Does your family say grace before each meal?

[Marisa6826]

In light of this past weeks' events, Jonathan and I have been truly counting our blessings. We are not a religious family, and don't say grace.

I'm just wondering how wide spread it is among our community here.

Also - do you do an all out prayer of thanks or just a simple acknowledgment of time, place and abundance?

Thanks!

-m

[newbelly2002]

Yes, we do. We keep it simple, a small thank you for what and who is before us. Dante will sometimes drag it out including napkins, water, milk, spinach and whatever else his eye spies but we try and keep it short :) They do it in his kindergarten before lunch and I like the tradition. To be honest, I would probably forget half the time but you know small kids and their rituals!

Paula
Mama to Dante, 8/02
And 2 sweet peas in an April pod

[LucyG]

Yes. Ours is "Dear God, Thank you for this day, this food, our house, and our family. At 2.5, DD can now say it, too, and we all take turns. At bedtime, we do a longer one where she lists pets, grandparents, friends, etc.


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2 years and counting!

[Rachels]

We do sometimes. I always have a private personal acknowledgement of our blessings, but we are an interfaith family and don't share all the same traditions around meals. But we talk pretty often about the concept of blessings and gratitude, and I'm raising Abby to be mindful of that.

-Rachel
Mom to Abigail Rose
5/18/02
New baby coming in October!
(Holy smokes, it's a boy!!!)


"When you know better, you do better."
Maya Angelou
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Nursed for three years!

[alexsmommy]

I said other b/c we do when we sit down as a family for dinner, but I'm pretty bad about it when I am eating by myself or when it's just DS and I grabbing lunch. I do want the kids to incorporate this ritual into their memories of family meals though as does DH so we are very consistent during family meals. Usually we give thanks for the food, our health and offer blessings to our family, friends and "to all in need of blessings." Sometime DH thanks the cook (me), which I appreciate not just for the obvious reasons, but b/c I think it give the kids a good message about marriage and for DD how a woman should be treated and for DS how to treat a woman (respected, appreaciated etc). We are not a religious family by any stretch of the imagination, but I do try to impart spritual awareness.
Alaina
Alex 2-4-03

[daniele_ut]

Yes, we pray before each meal that we eat together. It is a prayer of thanks for the food and usually other specific things we are grateful for at that time. We also pray together morning and night as a family and privately as well.

ETA - We also fast for 24 hours on one Sunday each month and donate the money from the meals that we mised to our church welfare program, which helped fund 10 semi trucks with food water and hygeine kits that went to Louisiana last Saturday.

[KBecks]

We don't, but I hope to as Alek gets a little older. Currently we pray together with extended family on special occasions.

DH is less comfortable with it, and neither he or I grew up with prayer before meals.

I think we might start by doing it for our Sunday meals. We'll probably have a free-form giving of thanks and praise. I know a family who wrote their own prayer and have it framed in their house. That's nice too.

[aliceinwonderland]

it may be shocking to some, but for many years I did do this. Now, it is not a mechanical recitation of thanks, but we do try to have a general feeling of gratefulness for the troubles we do have instead of those that befall other people...Everytime I cook for my family and feel rushed and pressed for time I remind myself that that is a very very nice problem to have.

[Sarah1]

Similar to kbecks. On a daily basis, we don't. Most of the time we don't eat with Audrey. Lately she has not been napping so has been going to bed at 7, and we eat after that.

When she (and Oscar) get(s) older, I definitely plan to have a Shabbat dinner on Friday nights where we say a blessing. But on a daily basis, no.

[bostonsmama]

DH and I say a prayer before every dinner (which we sit down to as a family daily) and most of our lunches (this is the meal we most forget b/c we're separate). We thank God for the food and the hands that prepared it and any other thing (good or bad) that's happened that day. It's a nice tradition that my dad started when we were youngins at the family table. We even pray before meals out at restaurants...it just feels right. Can't wait to share our family tradition with a little one someday.

Larissa
who is still trying to give birth so she can have more to say

[lisams]

We only do at relatives, and special occasions (a baptism, birthday, etc.) It's an all out prayer of thanks and asking for blessing.

