And now on to more important issues

I haven't read your responses to the 'for boys' post yet. Am feeling all nervy and anxious at the mo' (not sure why? Perhaps because am away on business trip?) and I think reading them will make me feel worse. Will read when feeling better / less nervy. Thanks for responding though.

And now on to more important things. I need to know your answer to the following question. If you don't have kids, what are the rules in your house re other people's kids? (By 'jump' I mean roll, leap, play, wrestle, jump etc)

Comments

[Alex van Niekerk]

On my new leather couches? not a chance!

[Jodie]

My house is a wild, fun and stimulating place. We dance to funky music and sometimes we jump on couches and on the bed. We also lie in the bed together and read stories quietly and do puzzles. We can be controlled :)

At other people's houses my kids know full well not to jump on the furniture - or even put their feet on it. We do have rules and boundaries at home, just different ones to some people. My happiest memories from growing up involve stuff other kids weren't allowed to do...and that's worth more than furniture that went out on the kerb years ago.

[Jenty]

My older son does climb on our couches... my DH's influence. Thankfully he doesn't jump yet, but he does jump on the beds. As a result it's almost impossible to explain why he can't do it at granny's house.

[Lisa]

I don't have kids (but I do want them) and a year or so ago my friend came over with her 6 year old son who is always out of control. Our house and furniture including a sickeningly expensive leather couch and ottoman were a year old and he came in and started bouncing on the couch. Then he got on his belly on the ottman and slid himself across to the couch and back repeatedly, scratching it up. I really wanted to say something but figured my friend would so I kept giving him nasty looks. It didn't work, and she didn't say anything so I hurried them out of the house.

They have not been invited back and won't be. If you can't teach your kid to respect other people's property then stay home. What's appropriate in your house isn't appropriate in everyone's home.

[Veronica]

No jumping on the couches, although she does climb on them quite a bit. I think with jumping, there are too many ways to hurt themselves for me to feel comfortable watching them do it.

A matress on the floor though? Made for jumping.

[goodsandwich]

Yes he may jump/roll/wrestle. I don't have an issue with him doing it elsewhere either. I won't let him break things but for god's sake it's a couch, not a museum piece. I was a little more high and mighty about this kind of thing before I had kids, but I don't care now. I'll help my kid learn gentle behavior; I expect that if I'm invited somewhere there will be some appropriate kidproofing in place. If there isn't, they'll learn to do it pretty quickly! I'll help my kid respect other people's things, and I expect plenty of help from people in the form of putting their stuff away that is too much temptation for a kid (and understanding that kids are HARD on furniture).

[HH]

No jumping on couches at our house or on anybody elses. Although the jumping on does happen now and again my 4 year old will get a stern telling off because couches are not made for jumping on. I think you have to teach them respect for their own property as well as others. We have an old mattress which can be used for jumping, he can go for his life on that but not my couches.

[Hanne]

My kids are allowed to jump on our couches (as long as they don´t hurt themselves or each other too much), but not on other people's furniture - I realize that other people usually have stricter rules regarding that issue.

[Babyamore (Trish)]

glad to know I (we) am/are not the only parents whose children (yes twins) 'jump' (unauthorised) on the lounge (couch)- mine can't really jump but they climb, stand and bop around I hope this counts.
Lucky,(or not) we have a mouldy (now covered) sofa bed couch that I want to replace with a dark fabric one.

It was once a good couch ($$$) that my MIL paid a lot of money for .Then she gave it to my SIL and her kids stained it with food/drink slops .Then the BIL put it outside under a carport and it went mouldy ... I think the kids jumping on it would have caused less damage.
How do you stop them ?... that answer is priceless

[Amy]

I don't have kids but I have been a nanny/babysitter. I don't let kids jump on the couch because I had one kid fall off and bust his lip. He got 4 stitches. He jumped when I was busy changing his brother's diaper.

