Currently, my 2 small kids eat a seperate dinner to me and my wife. And because I’m trying to run a caloric deficit, my dinner is usually more veggies and less rice/main dish than my wife. My wife is adamant that most families eat the exact same dinner, and she’s pushing for us to make that change.
My question is : do you all have the exact same dinner as your other family members, or is there some difference? I’m trying to work out if this is a hill worth dying on…
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I eat a different dinner, to some degree, of the rest of my family. I’m more of a weekday vegetarian, whereas my husband eats meat, so I’ll usually end up with a tofu version of the main he’s eating. I also eat less rice, but that’s doctor’s orders at the moment. I definitely eat the same veggies, maybe even a larger amount. When the kiddo is here and eating solid food, they’ll most likely be eating the same meal as my husband unless they have a preference or interest in what I’m eating. But that’s at least a year off.
I would assume the kids are eating different portions than you and your wife, making them eat until they get sick isn’t great either.
We don’t, but many dishes from most of our meals are the same.
My wife usually cooks so it’s similar food but we have different taste so I get less rice and more meat and veggies – but I usually can tell her if I want to eat something else and she is fine with it. Maybe your wife has some other concerns: maybe she is thinking about that your kids might also want a special treatment if you get one? You should be able to eat what you want, same for her…
Yes, we all eat the same food. But I usually eat more.
I make the same meal, but with slight variations to accommodate personal tastes where I can. Both children prefer uncooked veggies. My daughter doesn’t eat soups, so her noodles are served dry. My son only eats fish, so if we have chicken I make a little shrimp in the same recipes for him. But essentially we eat the same meals.
“You don’t get to regulate what I put in my body, thanks”
There are differences. Kids (teens) are more on rice and fried stuff etc, I’m more on the veggie path for now.
Dinner is a variation of rice and miso soup with lots of vegetables, and a meat or fish, because everybody agrees on this.
Lunches can be very different, breakfasts too.
Magic words “doctor stop.” Just say your doctor has ordered you to lose weight by cutting down rice and eating more veggies. Like if you get diabetes is she still going to make you eat a mound of rice?
We eat the same thing, but it’s all “deconstructed,” so that parent and kid can be accommodated. This means like if we make taco rice (toddler favorite!) all the components are in different bowls and each person can choose how much or little of whatever to add. My husband goes heavy on the meat, light on the rice, I go heavy on the shredded lettuce (love a crunch), and toddler follows whatever her toddler whim is that day (only meat? Only rice? Will she add salsa? Will she merely sniff it and walk away? WHO KNOWS!)
This is especially true if we make something spicy or “weird.”
You could always eat three quarters of the meal and let the kids take the rest? Or eat a lighter lunch and breakfast to make room for the full dinner.
Mostly of the time all the same . I remember how difficult was for my mom when she had to cook special for my picky brother.
So if she wants to drink alcohol you and the kids also have to drink it too?
Eating the same thing and eating different amounts is different.
I don’t think we’ve ever thought about it. We cook, we eat. Sometimes it varies among us, sometimes it doesn’t.
We are not picky or have any dietary requirements. Toddler is always wants to eat the same as we do so it’s a no brainer that we eat the same meals. She’s more likely to try new foods this way rather than eating a separate meal. In regards to rice, we just serve ourselves from the rice cooker and get exactly how much we want and no one cares.
Sounds like time for a family meeting.
Learn what people like, accept, don’t like, hate or are allergic to.
Base meal time around consensus, introduce variety periodically: “Usually it’s like this but today it’s like *this*, what do think? Yum or yuck? Did you notice this taste/texture or that taste/texture (or something different)? Right? There are lots of different foods, right?”
Meanwhile, maybe the missus is tired, maybe she needs more help/support/ideas in the kitchen. Maybe she needs ***your*** input/effort? Family life is awesome, but there’s no “one pattern”. Teach trial and error, experimentation, focus on praise, explore interests and explain/educate to the kids. It can be frustrating but it can also be a whole lot of fun!
As long as you aren’t expecting anyone else to make you a separate meal on top of whatever else they might be preparing, I can’t see why this would be an issue.
Mind you, I’ve somewhat recently been diagnosed with a condition that means I have to be cautious about eating certain things, and it’s still made into an issue sometimes, even after I stated the above. So good luck!
I did when I was in the Uk. Every night and we would sit around the dining room table and eat together. We would start eating at the same time and we would leave when everyone had finished.
Here, I have never eaten with a family that really cares as much as my family did back home, including my Japanese wife’s family.
Probably depends on the family, all over the world.
Theres no reason why you cant have the same meal in different proportions though.
I’m vegetarian, my wife isn’t. We usually eat the same meals, but a few days a week we have different sides for the meat/protein portion. The kids can have whichever one they prefer. It’s no problem at all.
I have trouble getting my 6yo and 3yo to eat 100% the same meal any given day of the week, so there’s that. Neither mind their veggies, it’s just that they can’t agree on which veggies are acceptable.
I may or may not be eating the same thing as them, depending on how much of it I actually made that day versus how much was microwaved from leftovers and frozen chicken nuggets because I was short on time. My wife’s often delayed by school things, so we may be done by the time she gets home.
So, um, no. It’s nice when the stars align and we can all eat the same thing, but it’s more of a blue moon event in this apartment.