Child home alone w/ sleeping adult? - Page 3

[StephandOwen]

I am not okay with this FOR MY CHILD (not judging anyone else). DS has autism and is an escape artist. We currently have alarms on all our doors because he has waken in the middle of the night trying to escape. So, for us, if he's up then there's at least one adult up. That doesn't mean there hasn't been the rare day where I've been sick as a dog and dp had to go to work for a couple hours. Those rare days (I can think of 2) I have crashed on the couch, with Thomas movies on and the alarms set. Obviously I didn't get much "rest" at all with a young child climbing all over me, but I was in and out of it.

[OhDang]

I have the same problem. I just made a thread about something about the same girl. She leaves her sleeping baby at the house with a sleeping adult in the next room and goes out for hours at a time. I don't know if this is okay or not! i dont think i would do it though.

[ann_of_loxley]

I would not leave my son with a sleeping adult...however I have to admit to falling asleep sometimes during the day - my son still awake. There have been a few times ive been just so knackered I have fallen asleep on the sofa for an hour or two.
However - thats me. The mother. You know how we are. I am very in-tune with my son. I am not slacking off fathers, but lets face it...when DS woke up crying in the night, he slept through it but I, with my mothering instincts and strong connection to the child that grew inside of me for the last 9 months, was aware even when in deep sleep. I am quite comfortable with falling asleep on the sofa if I am that tired and my son is happy to be playing quiety where he is because if the scene were otherwise, I would know and be instantly awake to deal with it.

[LionessMom]

read this story

[maliceinwonderland]

I'd leave dd with my sleeping SO for a 5 minute trip to the store (even then 99% of the time I make her come) but not for any longer. I believe the legal age here to be left alone is 12. I don't feel like there's much difference in our case between SO sleeping and dd being left completely alone because he's a super deep sleeper.

[siobhang]

Okay, true story...

This morning, DS1 (nearly 5) woke up before the rest of us, approximately 6:30am. I heard him roaming around, but thought nothing of it since he is often up before we are on a weekend. He knows how to get himself fruit or crackers or cereal from the kitche. Anyhow, there were three sleeping adults in the house. What could happen??

Around 7:30am, he comes padding into our bedroom, saying "mommy, I need help. My shirt is wet." Not sure what is going on, I grab his arm, and it is *sticky* and smells like maple syrup. This grabs my attention FAST and I am AWAKE.

He is covered in maple syrup. Completely confused (his answers are not making any sense, something about a secret agent...), I walk him to the hallway to get in the bath, only to find a LAKE OF MAPLE SYRUP in the hall.

He had emptied an entire $15 bottle of real maple syrup all over the floor, then slipped and fell in it. There was maple syrup on the walls. On the floor. All over him.

Turns out he was trying to recreate something from the Backyardigans (secret agent maple syrup - for when you want something to be sticky).

'Course, this is a kid who at age two:
1. stacked cardboard boxes (from the recycling) so he could climb to grab my car keys out of the keyrack.
2. figured out how to open the deadbolt on the back door.
3. figured out how to unlock my car door.
4. climbed into my car driver's seat
5. figured out how to put the key in the ignition, and was busy trying to start my car when I found him.

I had been in the bathroom.

Thank god for ignitions which won't start without having the clutch depressed fully. I think he has figured that out too, but since his legs aren't long enough...

; )

[siobhang]

Originally Posted by LionessMom

read this story

omygod, I can totally see ds1 trying something like this.

[phathui5]

Originally Posted by OhDang

I have the same problem. I just made a thread about something about the same girl. She leaves her sleeping baby at the house with a sleeping adult in the next room and goes out for hours at a time. I don't know if this is okay or not! i dont think i would do it though.

Do you sleep when your baby is sleeping? What's the difference here?

[lisac77]

I work nights and I have no sitter coverage on Sundays and Thursdays. So my DS hangs with me in the living room while I nap on the couch. Sundays we do this for about 4 hours and Thursdays for about 3 hours.

It works fine. I put his breakfast out and turn on the TV, and when he wakes up he usually comes and gives me a good morning kiss/hug, we talk a little and I make sure he's used the bathroom. Then he watches his shows and wakes me up if he wants me to change a DVD or something.

I wouldn't feel comfortable sleeping for more than a 4 hour block (not all of which is sleeping!) just because I think it would be too lonely for him. We have a sitter that comes M-W and he does activities M-Th. On Sunday afternoons we go to my mom's house which he really looks forward to and I get some extra sleep.

So it can definitely work, but I wouldn't do it daily or for more than a short block of time.

[BunnySlippers]

It depends on the sleeping adult and the child.

As single parent(an only parent) I work a full time job and a part-time job (with dd coming with me) and then sleep at home while she plays. Her only rule -stay in the house.
She is/was a good kid and I am a light sleeper. I can keep tabs on her by various noises.
I would be ok with it if the dad is a light sleeper and the child as independent and capable as mine is.

[MacKinnon]

My DD often plays quietly in her room for "rest time" while I nap with DS in his room she's 4 1/2. I trust her to come get me if she needs something, and she does (far too often, given that I'm trying to sleep!). It started with us cuddling on the couch while she watched TV and I dozed when pregnant with DS. Now that DS need quiet to sleep (19 months) we head off to his room. All day? That would definitly not be OK. It would be lonely, no stimulation, not a fun way to spend the summer... Not super unsafe, but awfully lonely, IMO.

[LindyLou]

When I was little my mom sometimes worked overnight. She would come home and sleep for a couple hours and get up around 11:00 make lunch and stay up until my dad came home and we had dinner. Then she would go back to bed. I was a pretty easy going kid and an only child, so the time she was sleeping didn't bother me at all.

My kids on the other hand - no way. They are the opposite of easygoing, I think it really depends on the child.

[PGTlatte]

I think it depends a lot on the child's personality and maturity level, how long it would be for, and how soundly the adult sleeps.

I don't think it's fair for a young child to have to be on their own for a long time though. A day or a half day is way too long. Kids just need more attention than that. But an hour when they know they can ask for help if they need it so they don't feel alone and afraid could be ok if the child is not inclined to get creative and adventurous and into dangerous situations.

Our 5-yo requires pretty much constant supervision. He is just that creative and adventurous, and also impulsive and has no fear of anything. He also thinks he can handle anything and does not hesitate to try things out when he thinks there is nothing standing in his way. He does not like the idea that he is a child and needs to depend on us and our experience and judgement. He is five going on 21. He cannot be left unsupervised. If he was, I think he would probably leave the house and take himself to the park or to a friend's house. Or if he stayed home I think he would get into dangerous stuff, like power tools ? Or probably find the leftover wall paint and brushes and rollers in the basement closet and start painting something. Or unstuff the couch. Or give our dog or his brother a "haircut". Something big would probably happen ! I wouldn't try it with him.