Do Your Kids Answer the Door?

[shinyhappypeople]

That's a bit of a stretch based on one isolated facet of someone's parenting.

 

It's a bigger stretch to assume that Very Bad Things will happen if you let your 13 year old answer the door unsupervised.

[sparrow]

Wow.

 

I'm really surprised at how many of you don't let your kids answer the door for strangers. I get it for younger kids (esp. in dangerous neighborhoods) but, to be honest, I find it a little disturbing not allowing a teenager to answer the door.

 

I'm concerned that sheltering them to this degree leaves them ill-prepared to deal with the real world on their own and could breed a lifelong anxiety towards strangers that goes beyond reasonable caution.

 

While it's true that we "just never know" what could possibly happen, I don't think reacting defensively is the smart response, especially as it pertains to our kids' safety.

 

At some point I think it's necessary to begin taking calculated risks in order to keep our kids safe. Confident, street smart kids who know basic safety rules (e.g. never ever go anywhere with a stranger, when you answer the door never invite a stranger in) are actually safer than their peers who are more sheltered.

 

 

 

That's a bit of a stretch based on one isolated facet of someone's parenting.

 

 

:iagree: Um, yeah.

 

I like how all of the posts that say something to the affect of, "No, we don't allow our young children to answer the door" simply say pretty much that. The posts that disagree with that stance all start out with, "Wow" and end with something to the affect of "how sad you're so paranoid" :D. Really, I think my kids will be OK. We own a business that has them dealing with strangers on a daily basis. They don't dart away and look like abused puppies when spoken to or anything!

 

They're still not allowed to open the door for anyone but their grandparents.

[angela in ohio]

It's a bigger stretch to assume that Very Bad Things will happen if you let your 13 year old answer the door unsupervised.

 

I didn't say anything about the validity of that belief, though. Whether that's a stretch or not doesn't have any bearing on my feelings about your statement. :) Like pp, these dc could be dealing with the public all the time, and the parents just choose not to have them answer the door. We all make individual choices when it comes to risks for our dc. I make some choices to put my dc into dangerous situations (as peers with violent children) that others wouldn't make. I also make some choices not to put my dc into situations (we don't allow our younger dc to swim or boat without us present.) Everyone makes their own assessment based on their own experiences, their neighborhood, their child, etc. If we look at one bit in isolation, we cannot get a true picture of a person's parenting.

Edited June 28, 2010 by angela in ohio

[shinyhappypeople]

To clarify, I'm surprised and concerned about the restrictions placed on teenagers. Younger kids...well, I understand that we all have different comfort levels. But for teens to not be allowed to do something as simple as answer the door. I find that pretty extreme. I mean, seriously, what happens when they move out? Are they supposed to call home and have mom drive by to deal with the scary stranger at the door? Good grief!!

[Joanne]

Wow.

 

I'm really surprised at how many of you don't let your kids answer the door for strangers. I get it for younger kids (esp. in dangerous neighborhoods) but, to be honest, I find it a little disturbing not allowing a teenager to answer the door.

 

I'm concerned that sheltering them to this degree leaves them ill-prepared to deal with the real world on their own and could breed a lifelong anxiety towards strangers that goes beyond reasonable caution.

 

While it's true that we "just never know" what could possibly happen, I don't think reacting defensively is the smart response, especially as it pertains to our kids' safety.

 

At some point I think it's necessary to begin taking calculated risks in order to keep our kids safe. Confident, street smart kids who know basic safety rules (e.g. never ever go anywhere with a stranger, when you answer the door never invite a stranger in) are actually safer than their peers who are more sheltered.

 

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

[Delighted3]

I'm concerned that sheltering them to this degree leaves them ill-prepared to deal with the real world on their own and could breed a lifelong anxiety towards strangers that goes beyond reasonable caution.

 

 

People who know our family would laugh at the idea that our children are overly sheltered. I do not let my children answer the door because I am cautious because I live in a big city. Bad things do happen to people and I want my children to be cautious about it. Also, an adult is most likely not coming to the door to talk to one of my children, so why shouldn't my children let me know before they open the door instead of after it.

