Around our house 8:30pm on weeknights is generally time for everyone to get baths and gear towards bed. Everyone is in bed a few minutes after 9 by the latest. Its just how we've always done things. On weekends we're way more lax about it especially for the older two.
But lately our 11yr old son has been begging (And whining) for a later bedtime. He keeps insisting he doesn't fall asleep until about 10 anyway and that since he's oldest he should be allowed to stay up later. Is it reasonable to let him stay up that extra hour? It does tend to take him an hour to fall asleep from the time he gets to bed anyway, but then I worry if we let him stay up longer, what if it just takes him until 11 or longer to fall asleep? And what about my 9yr old daughter who gets highly upset when her big brother gets something she doesn't get? Are we being too strict about the 9 o'clock bed time? Too lax?
But lately our 11yr old son has been begging (And whining) for a later bedtime. He keeps insisting he doesn't fall asleep until about 10 anyway and that since he's oldest he should be allowed to stay up later. Is it reasonable to let him stay up that extra hour? It does tend to take him an hour to fall asleep from the time he gets to bed anyway, but then I worry if we let him stay up longer, what if it just takes him until 11 or longer to fall asleep? And what about my 9yr old daughter who gets highly upset when her big brother gets something she doesn't get? Are we being too strict about the 9 o'clock bed time? Too lax?