What age would you

[yestothat]

—put a back pack on dc, to carry their own drink, snack + toy?

3.5. I made my twins do that on a trip to London as I was carrying the baby on my back. They were fine with it.

Ds has been carrying a backpack from about Age 2 1/2 gradually building up from just a snack and light toy to more heavy items like a drink as he got to 3 and older.

2 1/2.

As soon as they can walk? A tiny one. Regular one age 2 or 3

DD was 4 before she would tolerate a backpack, strong enough to carry it earlier than this but would let it slip off or just take it off

4 or 5 depending how heavy

It's hard to remember as they get older but don't think I'd get a 3 year old to carry a drinks bottle in a rucksack for long!

Mine had backpack reins as toddlers and had a drink and snack in it.

Not till age 4 when we stopped carrying the changing bag round (started with nappies in then had the travel potty then folding toilet seat).

Hahah I still carry my 9 year olds bag sometimes!
They didn’t HAVE to carry their own bags at all when just out and about, I carry snacks in my bag and we don’t take water bottles.
they carry their own school bags 90% of the time we walk to school.
Can’t imagine having toddlers carry a backpack really, they’d just take it off and then I’d have that plus my own bag to sort out.

Or they’d leave it somewhere

2?

To go where? My DDs carried a small one with spare clothes and water for nursery - not sure the exact age but certainly by the time they were 2. But they weren’t carrying it very far.

Generally I carried stuff on trips out in a backpack, or hung on the buggy. They didn't carry their own until later primary age, maybe 8. When younger I liked them to be able to run, jump, climb, cartwheel freely.

Wow. You deserve a medal.

Dd got a special backpack for Christmas before she turned 3 and loved it. Carried her own stuff (some necessary, a lot of it not… you don’t really need 3 princesses and a wooden cooking spoon to go to the playpark but she seemed to think differently).

My little one had a toddler backpack/ reins from a young age and then about 3 started carrying a small
backpack with a toy and a drink in it. She doesn’t carry it the day out though and usually ends up in the pram after a few hours.

Wow, how are your kids so accommodating? Ours would always like the idea of wearing their own backpack, but would get annoyed with it after about 10 mins and refuse to walk another step wearing it, which means I'm then carrying three backpacks! It even happened recently on a country walk with an 8yo.
I've given up now, I understood they just want to run around and be free. They are kids after all.

My son started carrying his backpack into nursery around 2ish. It was easier for the staff than handing over loads of things.

I’ve never expected him to carry a bag on a normal day. I just put his water bottle/snack/pants in my bag. If he wanted to bring much more than that, I’d make him carry his own bag around 5 or 6, I guess.

Depends. Mine sometimes had a little backpack with their water from around 3ish, and were carrying their own daypacks on city breaks from around 6, but they’re tweens now and I still wouldn’t make them carry a backpack on a mountain hike as they’ll have more fun running around without.