Would you leave a 2 year old with older siblings for hours?

[Wouldcou]

Would you leave 4 children age 16, 15, 11 and 2 alone to go to the gym. It will take 3-4 hours due to public transport?

Mostly the issue is with the 2 year old I have left the other three together before to go shopping. Have never left the 2 year old.

3-4 hours to attend a gym is ridiculous regardless of the childcare situation .., how is this sustainable?

Some of these comments are wild. You can leave school at 15, be in full time employment at 16, move out at 16, but oh god, no. A few hours babysitting is too much. They are 16, not bloody 6. Of course it's ok.

If your 16 year old is responsible and willing and ideally has someone nearby that they can call in an emergency then I think it’s fine. I babysat overnight for a newborn at that age (I had much younger siblings so was experienced and my parent was only 5 minutes away)

yes of course a reasonable 15 or 16yo can take care of a 2yo for a few hours.

But also I don't see you going to that gym too often if it's a 4 hour trip. If there's nothing closer then consider investing in home equipment.

I think it would be fine once the 16 year old is sensible.

No I wouldn’t. I had a child at 16 too, but they don’t become 2 overnight. Depends if you trust the 16yr old to properly watch the toddler. For an emergency yes, 3-4hrs at the gym? No.

Are you ok? They are 16!!! What wet wipes are we bringing up if a 16 y.o doesn't know what to do in an emergency. In the times of constant communication via mobile phones etc, what is the problem?

As long as the 16 year old is sensible and happy to do it, and you offer him/her some incentive to do it and you're not encroaching on any activities or homework they need to do, it's fine. Most 16 year old baby sit other children.

If you think the eldest can look after the youngest then yes. 16 is definitely old enough to babysit

Why not start with short stints. So both of them can get used to it. See how it goes.

I would not begin with 3 hours away and no way to rush home, no.

Only if you pay the teen. They aren't your free babysitting service.

And could you not just go for a jog and do some weights at home? That's a bonkers length of time for a gym session. Surely finding a plan that takes less time will be a better plan?

I'm sure if she had to get home quickly she would do 🤣

Looking after a two year old is babysitting. Therefore you need to check that the 16 year old is happy to do it for 4 hours and you need to pay. Just leaving the 4 kids home alone with the eldest 2 'in charge' (whatever that means?!) has disaster written all over it.

I don’t think you can get strangers to answer this. You know your child/children - it’s as much about the 2 year old as it is the 16 year old. I’d have no issue with most 16 years olds doing this and even the duration isn’t really a big deal if they’re happy with it. The bigger issue is if there was an emergency how quickly could you get back?
I nannied for an 8 year old and 18 month old during the summer holidays when I was 15 but a parent was no more than a 20 minutes away.

Definitely if the 16 year old or 15 year old was on board with looking after the youngest.

My 16 year old DD regularly babysits for a family on our street that has a 1 year old, 5 year old and 7 year old.

It does depend how responsible and mature your 16year old is. Would he be ok babysitting a two year old for that long? I have a 16year old son myself who looks after his younger siblings for a few hours whilst I'm at work but they're 12 and 10 and for him personally I wouldn't expect him to babysit a two year old as he's a quiet kid who doesn't like to be pestered a lot. He's perfectly ok to watch my two younger kids as they're not little and are happy to chill and leave him alone. He only has them for about an hour and a half after school until I finish work, or he's taking the 10year old into breakfast club on his way to school with the 12year old. A morning on the weekend days that I work if they don't go to their dad's that week. He will do them lunch or tea whilst he's at home with them so he is pretty responsible there at least. Is there a nearer gym you could get to or could you use the gym during school hours instead?

If you have 4 children so spaced out then of course life is going to be difficult for you. This is your child and your decision to have them. Your older children should not be child minders. I say this as someone who had to look after a much younger sibling. What about the child’s father? As you have a lot of buses to get then one could not turn up and you could be delayed.

Most of the time when a teenager babysits, the parents have a car and can get home very quickly in an emergency. e.g. they are out for a meal, but only 10-15 minutes drive away.
In this case, the parent is two bus rides away and can't get home quickly, so it is a firm 'no' from me.

Two year old kids are hard work. If you turn your back for a few minutes they can escape out the back door and get into traffic. mine used to climb on the gas stove if I turned my back. It is babysitting on Expert Mode. If your 16 year old is interested in more of a leadership role with his younger sibs, you can lean into that by gradually training him to babysit, starting with 20 min where you are nearby (eg in the garden). And work up to longer times as he builds skills. But a 3-4 hr gym trip, I would not be comfortable with that.

How? The OP is using buses, so presumably no car.
What if no taxi were available as they were all busy? What if OP doesn't have the money for a taxi? (which can be expensive if going quite a distance into a rural area)

I used to babysit at eleven. But I was considered sensible enough to do it. And had to handle bedding/ sheets that had been vomited over one evening. And a sick child, and another crying.

It will depend on how sensible and mature your sixteen year old is. Only you will know.
I would probably say no to looking after a two year old. Your child is more important than your gym session.

I would consider too the possibility that they all ‘play up’, all together. Giving your sixteen year old a very hard time.

Whether a boy or a girl: I do not believe that regular sibling care should be part of any child/teenager’s duties or chores.

They shouldn’t have to block every second Saturday (or every Saturday evening, Wednesday evening…) for sibling sitting, to use a random example.

Yep, I was my little sister’s childminder as well. Back then I would have told you that I liked doing it, that I loved my sister, was proud to help our mother etc.

It took me quite some time to realise how wrong that was.

edit: I think it’s really important to differentiate between baby sitting and sibling sitting / minding one’s siblings.

look up workout videos on youtube. I am sure you can find options and use things around the house and equipment you have. Order bands from amazon. Those are useful for working out.

it does not take 4h to go to the gym. Have a walk, come home, do some stretches and you are done