Logistics Qs

[waverly]

DD has dance for 45 minutes plus 10 minutes there and back.  When DS turns 9, would you think it OK to leave a 9 year old for 1 hour 15 minutes?  Starting when he was 8 we have been training him on our home phone etc and left him for shorter periods of time whether it is 15 minutes or 30 minutes here or there, not on a super regular basis just when there was a relevant errand and to keep his phone skills up.  He hasn't had any issues except sometimes he doesn't notice the phone when we call him, but I typically put it right next to him and DH does not.  It probably sounds weird to ask, but I just want to make sure I am doing everything right.  Some people might clutch pearls and some people leave their 9 year old home for 9 hours while at work- typically Eastern European immigrants in our town.  So there is a wide variety.  There are no state guidelines on this, just a checklist which he passes.

If I do need to bring him he could maybe bring his homework and laptop to work on. 

On Tuesdays, we have soccer until 6:30, Girl Scouts starts across town at 6:30.  I noticed one mom on her team just told them she would be late.  And it is only for 2 meetings (Sept and Oct).  I think that should be fine.

DS also has soccer on Tuesdays, but I guess I have to bring him with me to her practice then take him to his practice (same location). Not sure if I have a question here or just writing it out.  Carpool is an option for girl scouts.

GS drop off 6:40

DS soccer pick up 7:30

GS pick up 8:00

[sdlaura]

I think this is very kid-dependent. My DD just turned 7 and she's super mature and responsible, but I think I'll still probably be dragging her around with me when she's 9 unless it's a really short errand. More to avoid other parent judgement/because I'd be paranoid about something going wrong.

[waverly]

sdlaura , yeah I just need someone to write out an exact timeline for me for each age lol.
Like 8 years old 15-30 minutes
9 years old 30-45 minutes
10 years old- 1 hour-1 hour 15 minutes or something like that.

I clutched my pearls when someone told me that many of their neighbors leave their 9 year olds home for 9 hours.

[mrsGreeko]

We basically follow this: family.findlaw.com/parental-rights-and-liability/when-can-you-leave-a-child-home-alone-.html

My state (CO) doesn’t have a law, though some states do. CO does provide guidance that kids shouldn’t be left alone at all until
14, which is very WTF to me.

We started leaving our older 2 for up to an hour or so when they were 8. My oldest was babysitting other people’s children when she was 11. My middle is already looking forward to getting her babysitting license next year when she turns 11. My youngest will be 8 in a couple months. I suspect he will be fine to be left alone for brief periods or with the middle sister who doesn’t have the babysitting license yet at that point. He definitely knows how to call me from the home phone (landline) and does frequently when he’s home with the oldest sister or his dad to tell me stuff or ask me stuff.

[sdlaura]

mrsGreeko, agree on WTF to not leaving kids alone till 14. Just 2 years before they can legally drive themselves anywhere they want? I was babysitting multiple infants at that age!

[mrsGreeko]

Sept 16, 2019 14:40:27 GMT -5 sdlaura said:

mrsGreeko, agree on WTF to not leaving kids alone till 14. Just 2 years before they can legally drive themselves anywhere they want? I was babysitting multiple infants at that age!

Right?!? Not to mention that before and after school care is limited to elementary schools only so WTF do they think working parents of middle schoolers are supposed to do with their children before and/or after school? They completely miss the mark. Also, giving kids their first small taste of independence only 4 years before being full fledged adults is silly. This is probably why parents of college students have to email their kids’ professors and such though. 😂

[waverly]

IL says 14 also, but if you read the small print it is for an unreasonable amount of time which further research means 24 hours +. But yeah the way it reads makes it sound like you can't leave a 14 year old home alone for 15 minutes.