How often should families eat together?

[mary_bobo]

It’s amazing to me that this is even a question today. Guess that shows how old I am! Back in my day, there was absolutely no question that the family would eat dinner together every night - without fail. Dad would walk in the door from work at 4:55 and my mama would have the meal on the table at 5:00. I don’t remember being allowed to eat at anyone else’s house until I was about 17 years old and even then, it was a trauma for my mom to have one of her “brood” missing from the table!

I voted for “at least once a day”.

BTW: I believe that, as a result of this practice, me and my two sisters were all thin and today, we all know how to cook well!

I agree with much of what you say. When my kids were growing up, they all had breakfast with me (husband left for work early), but sometimes they went out the door with an egg sandwich or toasted peanut butter sandwich because they got up late. Dinner was always a family affair where talk of the happenings of the day were in order. On birthdays or holidays we ate dinner in the dining room and good tableware was used. This is how they learned manners although they were not criticized at the table. My son told me once after he was grown that he appreciated that we did that because he always knew what to do when he was invited to someone’s home for dinner. Made me feel good. In essence, I think at least having dinner together is good for a family.

 

[Teakafrog]

We put a priority on family meals. Dinner is a must, and we try for lunch and breakfast when schedules allow. We need time together, and this is a great way to do it.