When there is a stranger at the door, I think most people experience a sense of anxiety which is backed up by the number of posts from people who do not let their children answer the door or sometimes don't even answer the door themselves. A family's home is their refuge where they seek peace from the outside world and feel safe. Nobody likes for that to be disturbed by a stranger who is probably selling something, wanting to ask intrusive questions, or sell an idea or religion. I am not paranoid. I am cautious. Also, by letting my children see how I interact with strangers at the door, I am teaching them how to deal with it in their own homes.

For what is worth, you think I am sheltering my children and not letting them deal with the real world. I think that someone who lets their 5 and 7 yo answer the door to strangers is reckless, but, in the end, we each have our own opinions. I m pretty sure that my children will have no lifelong effects because they weren't allowed to answer the door to strangers until late into their teens.

JMO,

Joy

Edited June 28, 2010 by Delighted3

[Jean in Newcastle]

To clarify, I'm surprised and concerned about the restrictions placed on teenagers. Younger kids...well, I understand that we all have different comfort levels. But for teens to not be allowed to do something as simple as answer the door. I find that pretty extreme. I mean, seriously, what happens when they move out? Are they supposed to call home and have mom drive by to deal with the scary stranger at the door? Good grief!!

 

I put these same restrictions on myself - and believe me, I left the teen years way behind. I will not answer the door if I do not recognize the person in the peephole. Even once when the police came (not called by us) I went to the window and had them hold out their badge there.

 

I am not strong enough to hold the door closed if a man sticks his foot in the door and tries to push the door open (and one solicitor tried to do this - for what end, I don't know and don't want to know).

 

The police in this area warn people against opening the door to strangers. I think I'll send them the memo that they're trying to stunt the growth of our teenagers and adults.

 

(In a bizarre twist, I allow my kids to bicycle all over the neighborhood and my teen has just started to bike to tae kwando a mile away. I feel safer when they are on the open street. We have not had police warnings in this area about people grabbing kids off the streets. If we did, I would probably respond with appropriate measures to keep my children safe.)

[cani e porci]

I'm with you, Jean. My peephole is set too high in the door for anyone at our house but DH to use, so I always look through the front window to see who's at the door, and I don't open the door to people I don't recognize. Period.

 

There is no need for me to talk to salespeople, school children selling overpriced things I don't need, or people trying to win me over to their religious point of view. It's not a good use of my time or energy, and I firmly believe that I am not obligated to answer the door (or the phone, or unsolicited mail) just because someone wants me to.

 

My kids bike all through my neighborhood, use pocket knives, climb too high in trees, scorch things with magnifying glasses, and practice hammering nails both into lumber scraps and things I'd rather didn't have nail holes. Without safety goggles.

[Imprimis]

Wow.

 

I'm really surprised at how many of you don't let your kids answer the door for strangers. I get it for younger kids (esp. in dangerous neighborhoods) but, to be honest, I find it a little disturbing not allowing a teenager to answer the door.

 

I'm concerned that sheltering them to this degree leaves them ill-prepared to deal with the real world on their own and could breed a lifelong anxiety towards strangers that goes beyond reasonable caution.

 

While it's true that we "just never know" what could possibly happen, I don't think reacting defensively is the smart response, especially as it pertains to our kids' safety.

 

At some point I think it's necessary to begin taking calculated risks in order to keep our kids safe. Confident, street smart kids who know basic safety rules (e.g. never ever go anywhere with a stranger, when you answer the door never invite a stranger in) are actually safer than their peers who are more sheltered.

 

Hmmm. Sounds a lot like the arguments against homeschooling to me.

 

What is disturbing to me is that people are so judgmental about other's parenting styles.

 

If people don't feel comfortable letting their children answer the door, that's their business. Why would it disturb you?

[rfoster]

I have only read a fraction of replies so far, but I am a little worried at the amount of people who are criticizing the parents who do not allow their teenagers to open the door or that do not open the door themselves.

 

We have many suburbs of Dallas/Ft Worth that are very safe, however they are targeted by scam artists, salesmen and even criminals because generally this is where the families and wealthier people live who have disposable income, can afford to purchase things without much thought, and generally have nice belongings which are easily stolen. When we first moved here I used to open the door to everyone just like my family has always done living in a small area in PA which admittedly had it's own element of crime, scam artists, etc. but answering the door was NEVER a danger. After having 2 sales people try to VERY HEAVILY pressure me into letting them into my house, 1 person almost force his way in, and countless more try to guilt me into listening to their religious speech, buy their product, etc. I adopted a 100% across the board policy that I don't even attempt to find out who is at the door unless I am expecting someone. My children have been taught to never go near the door if someone knocks, even if they think it is one of their friends.