[Woody's Girl]

I voted "other" because, while my answer is "jumping is not allowed," it's not due to my affinity for the furniture, per se. I am more concerned about the child(ren) being SAFE, and jumping on a couch just invites disaster, IMO.

FWIW, we have a large, indoor, inflatible "bounce castle" for the girls to enjoy. And I also allow them to periodically jump/flip on their beds... but ONLY with adult supervision (i.e. me holding their hands while they jump).

Jumping is fun. But getting HURT isn't. So I want my girls to realize that there's a time and place for jumping. Also, I would NEVER allow them to jump on someone ELSE'S furniture. Esp not display pieces at stores!

[Kerryn]

I voted Yes, couches are made for living. While Ciara doesn't jump on the couch (for safety reasons), she is allowed to do everything else possible. Climb, lie, lie upside down, sit and eat, drink, walk on, use for teaching her dolls at school, etc.

Its just a piece of furniture!

[zenoma]

I suppose if my furinture were expensive leather, or too flimsy to withstand a little jumping, then the answer would be no. Otherwise, my little ones jump, flip, roll, and leap on our furniture. And if that's not enough, we also take the cusions off and build forts! Lest you think we are total animals...if they are in danger of huring themselves or Daddy's precious big screen TV, they listen when we say "no".

They would also never think of behaving this way at someone else's home! Not a chance. Likewise, I wouldn't expect other children to act that way in my home.

[Orange]

Tertia, why don't you have some wine before you read those comments? It's really just a dustup about gender issues and has nothing to do with you—it's not a forum on "Is Tertia a bad person?"

They say that jumping on the bed is too dangerous—if a kid falls off from that height, it's easy to get a head injury or break an arm. When Ben was smaller, he was allowed to jump on the bed only if I was standing on it holding his hands, which worked pretty well.

Our couch is too beat-up for jumping on (too easy for a kid to lose a leg to the innards of the couch). We should really get a new one, which will be too nice for jumping on.

[ls]

I never let my daughter jump on our couch or other furniture becasue it seemed like setting her up to have to tell her "no" at someone else's house. At a certain age, kids can totally understand that you have different rules at different places, but for younger children it is a bit unrealistic to ask them to get it. But I did, about a year ago, approach a neighbor with kids that had just left for college,a nd I bought her huge, 16' trampoline with a net around it for 60.00. She was thrilled to get it out of her yard, and my daughter is thrilled to be able to jump to her little heart's content.

[Lisa V]

No one jumps on my furniture. Not beds, couches or any of it.Furniture is a major purchase. It's too expensive to indulge the children. It looks like hell just from having all of us lounge around on it. I hate tho think about what the life expectancy of it would be if they jumped on it. My house is very lived in- I have 4 kids, 3 cats and 2 dogs, but gymnastics on the furntiure is too far.
We have a huge yard with a trampoline, pool, tree house and play equipment. They have lots of room to act like little monkeys and hooligans.

[Wyliekat]

Between cats and kid, there's no point in trying to preserve my furniture. I'll have beautiful and immaculate furniture someday when no one comes to visit me. I'll spend my days listening to the ticking clock and thinking about my ratty old furniture and the life that came with it.

[Anny]

We have a playroom with an old couch that has many, many pillows. If those pillows stay on that couch for more than a few hours I am shocked! That couch they are allowed to play on, wrestle, pillow fight, whatever. But on our living room furniture- no, that's the rule but my husband will often start tickling/wrestling down there and I have to "gently" remind everyone of the rules:) At other peoples houses- never! I can't imagine going to someone's home and letting my kid jump on their furniture!

[June]

My husband doesn't even want me to eat on our couch, I couldn't imagine how he'll feel about our soon to be little one jumping on it...

[kristylynne]

I voted for no jumping on couches. Or beds, or any other furniture for that matter. Not because I care about the furniture so much, but because I don't want my 2-year-old son to fall off and break an arm or something. He is pretty hyper and doesn't really pay attention to such things as where his feet are in relation to the edge of the couch while jumping. However, he is allowed to play on the coffee table, much to the chagrin of other families who visit. It's a huge and very sturdy coffee table, and he uses it to set up his train track, etc. If he jumps on it, though, he loses the privilege.

