I see dinner as a family moment and really try to maintain that as much as possible. Yet eating with the family regularly proves to be a mission impossible for many. Research shows that 89% of the Dutch consider family dinner to be very important, but that there are many reasons why this goal often ends differently than hoped. This also applies in our house of course, because we are - just like everyone else - an average family that struggles with recognizable perils around dinner such as social contacts, working hours, sports and smartphone use during dinner 😉 .
Table of Contents
First, let me give you the numbers from HelloFresh's research regarding dinner with the family. Always nice to have as background information.
Our aim is to eat with four people, and we usually do that somewhere between 18.00 and 19.00. Just how it turns out 😛 . I am not one of punctual times and I am of the 'just this... just that...'. You can already feel it, eating at a fixed time makes me very unhappy, haha.
Yet every now and then eating with the family is simply impossible due to the sports moments of the children. Do you recognize that? Lotte goes gymnastics on Tuesdays, for example. She is then from 17:30 to 19:30 sports. You would think… then you eat for that, but unfortunately… then Luc has gone to Crossfit. In terms of eating together, Tuesday is therefore eliminated anyway. I stuff a sandwich at Lotte's before gymnastics, the three of us eat around 18.00-18.30 and Lotte gets a warmed bite afterwards. Other than that, it's fine, but I really have to force myself to sit at the table with Lotte when she's still eating. Actually, I'm already busy with my own things (mostly work) and Lotte likes to grab the iPad, but we try to prevent that.
Oh yes… and once a week we all eat together at the coffee table with the TV on 😉 .
I also have some irritation points when it comes to dinner…
Irritation number 1: Stress due to lack of inspiration for dinner together. I sure have. So much so that I recently wrote an article about it with tips for those who also suffer from it:What are we eating today?
Irritation number 2: the smart phone! Actually, this should be on 1, I find that so annoying. I think it's important that dinner with the family is a moment when we take some time for each other. Tell us about work, plans, what it was like at school, and so on. The smartphone is completely in the way of each other for a moment, so it should not be on the table. Furthermore, we don't have very many rules (except just eat what the pot is about), but that smartphone is a very clear one.
Irritation number 3: the hood. I can really get my fill of noise during dinner. The extractor hood that is still on is an example of this. To drive you crazy. Do you know that too, or is this weird of me? I would also like to have the music turned off, but unfortunately… then I have the rest of the family against me.
Irritation number 4: have to go to the toilet in between. Luc really has a hand in this. Have we just bragged, he still has to go to the bathroom. And I know, I should help him remember in advance, but then I forget 😉 .
Because eating with the family (read:the lack of it) is such a recognizable issue for many families, a Food Talks has been organized by HelloFresh. HelloFresh believes it is important - as one of the market leaders in the field of healthy food - to conduct regular research and to share this knowledge with others. That is why they organize Food Talks about every quarter in response to a newly conducted study about dinner, healthy food or cooking. Very interesting and I was allowed to attend. Super fun of course. Except that it was at the expense of dinner with the family at home, because while they were sitting there at the table, I was in Amsterdam, haha. A matter of priorities so to speak 😛 . Advantage:I didn't have to think about irritation number 1, they cooked for me!
It was an inspiring evening where bloggers sat down to dinner, while a discussion was going on between the following panel members:
I sat at the table with Annemieke and Cynthia, the ladies from Lady Lemonade and with Elise from EliseJoanne. Enough food for conversation in any case 😉, but of course it was about the theme dinner as a family moment. Still, I don't want to deprive you of the pictures of the food… man, man, man did I eat well!
Funny to hear is that there are so many different ways of parenting, including when it comes to eating with the family. One (panel member Marjolein Hurkmans, for example) attaches great value to eating together , which results in sometimes eating early and sometimes eating late, simply because then everyone can be there. The other (Janine) chooses -when necessary- allow the ipad at the table for her child, so that she can also have a quiet dinner herself.
Claire believes it is important to check all ingredients for e-numbers, sugars and salt content , while Marcus, as a Burgundian, focuses on high-quality meat and tasty fatty food † Hilarity and surprise everywhere among the panel members.
Do you know Dr. As a food scientist, Samefko has very interesting comments. One I won't soon forget:Did you know that a mother's taste molecules are passed on to the unborn baby? This has been scientifically proven and can therefore mean that you as a mother do have some influence on the eating behavior of your child. As much variation as possible in your diet during your pregnancy ensures that your baby also gets hold of those taste molecules!
Of course there are also some nice tips from the panel members (and I also have a few for you myself). Here they come!
I think a fantastic tip from Marjolein. She is a huge lover of good food, and personally finds it 'not done' if you take your spaghetti sauce from a jar or bag. Making fresh is done faster, she says. My opinion is a bit more nuanced 😉 , but she gave one idea that really charms me:celebrate Christmas more often!
Every now and then she yells at home 'boys, today is Christmas And then everyone in the house will know what time it is. There will be an extensive dinner - as you probably recognize from Christmas - but in June or September, whichever suits you. I personally think it's a top tip! Now she already has older children at home, where extensive cooking and after-dinner meals are of course different than with small young kids, but still a nice idea.
This tip doesn't seem that special, but it is because Marcus performs it differently. They also regularly go out for dinner with the whole family, but what he always looks forward to is to with his 9-year-old daughter going out for dinner.
They then go out to dinner together - fully decked out - to really have time for each other. I think that's a really nice idea, and the funny thing is… we apply that here too, just with a weekend away. Then Frank, for example, goes on a weekend trip with Luc and I together with Lotte. Or vice versa, although we have yet to plan it. I can tell you:this really gives a very different feeling than with four and is definitely worth a try!
Do you have fussy eaters at home and does that make eating with the family stressful? Then take a look at the book Table Chat. Jolinda reviewed it for us and she is very pleased with it. Eating with the family will also be fun!
Another book tip full of inspiration:Easy Peasy by Claire van den Heuvel. Full of accessible recipes.
To ensure that the same questions do not arise every meal, such as 'how was your day?' or 'how was school?', you can also regularly look up other topics for discussion. Have you ever noticed that the above questions yield the answer 'good' and not so much? Very unfortunate, of course, because eating with the family can also lead to very nice conversations.
For example, consider the following questions:
Make it a kind of game by starting with a question to one of your children and agreeing that he or she can then ask another question to someone else. This way everyone gets a turn and it becomes a completely different conversation at the table.
Let your children help with dinner to also become a bit more aware of the meal and the 'socializing'. Of course it depends on the age of your child to what extent they can already help you concretely, but even the little ones you can already involve them by sliding them with a high chair at the counter while you are busy yourself. That's how Dr. Samefko Ludidi too. And for the bigger kids, Claire suggests during the Food Talks event of Hellofresh that they can help set the table.
I totally agree with that last tip! In fact… it's even in my list of chores for kids that we have a cool printable of 😉
In the context of 'know what you eat It's always fun to learn more about food with your kids. For example, we once visited the mill here in Schijndel where they grind the grain and where you can also buy flour. Very fun and interesting and not just for the kids.
Tip:The Hello Food festival is also something like that. A beautiful (new) food festival between the apple and pear orchards on the idyllic Landgoed de Olmenhorst in Lisserbroek. Be inspired and learn all about delicious and honest food. Also for children.
Image used via Shutterstock
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