 

Most everyone I know who lives near me also conducts themselves in the same manner, and at one point there were several home invasions and even a few RAPES due to women answering the door and having men force their way in. In many cases, these were house builder employees who were casing houses and figuring out who was home alone all day, and then targeting those households (anyone who's lived in a housing community that is under construction probably knows what it is like to have as many as 5-10 houses on your street under construction, with multiple people working on them all day every day). The sheriff department issued warnings to NOT OPEN YOUR DOOR unless you know the person, and call 911 immediately so that they can send an officer to your house and question the person if they wont go away or they pound on the door. I know a lot of women (more than 10) who's husbands insisted on purchasing guns for them, took them to Concealed Carry training, and helped them get their Concealed Weapons license.

 

There is NOTHING WRONG with being careful, especially if your area has any problems like this. Please please please trust your instincts if this is the case! The kids have even been told directly by law enforcement officers - if you don't feel safe, if you feel icky, if you aren't sure, call 911 and an officer will be happy to check just in case because they would prefer that it be the UPS man or Grandma coming over unexpectedly than taking a report an hour later because something really bad happened.

[Paige]

You need a key to get OUT of your house? Is that safe? I'd be worried about people getting out quickly in the event of a fire or something...

 

You need a key to get out of my house too. We installed the deadbolts like that because our front door has two long windows on the side. The police advised us that any other type of lock on the door was pretty useless as someone could just smash the glass, reach around and unlock the door themselves from the inside. The kids know where the key is and could get to it quickly in an emergency.

 

We also do not let our kids (oldest is 8) open the door for strangers. If we are expecting someone, we will let them get it, but otherwise, no. I don't even usually open the door for strangers. We live in what I consider a safe, quiet, subdivision, but there have been a ton of home invasions in safe, quiet, subdivisions in our area, and you never know. I don't want what they may be selling anyway. I always end up very annoyed when I do open the door and my dogs are going nuts and the kids are going nuts, and I have to step outside and close the door just to hear the person. Then, I have to politely explain that I can't talk to them outside because I'm leaving little children unattended and no, I don't want to invite them in, and no, I don't have just 5 minutes to listen because my kids are unattended and little, and I don't want them outside right now! It is just easier to not answer the door. Also, the same policeman who advised us on the locks at a neighborhood watch meeting, also advised us not to open the door to strangers because most women won't be able to shut it back if the person wanted in.

[hornblower]

You know what? You can actually be a happy, healthy well adjusted adult who does NOT answer the door.

 

You can also yell through the door - "who is it?" (& tell them to get stuffed b/e 99% of the time it's not a friend or a neighbour in need) or look through a peep hole & then decide whether it's appropriate to open the door or not. You can learn to do this as an adult without having tons of 'practice' opening the door as a teen.

 

You're making it sound like a pathology to not open the door. It's not. It's the normal reality of living in a large city. Friends call ahead on the phone. Neighbours will call through the door "Hi, it's Jane from next door!" Police & utility workers will have ID. Single women living alone are often instructed to call the utility & confirm that a worker has actually been sent out before they open the door. (uniforms & id's are easy to fake) Who else shows up at a door unannounced? Why would you need to open the door to them?

 

We have pretty regular outbreaks of home invasions here (though they usually target the elderly)

 

My kids don't open the door - even though I have over 200lb of dogs here & at least one of them WOULD defend us. I don't open the door to people who just show up until I go around to one of the bedroom windows from which I can see who is at the door.

 

 

 

To clarify, I'm surprised and concerned about the restrictions placed on teenagers. Younger kids...well, I understand that we all have different comfort levels. But for teens to not be allowed to do something as simple as answer the door. I find that pretty extreme. I mean, seriously, what happens when they move out? Are they supposed to call home and have mom drive by to deal with the scary stranger at the door? Good grief!!

