Is it at all feasible to no longer allow eating in the car if you are the one driving the children?

[Anonymous]

My car used to be disgusting so I banned food. The kids complained for a couple days and then forgot about it. My husband can eat in his own car.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Less messy foods. Goldfish, popcorn, etc.

Are these examples of less messy foods...??

[Anonymous]

I got a brand new minivan last year and I’m proud to say it looks new. We clean it regularly, but we also rarely eat in the car. If ever. That includes 2x a year 12 hour road trips.

We just l...don’t eat in the car.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have 3 kids. They have never eaten in the car. Ever. The only thing they have ever had to drink in it is water. Somehow they have survived.

OP here. It would be easier if we’d always had the rule, but we didn’t, so really I’m asking about the feasibility of correcting a bad habit. So far so good! There have been some grumbles and complaints but I am standing firm so far. My husband is not with me. Every time we leave a game, he says - maybe we should just grab a quick meal on the way home. This is because he skips lunch and rushes out the door to catch the game so is starving. I still bring a snack bag , I just ask they eat it outside the car before we get in. Wish me luck!

[Anonymous]

What if your husband got a sandwich to eat at the game. Wouldn't that be nicer for him than eating on his lap. I think having your family not eat MEALs in the car is a great move anyway. That's just not an enjoyable way to fuel.

[Anonymous]

My kids have never been allowed to eat in the car. Ever. In our day to day there was never a reason why the needed to be eating in the car vs. at home or where we were going. On longer trips we were stopping to eat as a family. Drives me nuts these kids who are always eating some sort of snack on the go. And people wonder why obesity is an epidemic. And why their car is a shit box.

[Anonymous]

We don't allow food in the car. Kids are 8, 6, and 3.5.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids have never been allowed to eat in the car. Ever. In our day to day there was never a reason why the needed to be eating in the car vs. at home or where we were going. On longer trips we were stopping to eat as a family. Drives me nuts these kids who are always eating some sort of snack on the go. And people wonder why obesity is an epidemic. And why their car is a shit box.

Wow. Judgmental much?

My 3 year old eats in the car. No one in our family is even close to obese. Our cars are clean because we clean them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have 3 kids. They have never eaten in the car. Ever. The only thing they have ever had to drink in it is water. Somehow they have survived.

OP here. It would be easier if we’d always had the rule, but we didn’t, so really I’m asking about the feasibility of correcting a bad habit. So far so good! There have been some grumbles and complaints but I am standing firm so far. My husband is not with me. Every time we leave a game, he says - maybe we should just grab a quick meal on the way home. This is because he skips lunch and rushes out the door to catch the game so is starving. I still bring a snack bag , I just ask they eat it outside the car before we get in. Wish me luck!

Why are you afraid of change? "Hey guess what everybody! New car, new rules. No more eating in the car! We're going to keep this car NICE."

[Anonymous]

HA!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
After the Great Chocolate Incident, there was no eating in the car for many years, until one of my kids needed to lunch en route between her Saturday activities. When I saw how careful she was, I reauthorized eating in the car. My kids are tweens and teens.

Haha, we had a Great Chocolate Incident too. Ours involved a Mr. Goodbar and a glove compartment. There has also been a Banana Incident. We still eat in the car but try to be more diligent about making sure everything comes back out with us as soon as we finish the given journey. I'd rather have a banana in my purse for awhile while looking for a trashcan than rotting in the back passenger-door cubby. But yes, it's kind of crazy how much we eat in cars. DH is European and finds it completely bizarre. I've been doing it since I was a teenager, though, and will never want to give up the occasional enjoyment of eating hot french fries out of a paper bag alongside a milkshake (or even better, a Frosty).