Those with small children...what time do you normally eat dinner?

[Minnie824]

I know it may vary a little if you go out, or eat in, but what time do you normally eat dinner w/small children? i was reading a posted itinerary for disney of going out to dinners at 7:30...I couldn't imagine my kids eating that late...my 2 yo goes to bed at 7 now! obviously on vacation they stay up later, but still...we tried to keep dinners (vacation and at home) usually between 5 and 5:30. Do others normally eat later? Just curious.

 

[mickeyboat]

I don't get home from work until about 5:20, so we eat between 6 and 6:30. My kids are actually pretty hungry before that, so they have a healthy snack before dinner. They go to bed at 8:00.

Denae

 

[Bob Slydell]

It depends on the day, especially in regards to activities, but somewhere around 6pm is the norm for us. On vacation, though, assuming we ate breakfast later than normal and was snacking during the day, I could see eating dinner later.

 

[powellrj]

my kids aren't small anymore, but dinner time around our house has always been around 6pm.

 

[anewvance]

My husband gets home between 6:30 and 7. Sometimes he brings home dinner (we aren't big cookers) but usually if I make dinner the kids can't wait until he gets home and eats between 6 and 6:30.

 

[jodifla]

When we eat together, we eat around 6, normally. But often DH and I don't eat until DS is already in bed. DS is very hungry around 6, so his dinnertime stays fairly consistent....unless we're on vacation, when anything can happen.

 

[jennyl772003]

Dh gets home around 5:15. Hops in shower, gets out and starts dinner. I don't get home until about 5:40. We eat between 6 and 6:30.

It was worse for DS when he went to bed at 8. Now he can stay up until 9, so it's not so bad. He also has snack at daycare after school.

On vacation, we eat a big breakfast, big lunch, snacks here and there, so I could totally see eating late. I actually had our ADR's for 7:30, but DH had me change them to 6:30.

 

[JVL1018]

We used to eat aorund 6 every night, but now my husband has a different job with a longer commute and doesn't get home until 6:15 every night so we eat around 6:30, 6:45.
My kids are 4 and 6 and we put them to bed at 8:30(they do not go to sleep for 30-45 minutes at least , but they do get put in bed)..but they have NO problem staying up way later than that if necessary.
We just went out to dinner last Sunday with family and we didn't eat until 7, they were fine.
They're night owls like their mama!

 

[Aidensmom]

We eat around 6:30. Both DH and I work, so by the time we are all home and dinner is made, that's what time it is.

 

[Marseeya]

When my kids were little, they didn't eat until 7 or after when my DH got home. I thought it was more important we eat as a family than to feed them earlier. We still eat that late.

When I was growing up, we ate at 4:30 every day. Yikes, that was way too early.

 

[lillygator]

we eat around 7....and at Disney even later...my girls are 3 and 1 and we get home around 5 have a light snack play, baths, eat dinner and they are in bed around 7:30....most of our WDW dinners are around 7:30 to 8....

 

[jodifla]

When my kids were little, they didn't eat until 7 or after when my DH got home. I thought it was more important we eat as a family than to feed them earlier. We still eat that late.

When I was growing up, we ate at 4:30 every day. Yikes, that was way too early.

DH often doesn't even get home until DS is already in bed, so no family meals during the week for us.

 

[DVC Sadie]

Before our son started school I usually fed him around 5pm so he could be clean and in his pajamas before dh came home. Dh would play with our son while I cooked our meal. We both put our son to bed then had a very calm meal around 8 pm. Once our son started school we ate dinner at 7 pm.
Summertime we always seemed to eat later since we like to barbeque and just sit out on the deck.

 

[Patch'sD]

Soon after returning the Shoping Cart to the Shoping Cart Coral

 

[bigbabyblues]

Somewhere between 5 and 6. My kids go to bed early too, the 2-yo at 7:30, 5-yo around 8 or 8:15.

 

[Stacerita]

When the sweetpea was younger we ate no later than 6ish. Now that she is older and involved with different activities, the time we eat can rage from 4:30 to 9. Depends on the night of the week and what we got going on. Mostly, we are able to eat between 6 and 6:30.

 

[aprilgail2]

My 6 year old eats anytime between 4-8pm depending on what we have going on that day...if its not till later she gets a snamck at 4-5 to hold her over. Sometimes she has karate till 6 then a school function that goes on until 8 or so she eats later...she doesn't go to bed until 10 so....some days when activities dont start until 530 I will come home and 4 and cook something really quick so she can eat prior to the activity..

 

[The Mystery Machine]

When my kids were little we ate when dad came home.

When they started school, we would eat before dad came home, they were just too tired and hungry to wait for dad. I would feed them after school. That is one of the secrets to making your life easier and getting picky kids to eat.

Now that 1 is a teen and one a preteen we eat, don't eat, nothing is set anymore. If I make dinner it is around 4 or 5. DH works from home now, so it makes it easier.