[Joanne]

You know what? You can actually be a happy, healthy well adjusted adult who does NOT answer the door.

 

You can also yell through the door - "who is it?" (& tell them to get stuffed b/e 99% of the time it's not a friend or a neighbour in need) or look through a peep hole & then decide whether it's appropriate to open the door or not. You can learn to do this as an adult without having tons of 'practice' opening the door as a teen.

 

You're making it sound like a pathology to not open the door. It's not. It's the normal reality of living in a large city. Friends call ahead on the phone. Neighbours will call through the door "Hi, it's Jane from next door!" Police & utility workers will have ID. Single women living alone are often instructed to call the utility & confirm that a worker has actually been sent out before they open the door. (uniforms & id's are easy to fake) Who else shows up at a door unannounced? Why would you need to open the door to them?

 

We have pretty regular outbreaks of home invasions here (though they usually target the elderly)

 

My kids don't open the door - even though I have over 200lb of dogs here & at least one of them WOULD defend us. I don't open the door to people who just show up until I go around to one of the bedroom windows from which I can see who is at the door.

 

I actually agree with you. There are many occassions when I don't open the door and ask the kids not to.

 

I agree that not opening the door is not automatic code for oversheltering pathology.

 

I'd say, conversely, that *allowing* an older child to open the door is not automatically a "risk" worth minimizing.

[shinyhappypeople]

 

You're making it sound like a pathology to not open the door. It's not. It's the normal reality of living in a large city.

 

Oh, for heaven's sake! Please stop putting words in my mouth. I never called it a "pathology."

 

I'm not calling overprotective parents "bad parents." I'm just saying that, ironically, being overprotective can, in and of itself, be dangerous in the long term.

 

It's okay that we disagree. I'm just tossing that out as some food for thought.

[shinyhappypeople]

For what is worth, you think I am sheltering my children and not letting them deal with the real world. I think that someone who lets their 5 and 7 yo answer the door to strangers is reckless, but, in the end, we each have our own opinions. I m pretty sure that my children will have no lifelong effects because they weren't allowed to answer the door to strangers until late into their teens.

JMO,

Joy

 

Wow, way to make it personal.

[LibraryLover]

Wow, way to make it personal.

 

 

:D That's a big problem here, the board, in general, I mean. People take any social commentary or even irony, to heart. Andrea Yates is reported as a hser and you have 90% of the hsing community screaming, "They are saying hsers are child-killers!". No, they are saying that Andrea Yates, a hser, killed her children. There's a big difference. Not that everyone notices.

 

Not that I am talking to anyone in particular. I am not. :D

[Supertechmom]

..... I don't open the door to people I don't recognize. Period.

 

There is no need for me to talk to salespeople, school children selling overpriced things I don't need, or people trying to win me over to their religious point of view. It's not a good use of my time or energy, and I firmly believe that I am not obligated to answer the door (or the phone, or unsolicited mail) just because someone wants me to.

 

 

:iagree::iagree:

[Delighted3]

My children may go to the door and see who it is. If it is someone we know, they can answer it. If not, then they need to say they do not know the person and either my dh or myself will answer the door. This rule applies until they are practically adults. My younger children who are 13, 11, 10, and 7 definitely folllow this rule and it is a firm rule at our house even though we live in a safe, suburban neighborhood.

Joy

 

I'm really surprised at how many of you don't let your kids answer the door for strangers. I get it for younger kids (esp. in dangerous neighborhoods) but, to be honest, I find it a little disturbing not allowing a teenager to answer the door.

 

I'm concerned that sheltering them to this degree leaves them ill-prepared to deal with the real world on their own and could breed a lifelong anxiety towards strangers that goes beyond reasonable caution.

 

 

 

I think that someone who lets their 5 and 7 yo answer the door to strangers is reckless, but, in the end, we each have our own opinions.

JMO,

Joy

 

 

Wow, way to make it personal.

 

When I first posted in this thread, I thought about telling you that I thought that 5 and 7 was way too young for children to be answering the door, but decided to just tell you how things are done at my house without telling you what I thought about how you do things at your house. You made it personal to me by posting your opinion on not letting teens answer the door and therefore I felt like I could share my opinion with you about letting small children answer the door.

Nothing personal about it.

