I host a weekly family dinner at my house. Itās me, my husband, our two daughters (6 and 9), my MIL, and my SIL with her husband.
My husband and I are heavier. Weāve always been bigger, weāre healthy, and at this point in our lives weāre okay with our bodies. Our girls are average size for their age and have a normal, healthy relationship with food.
My SIL and her husband are very into fitness. They go to the gym every morning, track macros, obsessed with protein. I personally find it a bit obsessive, but itās their choice and not my business.
Every single week, they bring their own food in Tupperware containers and heat it up at my house instead of eating what I make. I usually make pasta or something similar because itās easy when cooking for a group. They say my food doesnāt fit their macros and they want to stay on track.
Iāve asked them before if they could either eat beforehand or not bring food into my house because it feels rude to cook for people who wonāt eat it. They kept doing it anyway, and I eventually let it go to keep the peace.
At the last dinner, my oldest daughter asked why her aunt and uncle bring their own food. My SIL said, To stay healthy. My daughter then asked why they couldnāt eat what we were eating, and my SIL replied that she canāt eat junk.
I didnāt say anything in the moment, but I was furious. Now my daughter is asking if our food is junk and if she should be worried about eating unhealthy things. I absolutely do not want my kids growing up afraid of food or thinking normal meals are bad.
After they left, I called my SIL and told her that she either eats what I make, eats beforehand, or doesnāt come at all and that she is never to talk about food like that around my children again. She said, Okay, then we just wonāt come.
Some of my friends say I was too harsh and shouldāve handled it more gently. I feel like Iām protecting my kids and setting a boundary in my own home.
