To think that if it is called a sleepover, then they might actually sleep?

[MrsSchadenfreude]

Doors slamming, yelling, singing...

What age? Can you do scary?

Put them on a quilt in front of the tv and turn the light off. Put some really boring child friendly film on. That'll knock them out.

They are awake already! After about three hours sleep!

Never again. They were split between two bedrooms and each kept coming downstairs to say that the other was keeping them awake. We had tears. We had shouting. We had slamming doors. We had headaches, we had earaches, we had hurty knees, we had falling out of bunk beds. I got less and less sympathetic. A quick "Oh I'll ring your Mummy and get her to collect you, shall I?" sorted out the whingers (two went home - sensible girls!).

I am going back to bed when they have gone. Which isn't for quite a while yet...

Oh godo godo god. I've got a sleepover tonight. Don't tell me this!! Four extra nine-year-old boys. [quiver]

What in the NAME OF GOD are you doing having sleepovers with more than one guest????

[you nutters]

DS had one child over and they went to sleep at 11. I would NEVER have more than 1.

I remember having about 8 girls to sleep over for my 13th birthday. We stayed up most of the night and in the end it took for my scary big 18 year old brother to come down in his undies to shout at us all to shut us up
2 of them developed a crush on him after that though

Anyone got a spare scary 18 year old?

YABU - sleepovers never involve much sleep.

You do come to realise which kids are the best ones to invite for sleepovers and which ones you would never have again! In my experience I would recommend the only-during-the-holidays rule as it tends to take a week to recover!

I used to have sleepovers when I was a kid and loved them, but lookinbg back I don't my mum slept at all.

My dd has asked if she can have one for her 9th birthday later this year.

I'm with ghosty on this one. Never, ever, have more than one child for a sleepover. Unless you have more than one child, in which case it's fair because your other feels left out.

As I know, last night, to my cost.

Picture the scene - 2 playdates, one lives the other side of town and has to leave a bit earlier, with dd2 going along for the ride. In the meantime dd1 and her friend have negotiated a sleepover.

H and dd2 did not speak to me on their return .....

I have a mental list of boys who are welcome to stay (go to sleep fairly quickly after lights-out, get up at a reasonable hour), and those who are not - (the boy who woke me up at 4.45am asking for breakfast).

I have 1 guest at a time, who stays in the same room as my dd (for it is she who's queen of sleepovers) and dh and i label it a "stay up over". That way there are absolutely no expectations to be shattered. We try to aim for school holidays or at a pinch a friday night too. Always fine.

Only once did we have multiple guests, for ds1's birthday. we put them in a tent in the garden, hurled out some food for their breakfast next day. That was fine too, but it needs to be the summer unless you're running a bootcamp.

Going back to bed now
We have acquired a selection of pyjamas, coats, socks and vests, and one boot

We had twelve. Far too many. Previous years lots have dropped out, but not this year.

Have to say, most of them were really well behaved and delightful. They just wouldn't sleep!

12 !!!!!!!!!

[Extremely Stupid]

I am phenomenally strict - not nasty, just strict, (think Joyce Grenfell - "No, I really don't think we want to throw our fairy cakes, do we? No, we don't...") so it was all reasonably orderly for the games, food etc. It was just the lack of sleep and overtiredness which led to bitchiness and tears.

I didn't get much sleep - I had ears on elastic in case any of them got up in the night and tried to escape!

DS1 had 4 friends round the other day, 4 slept over. They were 9, 10, 11 and 12 years old, they went to bed at 11 and were up at 5.45
I went in and ask them "do you know what time it is? Its 5.45am" one of sons mates with big smile says "we know we set the alarm"

Didn't allow sleepovers with several children until dd's 11 birthday party- and then my rationale was that you lot are old enough to look after yourself, just get on with it. I ordered a Chinese takeaway and went to bed with little brother at 11. They, apparently, partied until 3 and were then up again at 7! But it was a great success- everybody was happy and pleasant and not too raucous (after 11 o'clock, no more so than an adult party would have been). And it was the week-end so I wasn't really fussed about how little they slept. I didn't have to do it.
Compared to all the parties I've organised over the years, this one was blissful. I didn't have to organise a thing, I didn't have to socialise beyond the bare basics and I could withdraw when I'd had enough. I'd do it again any day!

I did wonder how this was going to go

sllep overs ahould be changed to awake overs.
ds had his mate over last year. they never slept. even climbed out of the window(he videod it!!) never again,.

MI - apart from the lack of sleep, it was fine, really

They spent a huge amount of time icing and decorating their fairy cakes to take home. The pink cakes were especially popular, which is just as well as the recipe made 50 not 24. We only had one really whiny one (child not cake)who went off to bed in a huff early and came back down when she realised no-one was coming to look for her. DD2 had a friend who could rival me for Joyce Grenfell - said to Whiny One "I don't think we want to behave like that at a party, do we?"

Oh you did Proper Activities. We haven't done Proper Activities. Just shouting and attacking a punchbag, chiefly. But they all sem to have ahd a good time. All were asleep by midnight -- and up at 5:30!