What age do you leave your kids home alone? (1 Viewer)

[NutterButter]

Have we done this before? I was originally thinking 12 but I sure do hope its more like 10 where we feel comfortable. I really would rather not have to wait two additional years to have the freedom to be able to go golfing or go for a bike ride whenever I want. Parenthood is a whole series of big milestones from kids walking to kids being able to go to the bathroom by themselves to kids being able to change themselves, etc. This is the next big milestone for me and its a really big one.

 

[Bogart]

My son just turned 11 and my daughter 6. We still have both of them in daycare, but next summer is going to be interesting because I think the daycare stops keeping them at 12, maybe 13. My ex-wife is not ready for my son to stay home by himself during the day. Honestly, if it's just him, and my daughter is still in daycare I have no issue with it. I trust him not to burn down the house.

At 11, I feel like you can treat him like a dog. Put them in front of the TV/video games, put some kibble down, tell them not to move until you get home at five. They probably obey.

 

[E-Z Glider]

Some kids are OK at 8. Other kids shouldn't be left alone at 16.

 

[fatguyinalittlecoat]

For how long? We leave our kids (11 and 9) home for like an hour or two if we're running errands or whatever. Probably wouldn't leave them at home for a whole day for a couple more years.

 

[AAABatteries]

It is nice bring able to leave the kids - we have 4, oldest is 14, youngest 7 - we leave them for dinners out. For just one kid I would say 12 but probably depends on the kid. 10 still seems young to me unless it's just for small periods of time.

 

[Worm]

Oldest is 9 next week. She's very responsible and we've started leaving her (just her) alone for <1 hour periods if we run to the store or something. I think the time period will gradually increase over the next few years.

Depends on the kid though. I couldn't see leaving our now 6 year old alone until she's at least 11-12.

FYI here's a list of State by State minimum ages - https://www.washingtonpost.com/apps/g/page/local/latchkey-children-age-restrictions-by-state/1555/

 

[Gator Shawn]

Yeah, there's a difference between popping out to run some errands with the kids at home and a day in and day out responsibility of taking care of themselves. We leave our 14 and 12 home together. I will leave the 14 alone, but not the 11. I probably could and there'd be no issue, but we just don't.

 

[Gator Shawn]

Oldest is 9 next week. She's very responsible and we've started leaving her (just her) alone for <1 hour periods if we run to the store or something. I think the time period will gradually increase over the next few years.

Depends on the kid though. I couldn't see leaving our now 6 year old alone until she's at least 11-12.

FYI here's a list of State by State minimum ages - https://www.washingtonpost.com/apps/g/page/local/latchkey-children-age-restrictions-by-state/1555/

I'm not sure if I am more surprised that so many states have none or that some of them are so low.

eta: Technically I guess the former is the extreme version of the latter

 

[comfortably numb]

12??

My kids better have a job by 12!

 

[NutterButter]

For how long? We leave our kids (11 and 9) home for like an hour or two if we're running errands or whatever. Probably wouldn't leave them at home for a whole day for a couple more years.

A couple hours. Maybe a few hours more if we're talking golf.

We don't have a house phone so we'll need to get the oldest a cell phone in case something happens.

 

[The Flying Turtle]

We started leaving our son alone for an hour at a time at 10.

We did get him a cell phone for safety.

 

[Fat Nick]

Our son is 1. Too early? j/k.

I agree that it depends on the kid. My parents left me home alone at probably about 9 or so when they had dinner functions or something. Just give me some video games and a microwave meal and I was good.

Dang Illinois - 14?? Really? So in 4 years you grow enough to go from just being old enough to stay home alone to being able to vote, serve our country, and be considered an adult?

 

[spOOfy]

Daughter 11, son 8. We have left them alone together for an hour or 2, but just for errands or a rare dinner. Both of which we are just 10 minutes from home.

Don't leave son home alone yet, but leave daughter. Son would probably be easier though. Sit him in front of the xbox and you could come back 6 hours later and find him in the same spot.

 

[Nugget]

12 is where I would feel comfortable for 1-2 hours, 14 for 4+ hours.

We live next door to my wife's parents so we are a bit more liberal on leaving them alone.

