At what age do you leave your dcs to their own devices in the morning while you have a lie-in

[furrycat]

I have a 3.7yr old and 22 month old. Am longing for the time that just because they wake up at 6am doesn't mean I need to get up then too...Any thoughts anyone?

Id get up with them and lay on the sofa with stair gate on dosing.

We leave our nearly three year old and four and a half year old alone in their bedroom playing, but it doesn't last long before they start arguing and requiring supervision.

ds has been getting up on his own from about 7. prior to that he wanted us to join him

My not quite 3yo is encouraged to go and play in her room/do a jigsaw/draw a picture. Sometimes it works and she'll spend a good half hour playing quietly with her dolls, but sometimes it backfires and she'll keep coming in our room to ask me to read a story etc.

I also leave a glass of milk out for her to help herself and sometimes a biscuit in case she's hungry, so I won't have to do an early breakfast either.

We've been doing this for a few months and it works fine. However, I do only have one child and we live in a flat, so no stairs or anything remotely dangerous.

Since the youngest was 3, but her sisters (then 7 and 5) look after her, get her breakfast, etc.

I have only been able to do this for the last 2/3 yrs, and my youngest is 6 this week.

that said, I have older ones and they helped out with him........my elder two were gone 7 and 5 before I was ok to think that they could go downstairs on their own.

I'm watching this thread with interest - I'm starting the count-down from DD2 who is minus 3.5 months to DD2 being old enough to be left with DD1 (who is 20 months now) - 3 and a half, maybe four years until I can have a lie-in?

I overheard a lady at a softplay centre telling her friend that her little boy (who was about 3) goes downstairs on his own, helps himself to something from the fridge, and lets the cat out of the back door Unfortunately he also cut the dogs hair one morning! Thank god that's all he cut!

Sorry, little rant there.

This very much depends on the child I think.

DS1 who is now 5 from about a similar age (3.5) I would get up briefly to provide some breakfast and put the tv on for a dvd then I would get back into bed! The layout of the home and what was in it though meant he was as safe as I thought he could be.. ds1 is a very laid back child though, he has no idea how to use the remote control of the tv, he has shown no interest in trying to escape by unlocking doors, or raid things like fridges, I have found it odd at times compared to friends stories!

When it comes to two children though I'd be more concerned about the younger one getting up to mischief and much as it might be tempting the elder one can not be eyes for the younger child. Did you hear about the sad story of a 3yr old who accidently sat on her baby sibling and killed her whilst the mum had a bath? I know the ages are different of your children, but I think you have a little wait before that lie in time arrives.

Just think teenage years then it might be the opposite problem, how to shorten the lie in

From about 4.5 - 5.

I didn't let my dd come down on her own until she was 6 (pfb so probably could have done earlier). dd now 9, ds is 3 but i will still come down with ds as I would worry about him eating and choking. So in theory I have another 3 years to go before i get a lie in

21 month age gap. When DS was 3.7 I could not leave them alone together. DS might decide to jump on a bed and DD would want to join in but have no concept of whether she was near the edge of the bed.
DS was rarely up before DD but on the rare days he was I did the DVD thing until DD woke up.

We bought a portable DVD player
From when she was 2 3/4 this has meant DD will watch DVDs in her bedroom, and play, while we doze past 5 or whenever she decides is morning. She usually also requires a picnic breakfast to make it work well. And because she is a few feet away, we can keep an ear on her.

My parents trained my brother to do all of his puzzles before he woke anyone else up.

I wish my mum was still alive to tell me how she achieved this.

DS1(7) will now get up, get Ds2 up, go downstairs and out on a video for him, before settling himself in front of Adventure Quest on the computer.

Until last year he would want us to go down with him though. Something about Bogman . I suspect that's the only reason he gets DS2 up now...

Not wanting to put a dampener on things and I'm not criticising anyone but when my Dad was 5 yrs old, his mum used to let him and his siblings (older) get up while she had a lie-in. My dad got really severely scalded because his brother accidentally dropped a kettle of boiling water on him

About 4 I suppose. But with no#3 there were 2 bigger DCs to entertain him. Mind you the 2 boys would sleep later than us these days if they had the chance.

On the weekends when my two DDs (3.5 and 17 months) wake up we give them each a beaker of milk and let them potter around upstairs with the stairgate on while we doze for another hour or so. They can play in their room, the spare room or come into our room. There is nothing dangerous for them in any of those rooms. DD1 will often come and get into bed with DH and I and snuggle up whereas DD2 is more likely to sit reading books in their bedroom while popping in and out of my room for a quick kiss. They will usually play together or entertain themselves without bothering us too much for an hour or so, then we finally drag ourselves up and have breakfast. You do need to make sure that the rooms that they can get into are safe (i.e. I always make sure the bathroom door is properly shut or DD2 is liable to launch herself head first into the bath or climb on the loo and fall in - little monster!).

finally, one of the benefits of having twins! My twin girls have played quite happily together for at least the past year, they are 4.7 now, we often hear them giggling together in the morning but we don't have to do a thing as they have each other

My dd gets up, dressed and either looks at books, gets cereal or watches tv all without disturbing us until she hears our radio come on. Has been doing this for about 3 months. She's 3.6 now.

DD gets ds up, takes him to the toilet, then downstairs and gets them each a cup of juice and breakfast and then they either watch tv or go down into the playroom. I make a tupperware with chopped fruit, and there are easy things like pain au chocolate, so breakfast is easy. DD is 6.5 and ds is 3.5.

This is weekends obviously.

Stair gates are essential I think. Mine are 4.5 and 3 and I wouldn;t let them down stairs by themselves. But I love the idea of a picnic breakfast to keep them entertained.

Oooooh, this morning was a bit of a 'light at the end of the tunnel' moment for me.

My 3.2yrs old DS1 was up at 6am, came into our room, whispered "I'm going to play with my trains" and then trotted off to do just that for 40mins....

DS2 has bottle at 6am and sleeps another hour in bed with us, so that suited me juuuust fine.

Therefore, I'd say, I'd trust my child at 3yrs old

hiccymapops - My DS3 goes up and down the stairs at will, has on occassions also (although he is not actually allowed) helped himself to milk from the fridge, and a banana from the fruit bowl (putting whole empty skin back!!) and then switched on a DVD before I've really woken up properly.

So, don't be too quick to judge, he's really quite capable and not really in any danger! I am more afraid he'll spill the milk on the oak table and leave a stain than anything else!!!

Dd is 7 and although I would trust her to come downstairs on her own, I always get up with her.

I have my lie in when she sleeps at dgm's house on occaisional weekends.

I always feel rough if I sleep in anyhow, and I like that half hour of dozing time in front of tv with her before we set about the day.