Let's talk bedtimes

[Goofy'slady]

How old are your kids and what are there bedtimes?
Do they differ during different times of year or are they the same throughout the year?
What are some reasons for changing the bedtimes?

Our oldest DD is now 10 and in the 5th grade and before the summer was out she asked if we would increase her school time betime from 9pm to 9:30(summer bedtime is 10:30pm). Her first day of school was this past Monday and we decided after her first week back we would increase it. She's in a new school this year that doesn't start until 8:45am which means she's actually getting up at 7:40am instead of 7:15am(we live just one street over from school so getting there on time isn't a prob).

T.

 

[Juliegirl1]

My son is 8 and although I try and try to get him to go to bed at 8:30 p.m. it's usually past 9:00 before he goes to sleep and it's a battle. Of course it's difficult to impose a bed time when he doesn't have one at his dad's house and we divide our time pretty evenly. I usually get him up at 7:00 a.m.

 

[3boys4me]

My boys are 9 and 6 and during school they are in bed by 8:00 and t.v. and lights off at 8:30. I let them have from 8-8:30 to wind down and relax. I know I can't just jump in bed, turn off the lights and go to sleep. They have to get up at 6:15, 6:30 at the latest. The bus picks them up at 7:00. During the summer they can stay up until about 9:30. I am really big into bed times. I need some quiet time myself in the evenings to just relax after they are in bed.

 

[tzolkin]

All of my kids go to bed at 8:30. Right now they are 2, 4, & 9. This summer we often started getting ready at 8:30 and in bed by 9:00. They sleep late in the morning, so this wasnt a problem. They all share one room, so they all go to bed at the same time. Their room is very large and is mostly windows (9 windows that are 3x6 feet). This is the reason we extended the bedtime this summer, they wouldn't fall asleep easily when it was still light out.

We are renovating our house, so the kids will each have their own rooms. I think we will still wait a bit longer until our oldest is given a later bedtime. She will still have to "go to bed", but can stay up in her room quietly to read, etc. She hasn't asked for a later bedtime yet and she still seems like she needs the 11 hours of sleep. Actually often my kids will just decide to put themselves to bed even if we say they can stay up late. If we have friends or family over and it gets to be around 9:00, they'll just one by one say "I think I'm going to go to bed", walk upstairs and brush their teeth and climb into bed.

 

[Fabinva]

Mine are 5 and 8 and they go to bed by 8:30pm, I try to have them ready by 8pm so they can watch tv to wind down. During the summer they stayed up til 9pm or 9:30pm.

 

[Beth E. (NJ)]

My girls are 13 and almost 10. During the last school year I think they went to bed at 10pm -- the latest. The problem was that if I tried to put the younger one to bed earlier than that she would still be awake when the older one went to bed 1/2 hour later. It was silly. If she was tired though she was the type of kid who would go up to her bed herself.

 

[AXOalum]

My son is 6 and bedtime is 8pm on school nights & 9pm on non-school nights (unless there is a special event going on). He is a very hard sleeper and it is nearly impossible to wake him up for school if he is in bed past 8pm. He has to be up at 6:30, but we usually turn on his light & start the process around 6:15am.

Geez, we found out this summer that staying up past 9pm is NOT good for him. No matter how late he slept the next day, he was still very grouchy. Thank goodness school is back in session

 

[EpcotSweetHrts0512]

Our daughter is 4 and she goes to bed around 9:30-10 pm if she has had a nap that day. If she doesn't, then she is usually in bed by 8:30. She gets up around 7-8 am each morning.

 

[Tiffany_MommyOf3]

My kids - 5 yrs, 3 yrs, and 2 yrs - all go to bed at 7 PM. My 5 and 3 yr olds wake up at 6:30 and my 2 yr old wakes up around 8:30? We put them to bed early because my 5 yr old must be ready and we have to be IN the car and on the way to school by 7:30-7:40.

 

[Not so Dumbo]

my kids are 2,6,and8. During school they all go to bed between 8 and 8:30p. During the Summer most nights it gets stretched to around 10p. The older two get up at 7a during school. My DD is "encouraged" to sleep in.
During the Summer the boys sleep in till around 8:30 or 9.

 

[momtomatthew]

DS 4 goes to bed about 8- any time of the year. Some nights he goes right to sleep, other nights he's up and about for a little bit (as long as he doesn't come downstairs that's fine with me). He's up between 6:15-6:45 most days. If he hasn't napped, he may sleep in a little later, but it's rare that he goes past 7:00am

 

[richmond282]

My DD is 4. We try to have her in bed between 8 and 8:30 on school nights. We are a little more lenient on non-school nights or special occassions. She is thte type of kid, though, that will just say "I'm tired. I want to go to bed now."

 

[mjkacmom]

Dd5 and ds5 - 8
dd7 - 8:15
ds10 - 9
dd12 - whenever she wants (she likes her sleep, so I don't make her go at a certain time - she's on the 3rd floor by herself, and goes to bed on her own).

 

[slo]

These bedtimes are for all times of the year (exceptions do apply of course )


My girls are 10 & 5, and their bedtime is 9pm Sunday - Thursday, and then I let them stay up to 10pm on Friday and Saturday.

On the days that my 10 year old has more homework/studying than she can get done by 9pm, she is allowed to finish that in bed.

 

[wildfan1473]

My boys are 6 and 4, and both are starting school next week (all day pre-k and K). Neither have ever been in school before, and we've been pretty lenient about bedtime, as long as they are down before 10 (being a SAHM and not a morning person myself, I'd much rather have them go to bed later and sleep later). DS6 is usually up by 7:30, but DS4 doesn't usually get up until 8:45 - 9:00. When school starts, though, it will be a different story - the bus will be picking up DS6 at 6:52 am, and it's a 5-minute walk to the bus stop. We are working on earlier bedtimes, but I think it's going to be a huge adjustment for all of us!

 

[Mrs. M. Mouse]

dd 7 is going into grade 3. regular bed time last year was 730 (by the time every part of tuck in was done 830 lol) and she got up at 7am to get to on the bus to school at 820 school for 843 (stupid start time IMO).

This year her bus picks her up at 740 for school at 835. she gets to the school on the bus at 825 ish. She will now have to get up at 645 to give time for wake up and breakfast. she has to travel alot farther this year due to her school being closed for a year for renovations.

Summer bed time has been anywhere from 830-930 and sometimes 1030 on weekends. I still had to get them up at 7 to get to work on time.

 

[princessmom29]

DD4 is in bed at 8 all the time. I have ot get her up at 5:45 in the morning. I teach high school and we take in at 7:15 so I have to drop her out by 6:20 to make it to school. The up side is that I am there by 3:05 to get her.

 

[dreamer17555]

Both of my kids (DD6 and DS18 months) are in bed at 8. On rare occasions my DD is allowed to stay up later. She wakes up at 6:15 and the baby is up at 7.

-Becca-

 

[carj]

My 5 year old who just started Kindergarten gets in bed no later than 7:45 and is asleep by 8:00. My 7 year old who is in second grade goes to bed at 7:45 and reads for 20 minutes and then gets to sleep.

I think getting enough sleep is critical for kids. They get grumpy, fussy, and wired if they are not well rested.

We have to get up at 6:30 and I have to wake them up. School starts at 7:45.

 

[tammy1210]

dd(4) is in bed by 8:30 - we're doing a trial bedtime of 9:00 for ds(8) with the understanding that if he's hard to wake or grumpy the next day, he goes back to 8:30. Oh - but, their bedtime means "lights out" - if they want to play Nintendo DS or read in bed they have to go earlier...