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Dinner Routine Sucks

Dogmom1321's picture

Dinner at our house is forced and I hate it.

I do homemade meals maybe 4 nights a week. The other days are leftovers or pizza. Usually around 6:00pm. DH was running a little behind from work, but I still made tacos. Myself and DS3 sat down with our food and I also told SD13 dinner was ready. I usually DON'T yell upstairs because 1. pet peeve of mine for yelling in the house and 2. SD13 can have the decency to come out of her room if she's hungry. 

But I did this time since I knew DH was joining soon. SD13 comes downstairs... makes a plate and waltzes back upstairs while mumbling "thanks". I said nothing. 2 minutes go by and DH sees just myself and DS3 at the table. Automatically did YOU tell SD13 dinner was ready? I barked back and immediately said yes and she CHOSE to not sit down and eat with us. Oh, and also take food up to her room. A "rule" he doesn't enforce. 

DH tells SD13 she needs to come down and eat at the table with us. SD13 says: But why? And then they start at it. "Because I said so." DH attempts to have conversation. And all he gets is one word answers. He tells her to drop the attitude. But of course, she continues to just act like herself. 

I know many will say it's typical "teenage" behavior to stay in your room, have an attitude, etc. but SD13 actively chooses to NOT be around myself and DS3. Last night's dinner was hard to sit through, but I'm glad DH was running late and got to see how SD13 chooses to not be a part of our family. And it's NOT me excluding her contrary to his claims in the past. 

What would you do?! I dread dinner each night and also don't want to expose my DS3 to all of the bickering and negativity between SD13 and DH. 

Comments

dragonfly878's picture

This. Exactly the reason I feed DD4 seperate from SS16. 

I feed DD4 earlier than anyone else. I sit with her and give her my undivided attention while she eats. She's a picky eater so I will make something for her... sit with her, hang out with her, and then put her to bed. THEN I focus on feeding the rest of my household. DD4 is in bed by 7PM. We eat late because I WILL NOT have her sit at the table with a feral, antisocial, disrespectful SKID and a parent who is incapable of calling him out. 

Dogmom1321's picture

Good idea! I'm annoyed with DH just as much. He "says something" to SD13 about having an attitude, but it doesn't stop. She just continues being rude and disrespectful. 

I think I may start eating with DS3 earlier and just leave whatever is left on the stove. Then DH can be the one to beckon SD13 downstairs to eat. 

Ridiculous. 

dragonfly878's picture

I would! If he asks or says something I'd let him have it. He can choose not to manage his spawn but he CANNOT control you. I'd just say frankly that you don't want your child to end up like SKID... learning from them and then thinking it's appropriate. He may not see a problem with the behavior but you do and you won't allow it. 

CLove's picture

She eats when shes hungry, I do not announce, husband will announce.

Under ZERO circumstances does anyone eat meals in their rooms. PERIOD> and I will speak up strongly...

JRI's picture

Thank goodness I didn't have the issue of one of the SKs taking dinner to their room.  But, I had picky, passive aggressive SKs who used the food issue to express their feelings.  " What stinks?"  "What's that?"  "I dont like that".

I came from a family who, on the positive side, emphasized all sitting down to dinner daily.  But, on the negative side, they put an over-emphasis on food, "Clean up your plate" and no limits to quantity.  This led to health and weight problems for all of us, culminating with my 300-lb sister's death.  So, my devotion to family dinners was nuanced.

I cooked dinner,  summoned everyone and that was it.  Spmetimes one of his kids would whine to DH and he'd give them a few dollsrs for fast food (within walking distance).  I didn't comment on any of this.  My goal: provide nourishing food and minimize stress on everyone.  That's all I could do and Lord knows, we had deeper problems..

Good luck, Don't you hate it when your food becomes an issue.

 

Dogmom1321's picture

Ugh brings back memories! A few years ago DH asked SD if she wanted a hamburger. She was so excited, "yes, ketchup and pickles please!". Then she found out I was making it instead of Five Guys (burger restaurant) and said "oh, nevermind then." Lol, seriously??

advice.only2's picture

I detest family dinners because of this.  For years my DH demanded we all sit and eat at the table together, it was awkward and awful.  Spawn would sit there mute the whole time no matter the amount of conversation going on around her.  If I got up and left the table, she would suddenly be full of conversation and wanting to engage.  As the kids got older and schedules got more hectic, I just started feeding the kids as their schedules demanded and stopped doing this forced production that we were a happy family.   

CLove's picture

Yep, used to want to enjoy "family time" together. That resulted in powersulking the entire meal. So, rather than be subjected to that, I do not cook meals anymore, and husband takes care of her food detail.

Rags's picture

This does not even have to be a thing.

There was a time... when meals were at a table as a family.  Every time.  Unless they are as a family at a restaurant.  No eating in a bedroom, etc...

Snarky spawn these days do what they want. Fix it by making them starve. They eat with everyone else at the table, or they don't eat until the next meal.  Going a day without eating won't cause them any harm but it will make a very uncomfortable point.  Bring the meat tenderizer mallet to the table and inform everyone ahead of time that if one smart phone is heard or seen, it gets smashed.  When someone tests you, smash their phone.

Lather.... rinse..... repeat.

See how quickly this is no longer a thing after a kid goes hungry until the next meal or is trying to find the missing chunks of their precious smart phone.

