When did you stop being able to carry your child?

[JurasicPerks]

Carrying a screaming, thrashing child is obviously harder than a cooperative one, but roughly what age do you think you stopped being able to
a) pick up a tantruming child?
b) pick up a cooperative child?

For me, I could scoop up a tantruming 4 year old, but never really tested after that sort of age.

I can still hold my 10 year old - and he does come for cuddles that involve me having him on my hip.... From comments I've seen on other threads this is unusual?

I can pick up my 42 year old husband, does fish count?

Ha ha. Where did fish come from?!

I guess it depends a lot on the size of child and the adult. I’m quite slight and short, and I can only just put my 4 year old niece in my hip because she’s tall and solid. I’d have no chance if she wasn’t playing ball. I can give her a piggy back.

My brother can still pick me up! He’s six inches taller, and probably weighs 50% more than me.

3.5 4 years old DD very tall for her age.

@Pyri

Ha ha. Where did fish come from?!

...are you ok babe? 🤣

No idea where it came from but cracked me up lol

DS1 is big. I remember carrying him up the stairs on his 6th birthday and thinking - this is definitely the last time I’m carrying him! It probably was.

DS2 is 10 and titchy. I still pick him up sometimes for cuddles or to carry him up the stairs, just because I can.

Yes Pyri, that counts!
DS1 is up to my forehead and nearly a teenager. I can still carry him if he jumps up. I just can't comprehend not being able to pick up a 4 yr old.

I can still pick up my just turned 4 year old onto my hip no problem, and can carry her and a one year old at the same time. I only carry her in the house really but most days she still asks at some point to go 'up' like her baby brother. I realised time has slipped away from me and she's not a toddler anymore, and I probably need to stop!

I could pick DS up at 13 and 43kg. Arm under his arm and around his back, arm under his knees. Piggybacked him halfway up a hill once at 10. Stopped routinely lifting him onto my hip at about 5.

I don't remember ever picking him up if uncooperative

This scares me! I’ve got only one DD. She cannot walk. She’s 4. And it’s already difficult

I can still carry my 11yo but he's getting a tad heavy and is halfway up my nose in height, and about half my weight. It's not long since I fireman's lifted him to his room to calm down when he was getting overwhelmed and not responding to instructions.

My 9yo is still fine to carry. Last year at 8.5 he had a foot injury and I piggybacked him home from school about 300m as it hurt him too much to walk. Having the bulk of his school bag etc didn't help!

It surprises me how young so many MNers children are when they can't be carried any more, often about 3-4. I'm 5'2" and not particularly strong!

I can carry my 5 yr old with one hand especially if she grips on with her legs.

My almost 3yr old though is another story! I swear she's made of lead.

I had to deadlift her off the supermarket floor this morning, where she was throwing a tantrum, and stagger to the car with her going alternately limp then rigid as a board

9 yo got a massive cuddle pick up yesterday as I won't see him for a week. He's a skinny lad though

Dd is 7, I can pick her up for hugs but I don't think I could carry her far

Just tried the 9yo on my hip and he's fine; it helps that his legs are long enough to wrap around my hips out of the way and spread the weight

DS is 11 this year and comes up to my ear. I can still carry him and happily piggy back him to school sometimes for a laugh. DD was taller than me at 11/12 and I couldn't pick her up at all.

I'm tall and not super strong but pretty average. My little.boy is 3.5 and has been a heavy lump since a baby. So I never got that cute carrying them in a sling thing I dreamed of!

He still likes a carry sumx so I can cope with it if he's being nice for a couple mins but it's now so painful and heavy to carry him upstairs or walking along. If tantrumming forget about it lol

I can lift my youngest (just tuned 6) for a little bit. My 9 & 11 year old no chance, I am only 5ft though and one is taller than me and the other not far behind.

I carry DS to bed sometimes when he's extra tired. He's 10.

A couple of years ago I was talking to my boss about weight lifting and we worked out that I could deadlift him if he was conveniently barbell shaped - he was 15 stone.

@Svara

I don't remember ever picking him up if uncooperative

I didn’t have to with two of mine, but I don’t like to leave the third in the middle of the road etc

I piggyback the 11yo up to bed sometimes still. Good for the leg muscles

I've worked in a nursery- some children are made from lead I swear and others that look the same size and height are as light as a feather.

I remember carrying my sleeping 5 year old into the house when I was about 7 or 8 months pregnant and thinking I probably shouldn't do this. After that I think I did piggy backs till he was about 7 or 8.

I used to give ds1 piggy backs until he was the same height as me (165cm), so 11. But he was (and still is) super skinny. He just used to run out of energy. And I used to go to the gym.

But uncooperative child, probably about 6 or 7.

When ds1 was a toddler he used to wear dungarees which had a loop on the back. It was great as I could carry him with it when he was tired.