At what age is it ok to leave your kids at home alone?
At what age is it ok to leave your kids at home alone?
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Hi beauties,
I have a bit of a tough one for you... I don't have kids myself so I'm looking for some mum insight.
At what age do you think it's ok to leave your kids at home alone?
I realise there's probably not a one-size-fits-all answer here, but any advice on what you personally did, or found was the right time for your kids, would be great to hear about.
From just for a few hours after school, to home alone at night, let me know your thoughts and experiences. (No judgement!!) Much appreciated!
Sam x
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Minimum age for flying alone (as per my knowledge) is 12 years - So I'd say not before that. But if I am stepping out just for 5-10 minutes to get next door or running to grocery store near by - I'd imagine 7 years or older should be fine. Can't say for sure since my bub is still younger than that. The only time I leave him home alone is when I step out to throw garbage and know I'll be back in less than a minutes (and still check twice that I have the keys and phone).
Definitely grab keys! I went to empty the bin and my 18 month old locked me out!
Oh no! That must be so terrifying :O Mine is old enough to open the door when asked but still, it's just a scary thought. What did you do then?
Thankfully had a spare key in the shed. It was one of those doors that you just push the lock in. He was waving from the window blowing kisses
Oh no, Peta, what a little terror, lol. I remember when my eldest was around 3 opened the front door to let his almost 2 year old sister out. I had just gone into the bathroom to brush my teeth, which didn't even take 5 minutes. I was frantically looking for her, freaking out when my eldest told me that a man on a motorbike took her. OMG, I didn't think that was likely, but I was beginning to panic. Turns out she had wondered across the road into a storage shed yard that was now locked. I had to ring security to have them unlock the gates. Still makes me anxious just thinking about it!
Indie - i'm just trying not to scream reading this. :O What a nightmare situation for a mum. I lost mine in Kmart once - just two seconds I stopped to pick up a toy for small bub and meanwhile my toddler just disappeared. We were in toy section so I thought must have gone to another aisle. When I couldn't find him for 5 minutes, I was just really shouting him name, praying to all Gods I could remember and trying hard not to think about worse things. Gosh! still surprised how I managed not to faint ;D Apparently he was following another boy who was leaving with his family - got all the way to exit door and then realized he was not in toy section any more - knew his way to toy section (luckily :O ) so came back running there. I only got to know about this later from the lady at the door. All he said was - Mummy was lost. I was looking for you ;D
Peach perfect Love it....Mummy was lost :D
When we would go out I would ask the kids to hold my hand. At some point they reach this stage where they dont want to. I used to tell them that I needed them to hold my hand because I was worried I might get lost. They probably thought that their Mum was hopeless and they best indulge her :D
I should have tried that tactic when holding on to my youngest's hand when he was little, Meedee. He would often try and take off and when I wouldn't let him go he'd cry out "Ow, ow, ow." Mortifying!
I used to do loads of things like that IndieAna I used to on purpose forget something when I did things like giving the new baby a bath and would ask my eldest to please go and get a nappy or outfit, booties, etc. Then I would thank her and tell her how lucky I was to have such a helpful girl like her and that I didnt know how I would cope without her to help me. Im sure she must have wondered how it was she got issued with the needy mother.
I tried that and got the response - let me teach you. See keep eyes on me and follow closely, you won't get lost ;D
haha....love it peach perfect one step ahead of you in more ways then one :)
Oh Yes! Mr Monkey usually has an answer for everything. Yesterday he wanted 'privacy' to change his pants and I was too tired to go to other room so I suggested how about I close my eyes (I still have to check if he closed the button and wearing the pant right way so you can imagine :P ) ..and he's like - No that's not good enough cause...ummmmm (long pause) .....because I can still see your neck ;D
It's such a terrible feeling when you can't find your child, Peachperfect (or Mummy gets lost, lol, how cute!). Even scarier is just how quick they are, it only takes a moment of distraction and they can be no where to be seen.
I swear - it was absolutely no longer than 2 seconds of loosing sight ! Quick is an understatement ;P
Oh my IndieAna That would be so super scary.
My husband and our two eldest were out at a shopping center one day. We had called into a coffee lounge to get a bite to eat. My youngest at that time (later to become the middle child) was 2 years old. She was in the stroller asleep. We sat and ate lunch and then went to leave and I was horror struck to find she was not in the stroller. She must have woken and when neither of us was looking she had wandered off. The stroller was right next to us. We hunted the entire shopping center which was only small. Couldnt find her and I had just said to my husband that he needed to go check the carpark while I went to center management and got them to call the police. Little Miss 2 came wandering along with a huge smile on her face. I asked her where she had been and she said she went to the toy shop. The pure fear oh all the things that could have happened is so awful. I often remind her of the heart attack she nearly caused me that day.
It's certainly a fear that you never forget, Meedee, especially when you are thinking of all the terrible possibilities. Thankfully, our kids bring us a lot of joy, too, lol
I dont think my life would have been half as wonderful if I hadnt had my girls IndieAna but of course thats because i cant imagine my life without them. It certainly would have been a very different life thats for sure.
Ah! that's a relief to know. Sweet little things - they never really mean to cause trouble, do they? ;P
I was told when I had my eldest that she was going to be one that would cause me more then one moment of worry in my life and she certainly did Peach Perfect I was not prepared for my middle daughter to do the same. The youngest always says that shes the good daughter and has caused the least worry. So far she is correct :D
Lolz ...life must be so fun with three girls x
There has certainly been more positive then negative Peach perfect I have always been thankful that all three of my girls get on and they were never the kind of kids to fight with each other. They would have the odd disagreement but they have always been very close and always supported each other. Its funny to me now that they are all scattered in different locations around Australia and I only have the middle one thats a couple of minutes drive from here. In time she will be moving to be with her boyfriend who is in the Air force so she will be in various locations around the country.
This is the time to wonder and explore life. I know it's so hard to watch little birds fly away but I'd like to imagine that there is also certain kind of joy in it :)
As long as they are happy im happy Peach perfect As much as my parents loved me they stifled me and gave me no freedom at all so I vowed that i would never do that to my kids. I allowed them all the freedom possible instead and when each one has announced that they are moving away I always feel super proud of them. Its really not so bad as we have the ability to talk via video chat no matter where they are in the World so its not like it would have been years and years ago when you had to wait for months for a letter to arrive.
Agree with Peach perfect that most probably around 12 years old some 12 year olds are more mature in their own thinking, and understand the dangers, these children are called latch key children.
Mainly after School has finished, these Children have keys, and a phone, in the Kitchen Notice Board, emergency numbers should always be written down.
Just be mindful in some States it is illegal to leave children alone in the house, even at 12 years old and you can be charged with abandoning a Child.
For me it depended on the child and trusting my instinct.
My older son was mature for his age and I trusted to leave him alone after school. I started by letting him walk home on his own when he was just 7 years old . At that time I was home with my newborn baby and school pickup time was always hard for me as that's when my baby used to sleep. He was 10 when I started working full time , so he used to stay at home alone after school , but I had a neighbour keeping an eye on him at intervals.
For my younger son he is almost 11 years and I can't trust him to be alone, let alone walk/bus on his own . I don't feel he is ready to be left alone .
So I guess it depends on the child and how mature.ready they are to stay home on their own.
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