What time do you and your family sit down for your evening meal?

Lunar_Eclipse

Guinea wrote: »

I'll echo Lunar Eclipse's comments. I am also surprised & happy that families still sit down together for their evening meal no matter what the time. I'm a teacher & I once asked children whether they sat down as a family for their evening meal. The response was only four out of twenty eight children. It made me so upset but this thread has made me happy that this one family time has not died out.....yet! Lol

Hopefully the statistics would be better than 4/28 at the weekend.;)

Also, I think there is probably a link between the types and seniority of jobs parents do and hours worked, both of which will usually come with positives and negatives on family life(style), so hopefully the children in your class experience some different upsides to daily family meals, as important as they are. I'm just pleased we both see our children every day, since so many parents don't have that luxury.

Lunar_Eclipse

mildred1978 wrote: »

I don't understand this obsession with getting children into bed at 7pm. I know (most nights) that once asleep LO will stay asleep for at least 10 hours, usually 12. Does it matter what hours those are? My son is happy and healthy, and I don't think 2 20-30 minute naps per day are a problem. 1 year olds can easily sleep up to 15 hours per day.

How exactly would I have been able to drive 20 miles to pick my husband up at 9pm last night if my son had been tucked up in bed since 7pm?

No, of course it doesn't matter what hours your son sleeps as long as he gets enough sleep and it works for your family. Personally, I think you're doing the right thing. Culturally however, you are adopting a more European approach to his sleeping, which for whatever reason, is not 'the norm' here. Logic would say that you are adopting the optimum bedtime routine actually.

Now that my children are a bit older and I'm sadly way past the 'love spending every minute with my one very easy toddler', I need some time alone after they're in bed as well as time together with my husband. Also, we now need to get up for school and DH rises early so needs to be in bed by 10pm latest. I'd much rather it could be different though!

As with everything vaguely child related, do what works for you (all), since that is all any and every parent does.

oasisfeverish

We have a 3 1/2 year old and try to sit down with her and eat together everyday between 5 - 7pm, depends on my work though and when I get in, if it's too late then the OH and LO will eat together. The rare occasion we put LO to bed and then as one is reading her a story the other one starts the cooking.

I meal plan every Sunday for the week ahead, so we always know what to have each night. This works for us as stops us buying stuff we already have in the freezer.

When I was at home, mum always cooked and we sat at 6.30 as dad finished at 6 and home 5 mins later.

zcrat41

Me and hubby around 6pm in the winter. I finish work at 4.30 ish and by the time I've come home and cooked that's when it is.

We both work on my parents farm in the summer so Mum cooks for us and tea can be anything from 4pm 12pm depending on harvest!

We both grew up always eating together as a family and we will continue that. The only argument will be that OH's family have their big meal at lunch and we have ours at tea! We both think our way is the best!

sharloid

The OH and I have tea at about 10pm as that's when he gets in from work and we like to eat together!

annasoper

My OH and I sit down for our meals around 6:45 - 7 pm. I like to eat early, he doesn't but he has to because of me

welshsue

We sit down together and eat tea at 5pm (any later and my 2 kids (4 & 13) are starving and looking for snacks). This is the time for us all to get together and discuss our day. It is quite early but little one in bed at 7.30 latest as at full time school and gets tired. Hubby and eldest usually have a snack supper later as well.

Buttonmoons

My daughter had a sleeping routine like your son Mildred, she used to go to bed about 10pm, sometimes later (which was annoying when she started nursery) but she is like me and naturally more awake at night times, thankfully she went to afternoon nursery! She used to sleep 12hours, so 10pm - 10am. Was great!

Now she just started school and you'd think the world was ending :rotfl: She hates getting up at 8am, even though I did introduce this over the summer, she's going to bed earlier, but being the lazy moo she is, sometimes has a nap after school and I can't wake her up for heaven nor hell, so then bedtime ends up around 9pm....

Sort itself out

Oh and we eat around 5:30pm

onlyroz

aliasojo wrote: »

That's what supper is for.

Don't talk to me about supper :mad:

My parents always eat at 5pm - a relic from the days when mum was a teacher. She'd get in at 4:45 and demand her dinner because she was "starving". My dad was self-employed and worked at home, but woe-betide him if he was late putting dinner on the table.

As a result of their early dinner time, they're starving again by 9pm and so have another meal, which they call "supper". No wonder mum's so fat...