Why Wasn't I Warned About Sleepovers?

Is someone forcing you to invite these kids into your home?

gun to your head? wrote:

Is someone forcing you to invite these kids into your home?

Yeah, the dad is inviting the little girls over....gracious.

1) I guess you never had them as a kid.

2) Suck it up.

3) If a kid is bratty then stop letting your kid have that kid over or talk with the parents

gun to your head? wrote:

Is someone forcing you to invite these kids into your home?

No, but it's hard to say no when they are so excited. My kids are pretty well behaved and my daughter loves this kind of thing. I am definitely going to limit it from here, though. I just can't stand it too often. It's a novel thing for her age group, so they all get really pumped up about it. Hopefully it tapers off.

Another thing: your kid is a mess the rest of the weekend because instead of going to sleep at the normal 8:00pm, they stay up until 11:00.

luv2run wrote:

1) I guess you never had them as a kid.

2) Suck it up.

3) If a kid is bratty then stop letting your kid have that kid over or talk with the parents

I DID have them all the time, which is why I need to call my parents and thank them profusely.

I know. I'm venting here.

That's the worst part, most of the kids are so polite. They're just different. They're not my kids. You know? They can't help it that they don't like eggs and bagels.

What really sucks is when your grown child continues to host sleep overs at your house well into his adult years.

ConcernedDaddy wrote:

gun to your head? wrote:

Is someone forcing you to invite these kids into your home?

No, but it's hard to say no when they are so excited. My kids are pretty well behaved and my daughter loves this kind of thing. I am definitely going to limit it from here, though. I just can't stand it too often. It's a novel thing for her age group, so they all get really pumped up about it. Hopefully it tapers off.

Another thing: your kid is a mess the rest of the weekend because instead of going to sleep at the normal 8:00pm, they stay up until 11:00.

Fair enough, but you might just need to learn to say "no" when you need to. If you do decide to open your home to someone else's kid, you can still decline some of the requests you find stressful. You don't have to make waffles just because a 7-year-old tells you to.

Ultimately, a parent who politely declines requests that he can't fulfill cheerfully will be a better parent than the parent who always says "yes," then gets resentful about it.

By the sound of this post its not really sleepovers that are the problem. I figured I was coming to read about how your pubescent teen was sneaking out to do drugs. You just have a stuck up, haughty brat on your hands whose parents very well may have instilled behaviour into their child because they too are pompous aholes...?

old wise man wrote:

By the sound of this post its not really sleepovers that are the problem. I figured I was coming to read about how your pubescent teen was sneaking out to do drugs. You just have a stuck up, haughty brat on your hands whose parents very well may have instilled behaviour into their child because they too are pompous aholes...?

Yup. ^This.

To the concerned dad: Yeah, your weekend might suck a bit with a sleepover, yeah you should try to comply with allergy restrictions of a child, but if she demands waffles then you just say no. That little girl is eventually going to have to hear "no" in her life, she might as well get used to it now. Even better: Have a planned menu ahead of time, so any kid who won't eat it just won't come.

On another note, I'm kind of surprised that your first go-to for breakfast was donuts. Seriously? Excess sugar & excess fat is killing our kids! They need nutrition in the form of whole grains & fresh fruits, as do all of us!

Watch "Louie" S5 E6. "Sleepover"

That is all you need to know.

salsa cookies

OP I have kids your age. Your problem is that you are too sensitive. Just be the dad. Drink beer wear PJs put food on the table and dont run a restaurant.

Everyone makes great points.

Re: the doughnuts... Something special. Just trying to be a fun dad. If any of the kids were more than stick skinny, I wouldn't do it.

They had field day at school, went straight to swim team practice and then came back here and rode scooters until dark. Kids can have a doughnut every once in a while in my opinion.

I should worry less about being "fun dad" and just be dad. It'd be a lot less exhausting. I guess I just get pumped for weekends and want to make them fun...

It sounds like you're a cool dad. We need more of you in society, keep it up. Not being sarcastic.

This is the least difficult thing you're going to have to go through in the next 15 years.

Just wait until they start sports.

I woke up every day on the weekend this past year between 5:30 am and 6:30 am to haul my precious little princess to a hockey practice or game. Pitch black, freezing cold.

You have it easy right now, my friend.

And I second the "this is what is for breakfast" crowd. Unless it is a food allergy, these kids need to shut up and eat.

You wouldn't dare go to a dinner party and say, "I won't eat this - I don't like pork tenderloin!"

It takes a village to raise a child - especially in this age of never saying no to kids.

I like this. One of the most enlightening moments when my kids started having friends over - you can say no to the other kids and they accept it - because you are a parent. They have rules at their house and understand there are rules at your house.

You poor b wrote:

It takes a village to raise a child - especially in this age of never saying no to kids.

We made a decision a few years ago that there'd be no sleepovers. Sometimes we'll let our kid sleep over at a friends house, but only cause we know the parents pretty well.

I realize that when I was a kid we'd have sleepovers all the time, but when I look back it just causes problems.

We don't do the sleep over thing either. It is ok to have boundaries to protect the home life that you want for yourself and your family.