Anyone else have regular multi generational/extended family or friends group meals?

[LuvOrlando]

While I was fixing our weekly Sunday dinner tonight I was thinking about another thread about family dinners and it got me wondering about how many other families might make it a point to eat as a big multi-generational or extended friend or family group regularly? Now our Sunday Dinners are with my In-laws, not my family because mine are out of the picture. Our Sunday dinners were 100% my idea and it's not easy because it's all me. Sometimes my In-laws get under my skin but I do it anyway. In my case I do it because I was afraid my kids might get the wrong message about family due to my own estrangement, complicated stuff to explain to a kid. I started to do these Sunday dinners about 3 years ago when I realized we could go weeks without ever touching base with the In-laws due to our busy schedule and I was genuinely concerned about my kids growing up without a sense of belonging. Anyone else out there do regular get togethers like this with a group?

 

[bballmom56]

LOL, we just got home now from one. We have a group of four couples who had our kids go through 4H together for 7-8 years (some more than that). We were all very close, like a family. Now that are kids are grown (ages 23 and up), we still get together once a month, each of us taking turns hosting. We each bring something to make the meal and then either talk or play board games. It's been really nice.

 

[kimblebee]

Up until a few years ago we family dinner every Sunday night at my moms house. It would be my mom and dad, my 2 brothers and my sister, me and my now ex husband and our daughter, my grandpa, my uncle and my cousin. It was like that for every birthday too. It was a nice chance to relax and catch up on what everyone had done during the week.

My mom fell apart after my grandpa died and she stopped having the dinners for a long time. She basically stopped talking for around a year so most of our time was spent looking after her. With the right meds she did get over it eventually and started back up with dinners, but only every 2 weeks or so.

My uncle died a year ago (her brother) and that really affected her too but not to the same extent. Since then my sister has gone on a journey around the world with her boyfriend and one of my brothers has moved to Toronto so now when we have a Sunday dinner it is just my mom and dad, me and my daughter and my one brother. It's not as cramped as before but I still look forward to it. I'm especially looking forward to Christmas because my sister will be home and so will my brother.

 

[Mandychelle79]

We eat at my moms a few times a week Grandma will call us all in to eat at her house when she makes something she knows we like,,, for me its her veggie soup.

 

[SpecialK]

We did until all of the grandparents passed away. My husband, siblings and I are now the older generation. (And I never realized that until I typed those words!)

 

[funkychunkymonkey]

yep! we do this! Its funny how it always starts as just a couple of us relitives (usally me, ma, auntie, her two kids, and grandma) and spirals from there. Its common in our family to end up with relitives, neighbors, tribal members at any family dinner. Its a good thing we have stairs in the kitchen (they make great chairs).

 

[ahutton]

We just got home from our weekly Sunday dinner with my parents, it is great. We get to catch up, and relax with them. In fact, if something comes up and we won't be able to make Sunday dinner it is usually rescheduled for another day. The kids get time to grow their relationship with family, we get to enjoy family time. DHs parents live too far away for anything that regular, and I'm not sure it would be their speed but every family is different!

 

[Family Fun Mom]

I live next door to my mother and two doors down from my brother, my sister is less than a mile away. We are together all of the time and eating is our favorite pasttime. It's rarely planned but we eat together quite often. It's usually very last minute "hey, I made a huge lasagna, c'mon over!" sometimes we end up with cousins and friends joining in just cuz they happened to stop by. I love it!

People think our set up is strange but it has been fabulous for my kids to grow up so close to their grandparents and have their aunt and uncles such a big part of their lives. It works for us and we're pretty happy.

 

[tonilea]

We go to my parent's almost every Sunday, they live about 15 minutes from our church. One sister comes ever other week (they live about 1 1/2 hours away). The other sister comes when she wants or needs something - she has been there once since Christmas. Brother comes very occasionally, but does call with some regularity. (a huge improvement)

 

[teacherlisa1978]

Somewhat similar-my husband and I go out to breakfast with my parents every Sunday after Church. Sometimes my niece spends Saturday night with them and then of course she joins in too. Like others have said, it's our weekly time to check in and catch up with eachother and we all really enjoy it.

 

[busyshrew]

We do this about once a month - there is always something to celebrate. And it's funny, my parents frequent the same (asian) restaurants that DH & I do - so every time we go to our "regular" places, we always get asked, "are you parents with you today?". We get "tsk-tsk" looks from the staff at the dim-sum place if we say no!

 

[dislaney]

We go to my mother-in-law's house every Sunday for dinner. I think we have missed like 4 times in the last 16 years.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Thanks for sharing you stories, I love to read them. You all sound a lot like us, nothing exciting going on, just nice visits. Have you noticed any benefits to yourself or your family?