6.40am is an acceptable time for a 4yo to get up?

[elainesummers]

My DD just turned 4. She is always asleep by 7pm, sometimes earlier.

She's up for the day at 6.40am. My parents think this is far too early and don't believe me when I say many of her peers get up even earlier especially in the summer months.

They're also aghast that we use a gro clock and keep asking when we will 'wean her off it'.

Why do your parents care? How exactly does it affect them? Mine were very early risers. Less so now: combination of no school and one of them is nearly a teenager.

My ILs were also weirdly obsessed with how early they got up. It had literally nothing to do with them and had absolutely no impact on their lives.

We learned to live with getting up early and in many ways it was preferable. No dragging out of bed for nursery and we could take advantage of early swimming lessons etc at weekends so the rest of the time was ours.

And it was a phase. I’ve far bigger things parenting-wise to deal with.

I agree it is not the business of your parents. My mother and my in-laws thought ours stayed up too late and got up too late but we carried on regardless. We did what suited us as a family and no harm done.

My 5,6 and 7 year olds all get up between 5.45 and 6am.

6.40am is not too bad at all. I’d rather my kids get up early than lie in. Earlier to get up - the more tired they will be - hopefully.

My youngest used to get up 4-5am. 6.40am was a lie in!

I am an early bird though. I like being up esrltn I like everyone else to do the same as I like to get out and about first thing when it’s quiet!

Cbeebies starts at 6am for a reason.

Anything past 6:30am is a win in our house

6.40an is fine. I prefer 7am and find if ds goes to sleep by 7.30 instead of 7 then he'll likely stay asleep til 7am but it's not an exact science and they're all different.
Gro clocks are good and there's no need to wean her off it, it's not a dummy or a bottle.

What time does nursery start that he has to rise at 6.15am?

Most working parents I know need to do nursery drop off at 7.30/8am.

My son goes to bed at seven. He will dick about till maybe 7:45 after he’s had stories, a wee, his door opened, another door closed, another wee.... And he’s awake at 7am most mornings. He has a gro clock too which usually keeps him in there till maybe half past but he usually needs a wee when he wakes up and then he’s typically in our bed with the tv on!

We occasionally get a sleep till 8 which is awesome. I’m an early bird these days (not through choice!)

I'd love 6:40 on a consistent basis!
We're anywhere between 5-6:30. He goes to bed at 7pm & sleeps all night so I'm not complaining.
Just ignore them.

Similar age and bedtime here. She occasionally sleeps till 8

What time does nursery start that he has to rise at 6.15am

^

7am?

Would be far too early for me, but then none of mine were ever asleep by 7pm. Not sure how people manage that when you have to collect them after work, prepare tea, eat, then bath and settle them for the evening, read, etc. Plus, we'd rarely have seen them.

However, if it suits you, then it isn't any business of their Grandparents, as long as they (dc, plus parents) understood they need to be very quiet when getting up that early in someone else's house.

My son is up between half 6 and 7 when I’m at work as he’s at his childminder for half 7 so I can be at work on time. He’s up a little later when it’s not school holidays for me. He starts school in September so we’ll see what change!

It would be heaven. 😀

Mine finish at 3...play in Park for 20/30mins...home and relax while i do tea...eat. homework/play/bath bed. Its enough time. Mine go to bed about 7pm and get up 6ish

@Whatsnewpussyhat

Message withdrawn at poster's request..

Too right! 9am is quite reasonable. 7.30am was hard enough when it was work and school days though we did it. Thankfully I worked flexitime.

Weekends and days off were lovely for a good lie in.

6.40 is absolutely fine. My ds is 8 and we aim for 6.30 earliest

My two are 8 and 6 and still have gro-clocks - which are set for 6.45. They're usually awake before then but know to stay quietly in their rooms till then.

And tbh on schooldays if they got up any later we'd never make it on time.

640 sounds great to me, my 2yo has always woken up at 6-630. Pre kids I was a night owl.

I've not had much luck with the gro clock either, he just presses the button to make the sun come on and screams "Mum, the sun is up!".

I would give anything for my 5 year old to sleep in till then. Between 5 and 5.30 is the norm for us.

To me it's early, especially if there's nowhere you have to be. I'm not a morning person and neither are my kids Waking them for school was one of the biggest miseries of pre Covid times. Now I have my "evening" between about 8 and 10am before they get up. I always find too that summer makes bedtime easier as there is a sensibly timed transition from light to dark. You can say look it's getting dark so it's bedtime. That isn't practical at 4pm in December 😫

@DryIce you can lock the screen on the gro clock