 

[Poncho]

12 and 9 I said goodbye to daycare and the girls have been home alone during the summer. They are now 14 and almost 12

 

[Mr. Ected]

We have two boys and a girl. The boys are now 12 and 11, and the girl is 8. For the last several years we have left the boys home by themselves for a couple hours during the day when we were out running errands on a weekend.

We told them not to answer the door, or the phone unless it is family calling. They are very good together, and would spend the time either playing on the computer or the Xbox.

Things will get interesting when we try to let the girl stay home. The boys are fine, but add in the little girl and things can get difficult; for some reason the middle boy and the girl are like oil and water, they just don't get along most of the time. We still get a babysitter if we are gone at night and all three are home.

 

[ShamrockPride]

12 is where I would feel comfortable for 1-2 hours, 14 for 4+ hours.

We live next door to my wife's parents so we are a bit more liberal on leaving them alone.

God bless you, sir.

 

[Mr. Cross]

I think 10 or 11 is fine as long as they have a gun to protect themselves.

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

Our kids are 6 & 4...my wife and I will sometimes head out for a drink at the bar closest to our home after both of them are soundly sleeping. We usually only stay for 1-2 drinks and have never had an issue but both are very good sleepers. We are still figuring out what age we would leave them alone when they are awake.

 

[Jack White]

Our kids are 6 & 4...my wife and I will sometimes head out for a drink at the bar closest to our home after both of them are soundly sleeping. We usually only stay for 1-2 drinks and have never had an issue but both are very good sleepers. We are still figuring out what age we would leave them alone when they are awake.

You can't drink at home?

 

[Officer Pete Malloy]

"One day"

-MOP

 

[RedmondLonghorn]

Dang Illinois - 14?? Really? So in 4 years you grow enough to go from just being old enough to stay home alone to being able to vote, serve our country, and be considered an adult?

There is so little about that state that makes sense, this really doesn't surprise me at all.

 

[Quez]

I never burnt the house down when I was younger and home alone becasue I was too busy jerking off to my dad's Penthouse Magazines.

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

Our kids are 6 & 4...my wife and I will sometimes head out for a drink at the bar closest to our home after both of them are soundly sleeping. We usually only stay for 1-2 drinks and have never had an issue but both are very good sleepers. We are still figuring out what age we would leave them alone when they are awake.

You can't drink at home?

well, the place we go has Golden Tee

 

[Jack White]

Our kids are 6 & 4...my wife and I will sometimes head out for a drink at the bar closest to our home after both of them are soundly sleeping. We usually only stay for 1-2 drinks and have never had an issue but both are very good sleepers. We are still figuring out what age we would leave them alone when they are awake.

You can't drink at home?

well, the place we go has Golden Tee

I would never try to tell you how to raise your kids, or anything else for that matter.

I will say if someone broke into your house and did something to your defenseless children, your fascination with a video game just might disappear.

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Daughter 11, son 8. We have left them alone together for an hour or 2, but just for errands or a rare dinner. Both of which we are just 10 minutes from home.

Don't leave son home alone yet, but leave daughter. Son would probably be easier though. Sit him in front of the xbox and you could come back 6 hours later and find him in the same spot.

Same here. Oldest starts middle school this year and gets off at 2:30 so we were forced into it.

 

[SwampDawg]

Two boys ages 8 and 11 (11 year old will be 12 in September). Have been leaving the older one home for a quick runs to the store, etc (less then an hour) for about a year now. Will only leave the two of them home if I am running down to the gas station to get gas for the mower or something like that (15 minutes or so). The older one will start being home alone for about an hour every afternoon once they go back to school, my wife is a teacher in a different district and he will get home about an hour before she does and before his brother now that he will be in middle school. We live in a very rural area but with neighbors who are usually home and have a 65 pound boxer mix and 40 pound hound that sound like they will rip you to shreds if you knock or ring the doorbell. Also thinking about getting the NEST cam (https://nest.com/camera/meet-nest-cam/) although that is really more to make sure he is starting his homework and not watching TV/video games then anything.

