To expect my dd to walk to school?

[hillbilly]

She will be 5 in June. It's a 15/18 minute walk. DH thinks it's too much. I think she should be able to do it. AIBU?

How did her old one break as you can get the replacement parts to repair them, some parts are free if you send a SAE

www.micro-scooters.co.uk/catlist.php?cat=30

my boys all walk to school, its a good half an hour walk, i dont drive so they dont have any choice! ds4 has been walking or riding his bike since he was 3 and its not a problem, ds4 is just 2 and he often walk a lot of the way tho i take the pushchair as its quicker and i can put the various bags/coats on it etc.

you are not being unreasonable at all!

Try and persist with the 2 wheeler if you can, dd1 has always had one (we were just about to buy a mini micro, when dh bought a really good 2 wheeler at a car boot sale for £2) and she is so good on it now, and she can do little jumps and everything - she loves it.

I don't drive, and although sometimes (eg now when I am 28 weeks pregnant and knackered!) I wish I could just hop in a car, really I am quite pleased that we have to just get on with it. We walk in all weathers, and I am really glad that the dd's are happy to pull on their wellies and waterproofs in the rain or snow.

Dd1 has asthma, and for weeks after she has had an attack she can get tired very easily, so far it hasn't stopped us walking though, and her asthma nurse said it was good to get her outside in the fresh air and getting exercise.

At 5 years old I not only walked home from school but did so without adult escort. All my friends did too. I lived about a mile from school and crossed some busy roads. It was a busy suburb of London.

The other day I wanted my 9 year old to pop home at lunchtime (round the corner, no roads to cross, rural village) and the head teacher phoned to ask me to collect him. How times have changed.

YANBU!

when we moved into our new house 2 years ago DS1 was still attending his old nursery close to our old house but i did tell him when he started the local primary school he would be walking.

DS2 has just turned 3 and he has been walking down to his nursery since august last year Its a 10 to 15 minute walk and we only don't do it if its raining heavy.

In winter when we had snow i put them both on the sledge and pulled them down to school which we all thought was great fun.

of course YANBU

It's a great way to start the day, just make sure you're both waterproof.

I always found it a great way to 'decompress' after the morning rush to get out of the house.

Mine are off at senior school now and I actually miss the school walk (sad but true)

Hillybilly - should you need any more reassurance, YANBU!! It is good for her!

MrHillybilly - I hope you have apologised for doubting your DW (Dear Wife), as surely you can see YABU!!

DD just needs to understand that sometimes the things we need to do are boring. Challenge her to beat you to the tree/fence/driveway etc. Your approach to the 'My legs hurt/I'm tired' whining was perfect and on the way home if there's any whining I offer the option of 'a little sleep' when we get home (which is not something they want at all)

I agree with the others who say that the whole "I'm tired/My legs hurt" whine tends to just be boredom.

We didn't have a car for the first 3 years we lived here (DD was 2.5-5.5) so walked and used public transport all the time.

We bought a car a year ago when she started school and I was pregnant.

During the summer, I did intend to walk the school run in the morning but I found it too rushed - even though I left in plenty of time I was worried about being late (I hate being late) so it wasn't pleasant for any of us. I didn't fancy walking in the afternoon as it was often above 30c and really "sticky" with it.

Now that it's autumn and the afternoons are cooler, we've decided to walk the afternoon school run. Did it yesterday and it was so much more relaxed than the morning one. I had put some HighSchoolMusical songs onto my mobile so we listened to them and DD hopped & skipped & jumped the whole way home. It's only about a 1.5km walk (just less than a mile I think?) and is pretty flat but everso slightly downhill on the way home.

Ultimately, I would like to walk both morning and afternoon. Once we're used to the afternoon walk and I'm less stressed in the morning we can add the morning walk in too.

I have some of the nicest chats with her on these walks - gives me a real insight into her school day and the way her mind ticks

Thank you everyone for your posts!

She asked to go in the car this morning and I said no. We played I spy on the way then bumped into someone from her class on the way so they scooted and skipped together. It was a much happier trip and I told her how lovely it was to see her get to school with smile on her face. She loves school anyway so always happy when she arrives but good to see her cheerful en route.

I used to practice times tables and spellings on the trip to school and then school news on the way home, it's more boredom than tiredness. you are not being cruel at all.