[Gina (Meet my Brother)]

We have a living room where the kids are not allowed to jump on the couch but they have used the cushions for "Lily pads" where they go on the floor and jump on them.

In the family room, we have sectional where they are allowed to jump supervised. I am afraid one of them is going to send a section flying over and then child goes out the window! So supervised jumping is allowed. Life is for fun and they are only small once IMO. They won't be 16 and jumping on the couch! They also understand limit and different houses have different rules. No to couch jumping at Grandma's, no at most of our friends. They are 4 and 6 and they can understand these rules. With a special needs child, all bets are off and you adapt.

We have so much jumping here, we have a mini trampoline in the family room all the time but you can't play follow the leader on the trampoline.

[Suzie-Q.]

My kids can jump all they like on *MY* couches, but, not on anyone else's and they respect that. My furniture is cozy with big, overstuffed pillows and they love jumping on it, hiding in it and playing on it. You're only young once and jumping on a couch is one of the few pleasures that we can only do as children. If i had a den and a formal living room i would restrict them, but, i only have the one room, so, i let them jump all they want. But, no jumping is allowed from one couch to another for safety reasons...
I also allow my kids to jump on my bed (one at a time), which they ADORE, but, never try these tricks in other people's homes. They "get it".

[Jo in Utah]

My kids/grand kids were always allowed to jump on the informal family room couch and the beds when they were small. I think kids are pretty smart and can be told and taught young that while their own couch can be jumped on, others can not be, like when you are visiting other people. Just like it is okay to be naked in your own bathroom, but not outside, in public. It is a process. They figure it out pretty quick. Rare to see a grown man naked in public. Most of them have figured it out by then.

[Anne]

I don't mind if the kids jump, but my husband doesn't allow it. He also doesn't allow them to run or yell in the house- ever. So, my kids don't get to jump on the couch.

[Mandy]

I answered other, because the answer is no she isn't allowed to jump on the couch but it's for safety reasons not respect for the furniture. *laugh* now for other people's furniture it's because we don't jump on other people's belongings.

[Andrea]

My furniture is expensive, so no jumping. And it's quite possible to teach kids not to - it's called the magic of "no!"

[akeeyu]

Put me down for 'no', too, but it's not respect for the furniture that motivates me.

The whole 'bouncing off of an elevated surface and landing face first on a corner of the coffee table' is one factor.

It's not that our sofa is too nice--it is, in fact, a total piece of crap that barely withstands the cat's enthusiastic leaps. If my stepdaughter jumped on it, that would be the end of it.

Aaaand finally, "Because I said so. If you want to jump around, go play in the backyard."

[Sheila]

The kids (triplets) used to jump on our couch when they only weighed 20 pounds each, when they were toddlers. Now that they are each about 45 pounds and about 48" tall, it's a lot more dangerous so that had to stop. Same with jumping on our bed. But they still climb over the couch, make forts out of the cushions, slide upside down over the back and so on. Yes, the couch is looking and feeling very well used and tired. But we don't mind. The kids don't do this at other people's houses, just ours. They can easily learn that rules are different in different homes or different situations.

[Lauryan]

I remember the first day I moved into my own place. i jumped on every couch for about 5 minutes flat :D Cause i could.

I remember just after getting married my MIL complained o my hubby about his shoes being in the lounge. When she left i took him to the room and made him jump on the bed with me.

if it was up to me, I'd let them. But now we just got new couches, and hubby is not even letting US sit on them without lovingly placing blankets over them first.

Think I must jump on them hen he leaves for work on monday :p

[Melanie]

I'm less worried about my old hand-me-down couches and more worried about the kiddo's heads when they inevitably fall off. I've not seen any serious injuries personally, but I'm paranoid.