Sorry it’s quite a long post.
I am cat lover and have had older cats from rescue centres, kittens and mid age cats. Kittens are adorable, funny, sweet but can be destructive. They will sharpen there claws on your furniture. My now 2 year old cat put kitten nail marks in all my kitchen chairs within a couple of weeks or her moving in at 8 weeks old . The chairs were less than a year old and still being paid for 🙈.
Our youngest cat is 6 months old (both cats have the same mum but different dad). She has tried to scratch my new sofas, climbed our new curtains, tried to rip the wallpaper. Kittens need time, attention and extra care plus stimulation and careful handling and teaching as to what is and isn’t acceptable behaviour. Things like kittens should never be encouraged or allowed to play with hands as they don’t unlearn that easily and can really hurt someone as they become fully grown cats. Biting, nipping and scratching behaviour is not uncommon again you need to teach them not to do this. Kittens also need to be handled carefully as they can be over handled and get over stimulated, grumpy and are much more likely to scratch if over stimulated so your kids need to know that to.
Kittens can also be easily frightened and you need to factor in the cost of vaccinations (at 9 and 12 weeks) and spaying or neutering plus worming tablets and microchipping etc. Each kitten cost on average of £330 each in vet bills for these things. If you have 2 kittens together they may play together. It equally means double cleaning on little trays and double the chance of using your couch as a scratch post. Kittens are also very energetic and normally only calm down when they are old enough to go outside or older generally. Kittens are much more work than older cats in my experience and do need you to be home much more as the need you much more. Older cats come and go as they please and quite enjoy that normally.
I also had an old Tom cat until he died recently. He was 14 when he died but I got him when he was 6 from the rescue centre. He was a gentle, easy going, laid back and well behaved Tom cat. The kids adored him and he adored them. He actually loved kids generally and his favourite pastime was getting cuddles and stroked by mine or the neighbours kids. He literally cried to get out of his cage when we went to look for a cat at the rescue centre to see my then 4 year old ran over to him and curled up in his arms. We knew then he was the perfect cat for us.
I have 3 kids and not all cats or kittens like kids. Some cats are quiet, some are shy, some are confident and some love kids and some don’t. I would actually recommend meeting the cat/kittens and seeing how they interact with your kids. That’s a big indicator as to how the cats will be in your home with your kids.
All 3 of my cats were totally different nature wise.
My old Tom cat was gentle but very confident and friendly (everyone in my area knew him as he visited lots of people). He often lay out the front just to get the kids to stroke him and would follow my younger kids around as if he was trying to keep them safe when they played at the front of the house.
My 2 year old cat is very timid, shy and doesn’t like being lifted. She likes a stroke but only on her terms. She is very sweet natured but tends to hide from the youngest kids as she prefers the house when it’s quieter. She frightens very easily.
My 6 month old is kitten is feisty, confident and frequently tries to pick fights with other cats who are double her size. She also wasn’t as easy to teach not to do things like playbite (she still does it sometimes). I am frequently telling her not to jump on beds or jump on the table. She glares at me and carrries on until I take her down then does it again the next day. She also loves cuddles and my kids.
I have personally always had outdoor cats except one cat who was 17 when I took her in and just needed a nice, quiet home for the last months of her life (I had no kids then). Cats with access to outdoor space (even a secure garden) as mentioned above tend to be happier and more relaxed as they can hunt and hone their skills. Though some breeds are better indoors than others.
Your best to find a cat that fits into your family life but kittens do need much more work so factor that into your decision. Cats are great pets though and we all love them in our house.