Stupid question about sitting down to eat

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tell the 2yo she has to eat at the table. Put her in a high chair she can't get out of if she insists on wandering. Plate everyone's food (including yours!) in the kitchen and bring them all to the table at once. Add condiments when plating if you're restricting 5yo's ketchup portions? And eat as quickly as you can while at the table because someone will need something before you blink.

She would be highly offended to be strapped down. RRREAAAAAAAGHghh is an approximation of the noise she would make.

Yup, that was what mine did. After two days of getting up and then being strapped in immediately after, she stopped wandering. (I am highly motivated to keep eating to the table because we have carpeted floors.)

I guess I need to decide how badly I want this...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Feed the 4 month old before dinner is served. Get a harnessed booster for the chair and insist the 2 year old sit. Cut her food before you serve it to her. No wandering or sitting on you. You get the condiment and that's enough. Sounds like the 2 year old needs more food.

Do you mean give him the whole condiment container? He will eat directly from the container with a giant grin on his face. And the 2 year old loves eating butter.

[Anonymous]

I eat a hot meal first, then serve DH and kids. Works better than me getting cranky that my food is getting cold.

[Anonymous]

I sit the 2 year old in my lap and have him eat off my plate. It’s the only thing that has worked recently! DH runs interference with the older kids’ needs. The 2 year old also stands at a stool and “helps” while we load the dishwasher and clean the kitchen.

It passes!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have kids the same age. I think having the kids and one adult eat at the table at the same time is important and it cuts down on chaos. So I make sure kids and DH are all seated and I run the waiter triage. Need a drink, food cut, more condiments? I’m on it. When everyone reaches a happy point I sit down to eat too. Generally the rest of the family is still eating and about 75% done when I join them. I eat as they finish.

I just run my kitchen like a restaurant.

I did this too, but I hate the gender politics (womens needs don’t matter, serving husbands at table.

I don’t play a martyr and view it differently. My needs do matter and so do those of my family. Chaos at dinner turns me into a crazy person so I found a solution that works and implemented it. I’m teaching my kids to be creative thinkers and problem solvers. Also, I enjoy serving my family. But I out earn my husband by 5 times so he knows his place in the pecking order 😏

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At those ages our kids ate, then played while we cleaned up, then they were bathed (or not) and put to bed. THEN we ate. We were not really eating dinner with them on a regular basis until they were about six.

This. More people do this than you think. It also gave us some guaranteed adult time, and time to wind down during the week.

We ate together as a family on the weekend.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can you try family style? Have the food at the table and then have the kids plate themselves? I know it’s extra dishes, but family style helps a ton for our family. If your 5 year old wants ketchup or ranch or whatever, have them get it before sitting down. Or they can get up and get it from the fridge. How old is your 2year old? They are on the older side, I say they are old to understand “mommy needs to eat too, I’ll help you as soon as I eat” and maybe that’s only taking 4 bites before helping the 2 year old. Let them know that you also are a person and need to eat too and wants to ENJOY their food.

This is what I did when I had 5 young children. It does work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Make it a rule if it’s not on the table they don’t get it. If they want it on the table they put it there BEFORE you set the food on the table. Teach them to set the table, teaching independence is key to sanity even though it takes longer and seems harder at first.

THIS

[Anonymous]

Family style does help. Also look into a keekaroo chair instead of a high chair, both my kids loved them.

[Anonymous]

Don’t give the 2 year old her plate as you are plating.

Instead give the Kids jobs to get dinner ready.
It doesn’t have to be a big or critical job, but something like put a napkin at each place for the 2 year old.

The 5 year old can be the drink guru of dinner. Pouring out and refilling the cups of water from a pitcher.

The 5 year old can also be in charge of getting out all the condiments while you are prepping dinner.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I eat a hot meal first, then serve DH and kids. Works better than me getting cranky that my food is getting cold.

I do this especially when I am running dinner time alone (with a 4 year old and 11 month old). I will eat my plate first when it is piping hot (quickly) and then move into plating theirs because it will have cooled down at that point. Then I sit at the table with them to manage their meal.

And I would give a normal amount of condiment and then put it away and that's that. Your meal is not ketchup, and you need to learn how to eat properly (and I say that as a total ketchup addict.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tell the 2yo she has to eat at the table. Put her in a high chair she can't get out of if she insists on wandering. Plate everyone's food (including yours!) in the kitchen and bring them all to the table at once. Add condiments when plating if you're restricting 5yo's ketchup portions? And eat as quickly as you can while at the table because someone will need something before you blink.

She would be highly offended to be strapped down. RRREAAAAAAAGHghh is an approximation of the noise she would make.

Yup, that was what mine did. After two days of getting up and then being strapped in immediately after, she stopped wandering. (I am highly motivated to keep eating to the table because we have carpeted floors.)

Exactly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ooof you have three young kids. Sorry, but I think you are still a ways away from a calm, warm family dinner. Simplify and lower your expectations? One day you’ll be sitting around the table with a bunch of adults missing the chaos.

This!

[Anonymous]

5 years old is old enough to start helping set the table at least to get things like cutlery and condiments especially if they are a big ketchup feind they would be motivated to put it on the table.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Feed the 4 month old before dinner is served. Get a harnessed booster for the chair and insist the 2 year old sit. Cut her food before you serve it to her. No wandering or sitting on you. You get the condiment and that's enough. Sounds like the 2 year old needs more food.

Do you mean give him the whole condiment container? He will eat directly from the container with a giant grin on his face. And the 2 year old loves eating butter.

Seriously? A five year old should know better. Teach him.