At what age did you let your children get up alone?

[Illbebythesea]

Make a bowl of cereal and watch tv for an hour…? Is 6 & 4 to young? Because I’m knackered.

It never happened until DS was in his teens and had the odd night when he woke up early and then couldn't get back to sleep. He needed more sleep than me as a child so was never up earlier.

I think 4 is too young. DH and brother managed to take the car for a drive while their parents were in bed at 3 & 4 !. I would say yr2 so 6ish.

DS has pretty much always been up about half an hour later than me, an hour later as a toddler.

@Caszekey you will be telling that story forever! I love it!

and yes. 6 and 4? Can work the TV? Crack on! You’ll hear them if ww3 starts

Thank you for this people! My eldest is 5.5 and still comes into our room for us to get up with her and am thinking tbh why? She can easily make brekkie herself if I made sure to leave stuff at right height for her (she usually has cereal and fruit). Thing is she absolutely hates doing anything on her own so I reckon she'd just refuse and kick off...on the odd occasion she wakes before 7am we send her back to her room to go back to sleep and she just plays in her room alone, she's never gone downstairs or suggested it. Hmm need to have a chat with DH...

I didn't, I always got up with them.

DS used to get up before us age 3. Our house wasnt very big so he was just in the next room. It was mostly totally fine. Apart from the day he climbed up and made himself toast.

So I have a 10, 5 and newborn in the house. I always got up with them or before them. Newborn arrives and last week I woke up after going back to sleep when baby did to it being 9 am panicking that the kids has not woken me up.
ran in to living room and they were watching number blocks - eating toast and cereal whilst the 10 year old has hoovered.
clearky I missed the part when she grew up 😩😩🤣
5 year old was happy because she allowed him 7 bloody biscuits.

I think 4 is too young to be eating unsupervised, but watching tv, fine.

Mine are all grown up now but about similar ages 7 and 4 then one was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes so that stopped till he was about 10

4 seems a bit young. 6 is fine. But you know your children/house set up best.

Never really happened, I had that rare child who actually liked his sleep and never woke before us ! (We are early risers though). Even on Christmas Day we were up, dressed and waiting for him to wake up .

Me too, then when they got tvs in their rooms they would lay in bed watching those.

We take 5 year old down, get him a drink and some breakfast, put the TV on then come back to bed, he comes and gets us if he needs anything! We might go back to sleep in that time but it depends how early he has risen most of the time I'm awake anyway.

I wouldn't want kids eating without me for breakfast until they were a little older - choking and all that but if they are happy to go and watch TV that fine

Four. Old enough to get cereal and put on the TV and work the Video to watch Tots TV!

It depends on the child. I still don’t allow it with my 8yr old, but he has sen. I was grateful his teenage brother offered to go down with him this morning and I got an extra hour!
Those allowing 4/6 yr olds to get breakfast, don’t you be afraid they would choke?
I definitely think 4 is too young, especially on a different level to them.
Im just glad my youngest actually sleeps a night now, he didn’t till he was 6 so maybe that’s delayed everything for me.

Regarding choking - I think the choking risk on rice krisipes has to be absolutely minimal?

My big two were that age, number 3 had arrived and I appreciated the extra sleep. In that house the stairs were in the lounge and our bedroom at the top, so within direct earshot. It was magical once we got a Tele with an app so we could turn the volume down whilst still laid in bed.

Unfortunately I completed failed with number 3, who not only never slept, would also never go downstairs alone, so one of us had to get up. Thankfully Dad is her favourite parent.

Never, but he didn’t get up as early at weekends during the early rising years. So it never really bothered us

Age 3 and 4 I used to leave her Tablet outside her room on weekends. She was happy going down and putting tv on before 5. She would come and see me if any problem. Her older sister usually gets up a bit after her.

I would be concerned about choking firstly and then also about the two of them getting up to no good. I just don’t think I could sleep with them up. I’d say 7 to come down and watch tv but not for food.
For younger I’d suggest watching a tv or tablet upstairs or in your room

Of course the risk of choking is minimal OP bit for me its never been worth the risk when DC can wait an hour.

Choking is always rare until it happens.

I moved house when my youngest was 4 (single parent) my non negotiable was a wall mounted tv in my bedroom so he just use to get in next to me and I cud doze.

He now sleeps till 8ish unless I wake him for school.

My 5yo gets up on his own and watches tv. If I go downstairs, he moans at me as it's "his time" 😂