[starrynight]

Nope, never did growing up either. My mom grew up in a very strict religious family (mass every morning!) and they said grace and to this day my grandfather and one uncle still do. When they are visiting we say it with them out of respect though. I think my mom wanted us to just relax a bit more, we still went to church and such but not daily and no grace.

Dh and I don't practise organized religion, no church, no grace but we do have have spirtual beliefs and pray.

[kijip]

We don't say grace because we are still muddling out if we are going to join a congregation and we are really not religious. I picked other since we never say it and we don't choose not to in order to get the food faster.

We do sit and eat together for breakfast and dinner and whoever is home with Toby at lunchtime sits and eats with him. On weekends, lunches are most often outside or at cafes. I think that eating together is really important.

[kensjen]

We have a bedtime prayer, the same one I said as a child. We should add mealtimes, but we still aren't always eating together...something to work on in the future.

[JulieL]

I do half the time. DH is not religous and so out of respect for him I normally just do it with DS when he isn't able to eat with us. DH doesn't have a problem with it, but I feel that he gives a lot of understanding my way and feel the need to give him the same. It's not a matter of hiding the prayers, but just to be respectful of DH.

[jd11365]

I just started lighting Shabbat candles this past week with Kayla. A little ritual for she and I to share together. And yes, the tragedy of this week seemed to have really pushed me to start that. While it's not the same, we did add a little extra prayer for those suffering in the affected areas.

[aliceinwonderland]

"We don't say grace because we are still muddling out if we are going to join a congregation and we are really not religious."

We have the same dilemma here and have had it for a while now. We visited a very old episcopelian church we like here in Philadelphia, mostly for their service to the community etc. But still have philosophical issues with joining such a communty and being identified as such...

[trentsmom]

We say grace before each meal. DS claps his hands together and waits for us. If we don't start praying then, he continues to clap his hands together and stares at us until we're ready. Also, if I have to get up to get something, DS wants us to bless the food again when I sit down. Some meals are blessed 3 or 4 times! :)

[bostonsmama]

>Some meals are blessed 3 or 4 times!

LOL...so cute....they really hold us to the letter of the law, don't they? ;)

Larissa
who is still trying to give birth so she can have more to say

[alkagift]

I will clarify--I said absolutely, but what I meant was "absolutely at dinner when we're all together." We don't at lunch or breakfast.

Because I converted to Catholicism from essentially not much of anything a couple of years ago, I don't have handy graces in my back pocket. I remember my Methodist grandfather doing one every day ad lib that would just make you choke back tears (as in, "thank you, Lord, for all that you have given us. For so many have so much less, and we have been blessed with happiness which is all that we can ask."). But, since I'm shy and feel slightly irreligious most of the day, I let DH lead and he basically just says the 2-sentence blessing that he learned in grade school. Not too inspiring, but I hate to criticize and I'm too self conscious to do it myself.

DS loves to cross himself (mostly just pecks at his shoulders)and says "AMEN" really loudly. Then, as we're crossing ourselves again and saying, "Father, Son, Holy Spirit" he's saying "MATTHEW'S DINNER!"

Allison
Mommy to Matthew, who is TWO!

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[hez]

I said holidays/special occasions (I said grace yesterday for the dinner at Payton's party for instance), but I actually grew up saying grace at every dinner. I'd like to get to that point with my family. I do try to remember to say bedtime prayers with Payton where we bless all the family, but we're not completely consistent. He does seem to like it 'cause he gets to say everyone's names (and he loves his extended family!).

[muskiesusan]

We try to say it. We seem to go weeks when we say grace, and then weeks where we are out of the habit. This week we are forgetting, so this is a good reminder!

Susan
Mom to Nick 10/01
& Alex 04/04

[erosenst]

I grew up saying a blessing before every meal at home. We never do it now, other than on Friday nights when we remember/have a "real" meal, or at holidays. I'm trying to remember to at least light the Shabbat candles with Abby before she goes to bed. (We eat after she goes to bed - her light is out between 6:30 and 7p.)

While I must admit that I don't have the desire to say a blessing before every meal, I'm struggling with what to do about bedtime prayers. I'd like Abby to get in the habit. I don't really like what I grew up doing, and DH grew up doing nothing. Still working on it, but she's getting old enough we need to make a decision soon!