What do kids do who get up at 5.30am?

[gerispringer]

Hi there grandparent here- am on childcare duty for week 1 of summer hols. 2 youngest GC 4 and 6 who get up anytime from5 am. I just wondered what do parents of early risers do with kids these days? I remember my DC reading books or one who did lots of drawings. These 2 seem to expect to watch TV first thing. I feel a bit guilty letting them watch too much TV but it means I can have an early morning cuppa in relative peace.

Books or Lego for mine.

What are all the children doing when they’re sent back to their rooms?

Mine is 3.5 and my first, so I’m learning as I go! He sleeps from 8pm to 6am but he’s up after that. We took his crayons/pens out of his room a few months ago because he’d drawn on his wall for the first time ever… he has a few toys in there but nothing he’d play with without me, to be honest. He has loads of books but he doesn’t look at them without someone to read to him. He’s got a Yoto but again he doesn’t really sit and listen to it.

He tends to get up at 6am and be hungry and ready for breakfast. He’s not too fussed about the TV… he’ll watch a couple of episodes of Octonauts or paw patrol but I don’t think he likes it enough for it to incentivise him to get up early. He loves the iPad but he doesn’t get much iPad time and definitely not in the morning. thats the only thing he’d happily take back to his room by himself though…

Totally let them watch tv! They are only there for a week!! When mine were little the only way for me to have a weekend lie in (til 7.30 lol) was to put peppa pig etc on in my room and doze whilst they watched it. Saved me!!!

You need to take a holistic view of how you're going to survive the week.

If you're doing this on your own, personally I'd keep them up later so they wake later (assuming they won't just wake tired at the same time) and schedule a fairly chunky TV break for me to "recharge" for some point in the day. Hopefully then you'll have some energy to actually do stuff with them during the day rather than being completely fried.

If you have help (e.g. another grandparent), then you can be more pernickity and do "shifts". I.e. you engage them with activities and do the early morning shift, then your husband/partner takes over and supervises them for a bit later while you have a quick sleep, then early lunch and out of the house to tire them out for bed. Then split making dinner and looking after kids (bath, bed etc.) when you get back.

I would not leave children of that age to their own devices with playdoh unless you are very relaxed about getting chunks of it everywhere. Stickers are a better bet. Also kinetic sand - it hoovers up easily.

Washable markers are easier than crayons to get off furniture/the walls.

DD (3) is a 6am waker (if I’m lucky it was 5:30am this morning). She has a gro clock set for 6am so gets taken back to bed till then.
I am not a morning person so the tv often goes on at 6am while I have coffee and wake up. However I do try (when I have had a better night sleep) to leave it off as then she tends to play better through the morning.
However if she was staying with her grandparents I would be very happy for them to put the TV on at that time!

I read the word waker so wrong and was like ain't that the truth 🤣🤣

I'm not a grandma yet but am grandma age, with a grown up married son (hope emoticon).

If I had grandchildren of 4 and 6, they would likely have stayed up later than at home, so would hopefully have slept beyond 5.30am or 6.30am.

I watch TV in bed first thing, so they'd be in with me, snuggled up, watching the children's stuff I'd added to Sky. I'd have tea, they'd have milk. After about an hour we'd get washed and dressed and go downstairs for breakfast. The big one could read to me and I'd read to the little one. I'd take them to 10 o'clock Mass and they could go to Sunday school while I had a little rest, then they'd have a raucous hour with the other children playing in the garden.

Home for lunch and I'd take them to a children's farm for the afternoon and let them exhaust themselves on the ride ons and trampolines.

During the week we'd do a beach day, the South Ken Museums, probably Legoland or Chessington, children's theatre/film, quite a few teas out - knackered grandma and there'd be lots of playing in the garden.

Repayment to grandparents doing a whole week of childcare is that they have free rein to treat and spoil.

My dc were always early risers. I let them watch tv for an hour or so if it was the weekend or during the holidays but not a school day as it would disrupt their getting ready.

We tried the going back to their room but once they were up they were up. I found it easier just to get up with them tbh.

It would be a long day but by 7pm they would be ready for bed!

Well yeah that too! 😂

Repayment to grandparents doing a whole week of childcare is that they have free rein to treat and spoil.

100 per cent @RosesAndHellebores What happens** at grandparents is none of my business!

I really don’t know any young children who wake up later because they’ve been kept up later…happy to be corrected but a word of caution for the OP! You usually just end up with a horribly tired child.

Mine do. On holiday we keep them up until 11pm and then all enjoy a lie in the next day. It suits me as I can get to the gym and do the shopping before they wake up. They don't get grumpy if tired, just wired and then they conk out. But I'm prepared to believe from reading many MN threads that they're the exception.

What do the parents usually do, and have you discussed expectations with them?

Personally I really don't like screens in the morning and my kids (8,4,4,1) don't expect it BUT when eldest has a sleepover with nanny and grandad they absolutely put ceebeebies on for her in the morning and I'm totally fine with that. I think if it was for a whole week though I'd recommend some limits as I do find they are more restless later in the day (which is why we don't do morning TV at home) and harder to please.

Basically, what was agreed and what are the expectations? My mum has never had the younger ones at her house or the eldest for more than one night, but if she did we'd discuss it and I'd be available by phone/message.

But if you're fine with it/mum's fine with it and it doesn't cause behavioural issues, then i don't see a problem with it. While I'm really not a fan of screen time for litttlies grandmother's are allowed to spoil in my book. Certainly I remember being allowed a lot of cartoons when my nanna looked after me and my sister for a week

I think that as the demands of school increase most children would benefit from an extra hour asleep in the mornings. Learning to play by themselves for an hour in a safe space is also a good skill. If they are not getting an alternative eg early breakfast or adult attention at that hour they’re more likely to not get up and go back to sleep.
At the same time if it early get up works for the adults in the house too then they choose how to parent. But it doesn’t sound the case in this situation.

I would leave them to watch TV on a low volume.

Then, head out at 8am for a proper cafe breakfast 😋 as they're GC and can be spoiled a bit unlike my own kids who had cornflakes for breakfast 😆

@Goldbarwow lucky you! I think you are an exception!

I was about to say the same thing. Mine would bounce up at the same time but just be knackered.

DC get up a 5am and the other at 6am.
Quiet playing with toys until they are both up then half an hour or so of tv before breakfast.
Then everyone is dressed in between messing about by 9am.

I would have no issue with a grandparent allowing an hour or two of tv in the morning. I wouldn’t worry about it.

This reminds me of my childhood.

My Dad went to work at 3am. In the winter we all slept in. In summer, with light mornings Mum was often up shortly after and did housework and prepared food for the evening meal before school and work.

We were allowed to read or do puzzles quietly in our rooms, do homework or .... help her! So we stayed quiet!

You think stick on black out curtains is suddenly going to make a 6 year old sleep an hour or two longer only at granny’s when they have a regular wake up time most days?

Mine most definitely does not!

As sunrise is currently at around 05.15 I couldn't get even slightly annoyed about this tbh. Perfectly normal/natural.

I derail the purpose here a bit (no kids, no grandkids) 😁 but, why do these children wake up so early???
Genuine question.
When I was a small kid, in the eighties,
I obviously stayed in my room, played, read etc.

It's rare for mine to get up before 7 but if they do, they are sent straight back to bed because it's too early to get up.