At 13 I would leave the older one home to go out to dinner or such, probably could now, he would go to the basement sit on the couch with the dog and game forgetting to go to bed but other then that would be fine. However if his brother is there too much of a chance they would argue and get in trouble (little one has a temper).

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

Our kids are 6 & 4...my wife and I will sometimes head out for a drink at the bar closest to our home after both of them are soundly sleeping. We usually only stay for 1-2 drinks and have never had an issue but both are very good sleepers. We are still figuring out what age we would leave them alone when they are awake.

You can't drink at home?

well, the place we go has Golden Tee

I would never try to tell you how to raise your kids, or anything else for that matter.

I will say if someone broke into your house and did something to your defenseless children, your fascination with a video game just might disappear.

I call my wife with my phone and leave it in the upstairs hallway between the two bedrooms and my wife brings her phone into the bar, we will hear if the kids are awake and can be home quickly while talking to them while enroute. We have an alarm system so I'm not worried about someone breaking into our house, especially the neighborhood where we live. You are probably right though, if by some remote chance that did happen I probably wouldn't want to play Golden Tee for a while (maybe if it was a different version with different courses it would be okay but who knows). I just feel you can't live your life afraid.

 

[NutterButter]

Our kids are 6 & 4...my wife and I will sometimes head out for a drink at the bar closest to our home after both of them are soundly sleeping. We usually only stay for 1-2 drinks and have never had an issue but both are very good sleepers. We are still figuring out what age we would leave them alone when they are awake.

You can't drink at home?

well, the place we go has Golden Tee

I would never try to tell you how to raise your kids, or anything else for that matter.

I will say if someone broke into your house and did something to your defenseless children, your fascination with a video game just might disappear.

I call my wife with my phone and leave it in the upstairs hallway between the two bedrooms and my wife brings her phone into the bar, we will hear if the kids are awake and can be home quickly while talking to them while enroute. We have an alarm system so I'm not worried about someone breaking into our house, especially the neighborhood where we live. You are probably right though, if by some remote chance that did happen I probably wouldn't want to play Golden Tee for a while (maybe if it was a different version with different courses it would be okay but who knows). I just feel you can't live your life afraid.

Amen

 

[shadyridr]

6 & 4? Yeesh

 

[Fennis]

Macaulay Culkin was 10.

 

[Fennis]

Going out drinking and leaving 6 and 4 year olds at home alone gets you arrested.

 

[BroadwayG]

Dang Illinois - 14?? Really? So in 4 years you grow enough to go from just being old enough to stay home alone to being able to vote, serve our country, and be considered an adult?

There is so little about that state that makes sense, this really doesn't surprise me at all.

It's more of a common sense law for those under 14, not a hard law to never leave anyone 13 or younger alone for any length of time.

 

[NCCommish]

Dang Illinois - 14?? Really? So in 4 years you grow enough to go from just being old enough to stay home alone to being able to vote, serve our country, and be considered an adult?

There is so little about that state that makes sense, this really doesn't surprise me at all.

It's more of a common sense law for those under 14, not a hard law to never leave anyone 13 or younger alone for any length of time.

I started staying home alone at 8. I was babysitting 3 kids every Friday night when I was 11.

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

Going out drinking and leaving 6 and 4 year olds at home alone gets you arrested.

I said we only have 1-2 drinks, if we are pulled over on the way home there is no way we would be over the legal limit.

 

[acarey50]

My wife will leave our 10 year old home with the other 2 kids if she is going out for a walk which is maybe 45 minutes to an hour. They have strict instruction not to answer the door or to cook anything and they have all of our numbers down. Wife is a bit more comfortable with it than I am, but I am coming around.

Maybe by the time he is 12 or 13 I'd be more comfortable leaving them for a longer time period together.

 

[Officer Pete Malloy]

Our kids are 6 & 4...my wife and I will sometimes head out for a drink at the bar closest to our home after both of them are soundly sleeping. We usually only stay for 1-2 drinks and have never had an issue but both are very good sleepers. We are still figuring out what age we would leave them alone when they are awake.

WTF is wrong with you?

 

[El Floppo]

.

