Playing in backyard alone in snow - when?

[hergrace]

My kids all played outside with me watching from the window this summer. Now that we have winter weather, I am assessing the safety issues differently and am not sure how I feel about the little ones out there if I have to be inside. They are almost 3 and very physically competent for their age.

In the summer, I have the window open so I can hear everything and I can walk out in my house shoes. Not so much in the winter.

Would you keep them inside unless you could be out there with them?

[sweetcheeks]

At that age, I'd be out there with them. Last winter, I'd let my then 3.5 YO outside with her then 5.5 YO brother. This year, her older brother is in school full days so she goes outside by herself now but I open the screen on the back storm door so I can hear her and I stay in the kitchen area. I just found that up until they were 3 or so, they still needed a fair bit of assistance in getting around in the snow.

[Alyantavid]

Well my 3.5 year old still falls down in the snow and yells for me to help him up. So in our case, I'd go with him to save my sanity from having to come in and out constantly.

[4Marmalade]

I imagine the answers will vary widely. For me, I am pretty comfortable letting ds1 (7) outside alone although I check on him once in a while. I will allow dd1 (4.5) out with him alone and continue to check on them. I only allow dd1 out completely alone for smaller amounts of time. My younger two are only 18 months so definitely not allowed out alone. I don't think I would feel comfortable at 3 years old but who knows. Varies greatly depending on personality too.

[cedoreilly]

I will let my older three go out without me as long as they go out as buddies (meaning at least two of them together). With a buddy I feel if something happened there is someone still able to come in and get me if I did not see it. I would not let my 2.5 year old out, though, without me.

[Peony]

My just turned 7 year old and 3 year have been out this winter by themselves. The 7 year helps the little one and when trouble occurs which happens usually everytime with a lost snowboot, mitten, etc... then she comes and gets me or I notice out the window, throw on snowboots and dash out. I have the baby inside with me, and he is usually napping and I can't go out with them and stay out.

[StrawberryFields]

I don't do outside snowy weather and stuff so I let my (newly) 4 and (newly) 2 year old out on their own. We have a big window that faces the backyard so I can see them, and they can't really get very far with all the snow anyway. I don't like the 2 year old to go sledding on her own without an adult though (or truthfully the 4 year old either) so I either leave the sleds put away or I only put out one or two small ones and ask them to just pull each other around and not sled down the hill.

[LynnS6]

I'd let them do it! Since there are 3 of them, if one gets into trouble, one of the others can come get you. And really, how much trouble can you get into playing in the snow?

ETA: Even with the windows closed, you can hear shrieks.

[hergrace]

It's interesting to read the variety of replies.

I decided to let them out. They are very competent climbers, it is a small, enclosed back yard, and I really needed to get the kitchen cleaned. They did great. I had my boots by the back door and went out a couple of times, but mostly they were fine. We have one slide that one of the kids tends to get his boots stuck on as he climbs over the top, but he figured out how to get himself unstuck while I was getting my boots on, so that was pretty cool.

[eepster]

I can't let DS out alone in our backyard for a variety of reason (busy street, unfenced yard, the huge pitbull/retriever mix that lives two houses down, etc.) but even if I could let him out in good weather, I wouldn't let him out in snow. Here are my reasons:

• He takes his mittens off constantly to dust snow off them no matter how cold it is.
• He has been know to request the sprinkler in winter.
• He has an extremely high pain threshold and would ignore the pain that comes before frost bite.
• He has tried to eat very dirty snow.

[Grace and Granola]

I would totally let my kids out, and have, all by themselves. They are 4 and almost 3. We have a fenced backyard, and several windows for me to look out to check, but I doubt I would very often. I think even if my 4 year old was not there, I would let my almost 3yo got out by himself.

[rzberrymom]

I definitely let my DD play outside by herself in the winter at age 3. Enjoy it while it lasts! She's now almost 5, and it's a struggle to get her to come outside in the bad weather.