Image by bfhoyt

Dinner at the Myers house is one of my favorite times of day. We’re able to come together and relax over a good meal (most of the time it’s good….forget the Shrimp Pot Pie episode).  The day is starting to slow down and we can chat about how everything went. In fact, Annie already asks her Daddy at dinner, “So, how your day today, Daddy?” And then she listens….it’s a miracle. We are almost always able to eat dinner and breakfast together, but I realize that’s not the norm for most families. However, I would encourage you to do everything you can to have at least one meal together every day. It’s great for bonding and for teaching.

I’ve heard some people say that dinnertime is a time when your family can just let it all hang out – a time when there should be no rules and everyone should feel comfortable so that they can say and do whatever they like. What says I? I say that’s stupid. If we didn’t have any rules at the dinner table, it would be total chaos around here. Do you really want your kids to let it all hang out at the dinner table? Really? Because they WILL let it all hang out if you let them – body parts included. So, the Myers have some table rules. And I’m going to share them with you today, to give you a little glimpse into our life…should you come to dinner some time.

Image by basykes

1. No cell phones at the table – or any other social media for that matter. Man, am I a total kill-joy or what? No cell phones at the table. Seriously. You don’t need to text or tweet or use Pinterest while I’m talking to you. Disconnect. Get over yourself. Dedicate some time to your family. This of course does not apply if you need to call 9-1-1 or if you’re expecting a serious phone call from the Capitol.

2. Do not stir your milk with your spoon. Milk is already stirred up when I pour it into your cup. You have no need to stir it around with your spoon and pretend that you’re making soap. This is dinner. This is not bath time. Please reserve your utensils for eating food.

3. Do not dip your green beans in your milk. Green beans are for eating with ketchup. They do not need to be dipped in milk. I’ll compromise and let you eat them with your fingers, but please don’t dip them in your milk. It just dribbles all over the place and makes your bean cold. No one likes cold beans.

Image from Cindy Funk

4. Do not let Dottie on the table. She is a dog. She is not a dinner guest. She does not do well with dairy or meat products. I do not want to clean up her yak later, so please don’t feed her that piece of cheese you’re trying to hide. Amen.

5. Please make every effort not to spill your milk. Do you know that stuff is like some type of permanent paint when it dries? It’s almost impossible to remove, even with Magic Eraser. And when it falls in the floor, it can splash for up to miles away. The neighbors don’t want milk on their door. Please, be careful.

6. If you don’t want it, please don’t throw it. I know it aggravates you when I put weird things in your food, because you’ve told me that. However, I am a Mommy and it’s my job to try and hide things in your food. If you don’t like it, please push it to the side. Do not rare back and fling it at the wall…because I likely won’t see you and it will fossilize where it lands.

Image by madgerly

7. Please stay at the table until Annie is finished. If you get up, Annie thinks she’s done. Even if she only ate one bite, she’s done if you exit the table. Stay seated until she’s at least half-way done or else Mommy will be up at 2am fixing a “nack.”

8. Don’t floss at the table. I am very well aware that corn on the cob gets in your teeth…and yes, it’s annoying. I don’t even mind if you floss in the kitchen, but I do mind if you do it at the table. That means Annie has to have a piece and then dinner is forgotten. See #7.

9. Don’t stand up in your seat. Standing in your seat only serves to give Mommy a heart attack.  All she can imagine is you falling and an immediate trip to the ER to repair serious bodily injuries. There is gasping involved…and you’re only wearing socks. Socks are slippery. Stay seated.

10. Try everything on your plate. You don’t have to eat it all. We are not members of the Clean Plate Club. When you’re full, quit. But please try the things I worked hard to prepare….this does not apply to the aforementioned Shrimp Pot Pie. In those cases, it is perfectly acceptable to order pizza.

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers! This post is linked at Finer Things Friday on Amy’s Finer Things.

RSVP….No Really, DO IT

Image by sksquared

Most people don’t know what RSVP means. So, I thought I would do a quick tutorial for you all. RSVP stands for “répondez, s’il vous plait.” I don’t know French either – it means “please reply.” Even though you might not have known what it stood for, almost everyone over the age of 3 knows what it means you’re supposed to do. It means you’re supposed to REPLY PLEASE. Is it really that hard to understand?

I realize that I might be a tad bit bitter from all the events I’ve tried to plan in which no one RSVP’d. Since no one does it anymore, I have to assume that no one knows what it means. So, I’m going to tell you today and you can pass it along to all of those people you know who never RSVP. And you know it’s driving you nuts too.

 

 

Image by swktalk

Let’s have a little scenario shall we? Pretend you received a lovely invitation like this in the mail. It’s for a wonderful party coming up to celebrate an anniversary. Yay! Free food! You should be chomping at the bit for this folks. The card reads RSVP. Do you:

A. Immediately fill out the provided card and have it ready to mail out the next day.

B. Shrug your shoulders, toss it in your mail pile and sit down to watch All My Children with a box of bonbons.

The correct answer here is A.

Just so we can be clear about this, let’s have another pop quiz. Your husband brings home an invitation to a birthday party from someone at work. You know you only got the invitation out of politeness, seeing as how you and the honoree would rather scratch each other’s eyes out than be in the same room. You are obviously NOT going unless they’re serving chocolate mousse. Do you:

A. Immediately fill out the RSVP indicating that you’re NOT going and make sure that you press really hard when filling it out to vent frustration.

B. Burn the invitation and roast marshmallows.

Again, the right answer is A. Sense a theme?

 

Image by misawaosc

I’m a stickler for etiquette. I realize that makes me an old fuddy-dud but I’m cool with that. I’ve embraced it and moved on. Actually, I want to teach all these types of things to Annie so that she can learn how to act like a lady. We’re already teaching her how to send thank you notes, so why not teach her the etiquette of RSVP?

Etiquette teaches that when you receive an invitation, you should reply promptly – that same day if possible. Most of the time you even receive a card in which to mail back with your response. You won’t have to hunt around to find one, taking away that excuse. Usually the envelope is even stamped for you……what more can you ask for? For someone planning a party, this reply is very important. It’s VERY DIFFICULT to plan for food and drink if you don’t know how many people are coming….it can make a grown woman cry. Sending your reply only shows common courtesy. They were nice enough to invite you, so you should be nice enough to respond – even if it’s a “no.”

These days, RSVPing is a lot easier. You can call, text, or even email if you don’t feel like mailing the card back. Me though, I like to use the old-fashioned mail system – unless I have to stand in line at the post office…..that makes a text look pretty good.

How about you follow along with me and teach your children the common courtesy of the RSVP? It will make you feel a lot better and keep your friends from pulling their hair out. It doesn’t take that much of your time to be polite.

 

*This post is linked at Finer Things Friday on Amy’s Finer Things and at Weekend Whatever on Your Thriving Family.