Would you leave 2 kids with one grandparent overnight?

[Peonyyyy]

we have one grandparent who sees our children regularly and looks after our first child (now almost 4) for one full day a week when we’re both working. I’m currently on mat leave with our second, who is 7 months.

i know we just need to talk it through with her and see if she/we are comfortable but I just wanted to get general opinions/experiences, we have an event coming up where we would need to be in London over night, so would leave them with her from the afternoon until mid morning the next day.

would you do this or is it too much/unfair for one grandparent to handle?

I should point out also that our first child is very helpful and self sufficient, and understanding about the baby needing a lot of feeding/nappy changes etc.

I’m a grandparent and regularly care for more than one child overnight. As long as they are happy with it and you are happy with it I can see no problem, but every one is different.

Very much depends on the grandparent and the DC.

Entirely depends on the grandparent doesn't it? Pal of mine leaves her three kids with their nan, she's a relatively young no bullshit ex army nurse so she's completely fine with them even though they're absolute menaces, but they'd absolutely run rings round an older or more frail grandparent.

So... Depends if said grandparent is well and fit enough to manage two on her own for a couple of days, and if she's happy to do it!

My kids had 4 grandparents.

two of them no problem the other two hell no.

It depends! Speak to the GP and find out how they feel.

It depends on the grandparent.
My dad or my MIL would be able to look after both on mind overnight if needed. My mum or FIL I don't think would cope on their own.

All you can do is ask.

Is the younger BC used to being looked after by the grandparent?

I think this totally depends on the grandparent. I wouldn’t have left a 7 month old overnight with either of ours. We were co-sleeping at that age anyway.

When we did last leave them (at 5 & 10), the one ‘responsible’ grandparent (MIL, I’d not leave them overnight at all with my mum) got drunk and forgot to put them to bed and my 10 year old had to put the 5 year old to bed finally at like 11pm. 🙈

We don’t do overnights with grandparents anymore. Very much depends on how your grandparent can cope.

Yes should’ve said - she has had the eldest overnight several times but we haven’t gone anywhere much since we’ve had number 2. She is in her 60s and fit and used to playing with eldest all day. She plays with our second, but hasn’t ‘looked after’ her yet when we aren’t there. Maybe we need to do a dry run of that first?

agree we definitely need to discuss with her first and would only do it if she’s comfortable. We’re very grateful to even have the potential option and it’s definitely not something we’ll be doing often 🤪

depends- is the grandparent 50 or 80?

I couldn’t have left them at 7 months as they were breastfeeding until they were 1. But I’d happily have left them with my mum once weaned and also with my dad if it was very important.

Depends on the grandparent, mine often has my two and their two cousins - all 4 and under! She's brilliant and loves it.

We have a 3yo and 7yo and we haven't left the 3yo overnight with GPs, although 7yo has had sleepovers with them since age 4. It is partly about.having enough energy to deal with them (both over 70 so quite a bit older than OP's mum), and partly about wanting youngest to feel comfortable (she still co-sleeps and bfs, and she wouldn't have been sleeping through at 7m). We also just haven't had the need for it (we live in London so we can do nights out and still come home to the dcs). We'll probably do a sleepover with both kids the next time we visit GPs, when dc2 will be 3.5 years.

Our DS who is 4 doesn’t have a DGP under 80 so no way would we ever consider overnighters for one child let alone 2.