). Usually do so 3 times a week. When we meal prep or have leftovers, it may be a case of heat something up and alternate time at the table.
Growing up, my family ate together in the living room while my folks watched the news. It was my Dad's unwind time.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Dinner is always together, always at the table. If someone isn't there bc of some activity they miss out, rest still do.
And it's not just that we sit in the same place.... We talk. I ask the kids what happened at school, wife may talk about something crazy at her work, often some random niche sciencey question comes up like "why can't you hear a fart in space". And that's the only time a phone is allowed.... To Google the answer or find more to share w the others.
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This.

We also eat on the early side (6pm), so movie night starts after dinner, with popcorn for dessert.
 
gslander said:
Growing up we are at the table as a family every night, and you are whatever was made, no special requests for anything, and if you didn't like it you still had to sit at the table and you went to bed hungry. I'm 40 to put that in perspective.
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It was the same here. "This isn't a restaurant."

I wanted to be the same. Then our first child had a bona fide eating disorder from the ages of 2.5 to about 5. Like almost had to have a feeding tube. We had to give up on that to just get him to eat anything. Luckily that resolved itself with HGH treatment.
Once they were older we stayed pretty firm with it and now they are fairly open-minded about food.
You get what was made, if you don't like it you can deal with it, no snacks later unless you eat most of each thing served.
 
RatLabGuy said:
It was the same here. "This isn't a restaurant."

I wanted to be the same. Then our first child had a bona fide eating disorder from the ages of 2.5 to about 5. Like almost had to have a feeding tube. We had to give up on that to just get him to eat anything. Luckily that resolved itself with HGH treatment.
Once they were older we stayed pretty firm with it and now they are fairly open-minded about food.
You get what was made, if you don't like it you can deal with it, no snacks later unless you eat most of each thing served.
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Our rule is, "three bites, no complaints." They have to give it a real try, which almost always wins them over. If they really don't like it, they can choose to abstain but not be rude about it.

Three bites with the 3-yo tonight, she said, "This is good on the inside." :lol: It was a beef and cheese burrito.
 
RatLabGuy said:
It was the same here. "This isn't a restaurant."


You get what was made, if you don't like it you can deal with it, no snacks later unless you eat most of each thing served.
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Slight spin off on this, I seriously didn't even know you could custom order food from restaurants, especially fast food, until I was seriously a Sr in high school. If we went out for a hot dog for example you got a Chicago style hot dog with everything on it (area where I grew up) and if you didn't like anything "pick it off" was the answer lol!!

I still don't custom order food as an adult unless I'm at a medium to high end restaurant and even then that's very rare.
 
trailhugger said:
Our rule is, "three bites, no complaints." They have to give it a real try, which almost always wins them over. If they really don't like it, they can choose to abstain but not be rude about it.

Three bites with the 3-yo tonight, she said, "This is good on the inside." :lol: It was a beef and cheese burrito.
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We used to call it the "No Thank You" bites. Also 3, lol.
As they got older so did the minimum bite size.

... bc for the teenager now a "bite" is like half of a thing. I swear he must not even chew to fit in so much.
 
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