Bed times?

[mumto3boys]

Having the age old argument with DS1 (13) with regard to bed times.

He is in year 8, starts school at 8 am and generally needs to be up at around 6.30 am during the week. His bedtime is 9 - 9.30 ish during the week and later at weekends / holidays. Once he goes to his room he is allowed to read for 15 - 30 mins or so.

Last night he wanted to watch something on TV, a comedy thing. It went on til 11.35, so I let him watch til 10.15 then sent him to bed. He knew this was the case before he started watching it, and it was a stand up thing so he didn't miss any story or anything.

Once sent him up he was moaning like anything that 'everyone' was watching it and today apparently 'everyone' also goes to bed about half ten on a school night.

Just checking that eveyone actually isn't! He's not in the good books at the mo anyway so he won't be getting a later bed time regardless, but want to see if I am getting it really wrong!

Well during the holidays my DCs are going to bed later than me!

My DD in year 6 goes to bed at 10pm and gets up at 7am.

DS goes to bed at 10.30pm and gets up at a similar time (though he is at boarding school and that is "lights out").

My philosophy is, you can go to bed that late if you want to watch something, as a one off, but you better be able to get up in the morning without moaning.

If they moan or are crabby they don't get to do it again for ages.

Mine did watch that programme last night and didn't surface until 11ish but then that is fine with me, it is the holidays and they can have a lie in if they like.

DS1 is nearly 13 - bedtime is around 9-9.30, at weekends it's a bit later at 10ish, and on rare occasions when we have friends and their kids round it's later still. I've found by talking to other mothers that the mysterious 'everyone else' does not go to bed much later, and even if they did I wouldn't care.

One of the reasons I made him go to bed was we were going to bed, and also that he has been in quite a lot of trouble lately so i'm buggered if he's getting any treats at the mo. He is also a nightmare after a late night!

Maybe I could have let him watch the rest of the programme and without the recent trouble I may have let him. Sounds like the term time bed time is about right, maybe i'll start to relax a bit about the weekends/ school hols when the behaviour improves!

Well if he is a nightmare after late nights, then no, he should go to bed when you suggest.

My DCs only get to stay up because they are NOT a nightmare the next day (DD1 is 15, DS1 is 14).

I quite like staying up with my girls age 15 and 13 to watch something special, it makes a change for them as usually they are in their bedroom stuck on facebook or doing homework for hours.
They also have 2 younger brothers who go to bed later in the hols so I let them choose when they go as they don't usually last past 11pm.
School nights its 10pm and has been since starting high school.

My 15 year old goes to bed at 9 to 9.30 but thats because he has a morning paper round so has to be up for 6.30. Invariably he has his tv on but if I go in maybe 15mins later he is usually fast asleep. Weekends I would say prob 10.30 - 11.

13 year old dd goes school days at 10 and is asleep within minutes and gets up at 7am no problem, Weekends prop 10.30 ish.

11 year old sd and 10 year old dd go at 9 - 9.15 and 10 year old is asleep in minutes. 11 year old has learning difficulties and struggles to get to sleep but she is always in bed and with nothing to stimulate her so will drop off to sleep eventually usually through boredom I would imagine!!

My DD 13 does not have a set bedtime. Usually goes up around 10 during the week later at the weekends. Gets up at 6.30 for school, we leave the house at 8am. However if she starts to show any signs of being tired, poor performance at school or bad behaviour she would be on early bedtimes