Diablo

thinkthrice's picture

In a first time nuclear family but you just know that the BM would call CPS.

Rags's picture

Let her call. 

When they show up to a nice clean home stocked with food and everyone in the house confirms that dinner was prepared and everyone ate at the table together, make sure to have the snarky hungry skid explain to CPS why they chose not to eat the meal that was prepared.  Then... have the no-finding report sent to BM.

Make sure to point out the NO CELL PHONES sign posted near the dining table.  If  BM pays for the insurance on the phone, great. If not, BM can buy the replacement but make sure both BM and the Spawn know that if it is seen or heard at the table, it will be tenderized.

CPS often won't do crap even in a home where they should. The odds of them doing anything in a decent home  where a Spawn does their Spawn thing are materially insignificant.

Web cams solve this problem. The spawn gets their ass bared, CPS confirms the facts that the meal was prepared and the family ate together at the table while the Spawn chose not to.  The tenderized phone thing may get a raised eyebrow.  Or not.

Harry's picture

It's his kid, he should handle her.  ActuallY, it's his job to be making  her dinner ....weeenot you,  She is showing you no respect, being disrespectful, get disengagement by you.  You will do nothing for people who disrespect you. From now on. Dinner is on DH, INCLUDING, shopping for the food. Washing of her thing DH, Transportation, DH.   School DH  .. 

'If SD wants to stay in her room. Good for her..  DH must understand he has to be active in DD care or he looking at another failed marriage.   SD is not your problem..  you will never have a relationship with her so stop eating her shi* 

halo1998's picture

H's kids were pita about food, etc.  They were used to Beaver making different meals for each kid and/or just grabbing fast food.  I cook 6 days out of the week (except for Friday's cause by then I'm tired) and everyone can eat what I cook or make a pbandj.  I have to say H backed me up on that one...eat what I fix and serve or don't eat.  Simple as that...kid number 3 threatened to call CPS for not feeding him....we told him GO RIGHT EFF AHEAD AND CALL.  CPS will take one look at our fully stocked fridge, pantry and freezer and determine kid 3 was not being starved and had plenty of access to food.  Kid 3 not eating was CHOICE and not a punishment.    We confirmed this with our attorney and with GAL....so kid 3 had nothing to go on.

Kid 3 got with the program after missing dinner two nights in a row....and if he continued the H would have cooked for him and H was going to cook all the things that kid 3 didn't like.  As H told kid 3..play stupid games and you will win stupid prizes.

Dogmom1321's picture

IMO she is almost 14 she should be learning to cook anyway! Not even DH. There is no reason why she can't learn to use the air fryer or stovetop for convenience meals. All she eats is junk food anyway. 

Rags's picture

No doubt she has a smart phone. She can watch the YouTube videos on how to cook.

Cover1W's picture

Oh yes, this happened here too.

We ate dinner together always around the same time. I would have preferred the SDs participate somehow in the meal, if only setting the table, but no, that was too much to ask (per DH). They would be in their rooms when either of us were cooking. YSD would usually show up just before it was ready, but not OSD! DH would yell to her that it was ready, yes, I hated that too - she knows when dinner is,  especially when she's complaining of hunger. I would go to her room, knock, and tell her it was ready. Until she started snapping at me. OK then. I started yelling too. ONCE. DH would sometimes do it over and over before she'd come up. Sometimes she'd be wearing headphones.

Either way, the last time she was irritated with us, I stopped the dinner is ready announcement and told DH it was on him. If he wasn't there, I would tell her ONE time. She missed the start of dinner more than once and blamed us of course "You didn't tell me." Yes, we did, but you weren't paying attention. DH could never explain to her properly WHY she was wrong, of course, and when he called her he continued to cater and HE made sure she was there which removed her personal accountability for yet one more thing.

CLove's picture

Too many comments on this thread that I relate to!!!

SD25whenshewas15-18 was a "pescatarian". Guess what she is now? Of course! When "someone (daddy cakes) isnt catering to her "needs" she figures out that shes ok with regular meat. But back in the day, she never cooked for herself, and would each and every time have a fish or meatless dish available in front of her and invariably ask "is there meat in this?" uRGH!!!

The ONE time I told her "your cooking dinner tonight", she looked me square in the eyes and blurted "who said?" 

"I said". Then guided her through cooking veggies for a meal that included chicken which she refused to bake...

SD17almost18 has cooked for us a few times, always with much guidance. Chop this, slice that, boil this, maybe twice.

I stopped cooking for skids. Husband will cook, announce its readiness and then SD17 will slither out of her room and dine later, after we have partaken. Its what works because neither of us care to deal with sullen powersulk during a meal.

I also stopped with "announcing" readiness. 
She doesnt want to eat together, not my deal. I wasnt raised that way, and will not endure the failings of his lack of parenting.

Dogmom1321's picture

Part of me wants DH to set SD13 straight. The other part of me says "good riddance, go sit in your room anyway so we don't hear you sulk!"

The realistic part of me thinks no amount of "manners" DH tries to teach her will actually be instilled. We are so far past that at 14. And it's a result of lazy parenting by BOTH parties. 

Rags's picture

I am team.... a kid can be pleasant or starve. Their choice.  There is no middle ground that I would facilitate.

Participate, eat with everyone, help clean up, or .... enjoy the hunger pangs until the next meal.  No snacks, no taking the meal to their room.

Lather.... rinse... repeat.