Do you hide food from family member if they eat everyones fo

amother

Aqua

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 4:11 pm

Do you ever hide food you buy if you know someone will eat other people's portions?
Say you bought 10 avocados to last the week for 4 people and one eats 2 avocados a day so there's not enough for everyone else at the end of the week? Or if you buy 5 huge chocolate bars and you know one person will eat 1/2 of it at one meal, do you hide the chocolate so that there's enough for everyone else? Or you buy 25 oranges and one person eats 5 a day? And telling this person that it's for everyone doesn't help.

thunderstorm

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 4:29 pm

I hide candy type Nosh in my closet because I have a kid who would wake up in the middle of the night and devour the entire container. Otherwise I don't hide food , but I do make it clear "not to touch, such and such " because I need it for cooking or for someone else's supper.

amother

Lime

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 4:30 pm

amother wrote:

I haven't ever had this situation of feeling a need to hide food. If it's a kid, my rules are to be followed. If it's my husband he can eat whatever he likes since he works hard to pay for all of it.

mha3484

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 4:32 pm

I have certain foods that my four year old can have in moderation so I keep them on the highest shelf of the fridge or the top of the cabinet like applesauce pouches, Trader Joes Swedish Fish, Cutie Oranges. Then an adult or my oldest kid can take him one.

thunderstorm

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 5:06 pm

amother wrote:

What if you're the one that does almost all the shopping and you have to go buy groceries multiple times a week? (I don't trust stores to pick the best vegetables and fruit)

If you know that someone will be eating most of it, buy double or triple the amount at one time and you won't have to make multiple trips.

SixOfWands

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 5:07 pm

amother wrote:

If I know that I need 18 avocados for a week, I'd buy 18 avocados for a week, assuming that I can afford it, rather than hide or ration food.

I'd be more likely to portion out treats like chocolate, but I wouldn't hide it. I'd buy smaller portions, and put each person's share into a labeled bag. You can eat it, save it, hide it. But when you're done, you're done. Unless someone wants to trade, I guess.

And anyone who is old enough to eat 5 oranges in a day is old enough to stop at the store for you on his way home if you run out. So no need for you to shop several times a week.

33055

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 5:11 pm

amother wrote:

What if you're the one that does almost all the shopping and you have to go buy groceries multiple times a week? (I don't trust stores to pick the best vegetables and fruit)

Where would you hide fruits and vegtables ?

Anyway, if they are hungry, I rather they eat fruits and vegtables. Produce is my first choice as a snack for my family.

watergirl

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 5:12 pm

Are you the poster who has posted a few times that her husband is eating the food that she buys for the week? If so, yes I would hide the food. If not, I would hide the food also, but give strict warnings first. Are you making it clear what your expectation for the food is?

One thing that I do sometimes is buy a certain amount of something, portioning it out for each person in a big gallon Ziploc bag, put their name on it, and let them have it. When it’s gone, it’s gone for the week. That works really well with things like string cheese and yogurt.

amother

Black

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 9:30 pm

Yes. Even for a spouse. Why? Bec we are on a limited budget and if I buy bananas for ex. I want to make sure each of us can have the "healthyness" from it. Or another ex is chicken. It is healthy but expensive but we all like it. So everyone can only have 1 pc bec everyone needs the protein but some spouses may take 2 without saving for other family members. Some ppl have no self control and while im happy ppl are eating healthy, I need to make sure everyone gets at least one.

If the person im hiding it from is going to eat bec they are hungry, then im happy to give him or her extra food that we have in abundance and is cheap like beans, oatmeal, rice, lentils....some kids have an urge to sneak things just bec they want it(they have a hard time following the rule of no taking) and if theres enough for everyone to get one, its unfair if he has all of them.

We work full time and go shopping in advance in addition to budgeting so we cant just run out and get more due to budget and timing. If I had a lot of money, id buy tons more so everyone would have a lot and extras. Id also buy an extra freezer to store more for ppl to have extras.

I dont think everyone can understand why one would need to hide food especially ppl who just buy food without really budgeting like I see almost everyone in the store doing. They are buying tons while I have only a handful of items.

In addition, ppl who have time to "just run out and buy more" also may not understand.

amother

Aquamarine

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 10:02 pm

I would hide it. I don't see the big deal. My DS can't control himself. If I give him a candy bar and tell him that he has to make sure he saves some for later, he can't do it. Just not in him. And if I knew someone else in the family is not capable of sharing equally, I would hide food too.

amother

Aqua

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 10:07 pm

watergirl wrote:

No it must be a different poster.

watergirl wrote:

One thing that I do sometimes is buy a certain amount of something, portioning it out for each person in a big gallon Ziploc bag, put their name on it, and let them have it. When it’s gone, it’s gone for the week. That works really well with things like string cheese and yogurt.

you could do that with little kids, but not with adults?

amother

Aqua

Wed, Oct 17 2018, 10:10 pm

thunderstorm wrote:

If you know that someone will be eating most of it, buy double or triple the amount at one time and you won't have to make multiple trips.

It's not so simple if you don't drive and have to carry it all yourself. Not every store offers delivery plus they charge each time.

amother

Jade

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 3:43 am

Yes! I hide food all the time. Also limited budget and time and large family ka'h. Some adults can't control themselves as well as kids. I can't bake or buy nosh for shabbos without it disappearing unless I hide it. I work and this means that I can never bake or buy in advance? I definitely go with hiding. Fruit veggies wouldn't hide, but if limited quantities I would say, one banana/peach per person. We live in a limited physical world and we have to conform to the realities of that.

essie14

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 5:57 am

My kids are teenagers. They eat a ton and they find everything. I can't hide anything. I just shop every 2 days and buy a ton of food, mostly produce, chummus & bread for their all-day munchies. I also buy a ton of food for meal times. They eat A LOT.

imasinger

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 6:29 am

I'm not sure I understand.

You mean, if you say, "Please save a banana for little Ploni," a DH or older siblings would still eat two?

What do they say when you point it out? Are they forgetting the request? In that case, maybe a note on the banana bunch "there is only enough here for one person person, if you take more, someone else will be deprived."

Are they forgetting that they already took? You can try pointing it out -- "I saw you got your banana, the 3 there are for the kids who are asleep right now."

If the food taker is a spouse, any time it happens, you can ask them to stop at the store and replace.

However, if it's a spouse, maybe it's time to have a talk about budget. I think that if a family is at the point of rationing oranges, maybe it's time to see about raising income.

If it's more like an expensive treat like avocados, maybe have a conversation from the store about whether to get that or something less expensive that week. If the taker is part of the decision process, it's more likely to be remembered.

animeme

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 6:55 am

In my house, the chief taker is a teen with impulse control and attention issues. He genuinely forgets each time; even a note goes unnoticed. And when a kid forgets they took, I am not always in the kitchen to notice when they take again.

So yes, I have been known to hide things.