 

[El Floppo]

Our kids are 6 & 4...my wife and I will sometimes head out for a drink at the bar closest to our home after both of them are soundly sleeping. We usually only stay for 1-2 drinks and have never had an issue but both are very good sleepers. We are still figuring out what age we would leave them alone when they are awake.

You can't drink at home?

well, the place we go has Golden Tee

I would never try to tell you how to raise your kids, or anything else for that matter.

I will say if someone broke into your house and did something to your defenseless children, your fascination with a video game just might disappear.

I call my wife with my phone and leave it in the upstairs hallway between the two bedrooms and my wife brings her phone into the bar, we will hear if the kids are awake and can be home quickly while talking to them while enroute. We have an alarm system so I'm not worried about someone breaking into our house, especially the neighborhood where we live. You are probably right though, if by some remote chance that did happen I probably wouldn't want to play Golden Tee for a while (maybe if it was a different version with different courses it would be okay but who knows). I just feel you can't live your life afraid.

My wife has me convinced that leaving the kids home alone at a certain age is actually against the law.

no idea if that's true, but not a battle I'm willing to fight.

 

[Quez]

My kid is 3 and I won't leave him home alone for more than a few hours. He isn't a great sleeper so I just load him up with Benadryl. Then the wife & I hit up the local bar. We love the game Find It! We just sit there for a few hours trying to pick out the tiny differences between pictures.

 

[BroadwayG]

Dang Illinois - 14?? Really? So in 4 years you grow enough to go from just being old enough to stay home alone to being able to vote, serve our country, and be considered an adult?

There is so little about that state that makes sense, this really doesn't surprise me at all.

It's more of a common sense law for those under 14, not a hard law to never leave anyone 13 or younger alone for any length of time.

I started staying home alone at 8. I was babysitting 3 kids every Friday night when I was 11.

Excellent.

 

[General Malaise]

My wife and I just had twins. I think since there are two of them that they can employ the buddy system. So we'll routinely head to the bar or the casino for a few hours and if one wakes up, we figure he can look out after his brother. There's boob milk in the fridge.

 

[Fennis]

Going out drinking and leaving 6 and 4 year olds at home alone gets you arrested.

I said we only have 1-2 drinks, if we are pulled over on the way home there is no way we would be over the legal limit.

Well that's the important part.

 

[shadyridr]

Going out drinking and leaving 6 and 4 year olds at home alone gets you arrested.

yep gotta be shtick

 

[NutterButter]

Going out drinking and leaving 6 and 4 year olds at home alone gets you arrested.

I said we only have 1-2 drinks, if we are pulled over on the way home there is no way we would be over the legal limit.

That would be a great roadside explanation. Excuse me officer, can we speed this up. My 4 year old just woke up and he's crying.

 

[Wooderson]

Our kids are 6 & 4...my wife and I will sometimes head out for a drink at the bar closest to our home after both of them are soundly sleeping. We usually only stay for 1-2 drinks and have never had an issue but both are very good sleepers. We are still figuring out what age we would leave them alone when they are awake.

WTF is wrong with you?

I hope he is just messing with us.

 

[Fennis]

My wife doesn't like leaving me home alone, it usually results in a food, beer, video game, masturbatory orgy. It looks like some combination of Horders meets a crime scene.

 

[Officer Pete Malloy]

Our kids are 6 & 4...my wife and I will sometimes head out for a drink at the bar closest to our home after both of them are soundly sleeping. We usually only stay for 1-2 drinks and have never had an issue but both are very good sleepers. We are still figuring out what age we would leave them alone when they are awake.

WTF is wrong with you?

I hope he is just messing with us.

Yeah

 

[snellman]

The 2 I have left at home are 12 and 8. They are home by themselves after school and part time during the summer months.

We do live in a small town and have very good neighbors so they know if there is a problem they can go to the neighbors house. I also work about 10 minutes from home and have a very flexible position so I can run home during the day to check on them or on a moments notice if I get a phone call.

Biggest issue is during the school year the 12 year old is supposed to be doing homework before anything else but of course that never happens. He also tends to over snack so we are probably going to have to buy a safe to keep the snack foods in.

 

[Gator Shawn]

This thread and the announcement that S&R efforts are being halted for the two 14-year old boys in Florida made me think alot about this thread today.