Joy

[Mejane]

to be honest, I find it a little disturbing not allowing a teenager to answer the door.

 

 

 

Really? I find it disturbing that last year, not two towns over from us, a woman and her two daughters were raped and murdered by a couple of druggies who forced their way into their house and hit Dad on the head with a baseball bat. I bet they never thought it would happen to them, either. Better to be safe than sorry, I say.

[eternalknot]

I only read the first and twelve (last, for the time being) pages of this thread.

 

We don't have a steadfast rule. We play it by ear; sometimes they open the door and sometimes they don't. We have a large picture window by the door that we can see out of, but people outside cannot see in through. If someone knocks we see who it is and discern a gut feeling.

[fivetails]

You need a key to get OUT of your house? Is that safe? I'd be worried about people getting out quickly in the event of a fire or something...

 

You need a key to get out of my house too. We installed the deadbolts like that because our front door has two long windows on the side. The police advised us that any other type of lock on the door was pretty useless as someone could just smash the glass, reach around and unlock the door themselves from the inside. The kids know where the key is and could get to it quickly in an emergency.

 

Hmmm. Maybe it's just because I've never seen such a set up before, but it just strikes me as very dangerous.

 

DISCLAIMER: I'm not saying that people who have this set up are weird, reckless, freaks, bad parents, *insert whatever here* ....I'm just saying that the SET UP itself would scare me. /DISCLAIMER ;)

 

Seriously though...I'm picturing someone crawling through a smoke filled room at 3am, sleeve over nose & mouth, just trying to find the DOOR in their disoriented state...never mind locating & retrieving a tiny key, getting it into a lock right side up, turning it the right way, etc....(and not dropping it somewhere)...

 

That's the scenario that goes through my head - that's why it seems unsafe.

[QuirkyKapers]

I don't let my kids answer the door (9 and 7). I am also pretty careful about opening the door myself especially if I am not expecting someone. It isn't that our neighborhood isn't safe, I just don't like surprises.

[hornblower]

Hmmm. Maybe it's just because I've never seen such a set up before, but it just strikes me as very dangerous.

 

This was a trend in parts of the Lower Mainland for a while - I know because I've been in several houses like this & the house we bought had this in a few locks.

 

I think it was some sort of safety thing that swept through & seemed like a good idea, & then the FIRE marshall people said WTH?!!! Don't do that!!! Everyone I knew with this set up had the keys permanently in the lock. Odds of a fire are much greater IMO than of a robber breaking the glass & letting themselves in. Heck, if they're going to do that, they can just break the window beside the door and climb right in......

 

We changed those locks to regular locks asap.

 

What people often put in now is a security deadbolt which is only accessible from the inside (so you don't use it when you're leaving the house - there's no key hole for it). It's often mounted quite high, away from the regular deadbolt.

[Scarlett]

Hmmm. Maybe it's just because I've never seen such a set up before, but it just strikes me as very dangerous.

 

DISCLAIMER: I'm not saying that people who have this set up are weird, reckless, freaks, bad parents, *insert whatever here* ....I'm just saying that the SET UP itself would scare me. /DISCLAIMER ;)

 

Seriously though...I'm picturing someone crawling through a smoke filled room at 3am, sleeve over nose & mouth, just trying to find the DOOR in their disoriented state...never mind locating & retrieving a tiny key, getting it into a lock right side up, turning it the right way, etc....(and not dropping it somewhere)...

 

That's the scenario that goes through my head - that's why it seems unsafe.

 

Yeah, this set up freaks me out too....but I guess a person would have to weigh the risk of home invasion vs. fire....in my neighborhood I have next to zero fear of home invasion.

[texasmama]

I only let my littles answer it if we are expecting someone. If I can see through the glass that it is the UPS man, I ask them to wait until he puts down the package and walks back to his truck, then I allow them to bring in the package.

[Paige]

H

 

Seriously though...I'm picturing someone crawling through a smoke filled room at 3am, sleeve over nose & mouth, just trying to find the DOOR in their disoriented state...never mind locating & retrieving a tiny key, getting it into a lock right side up, turning it the right way, etc....(and not dropping it somewhere)...

 

That's the scenario that goes through my head - that's why it seems unsafe.

 

 

It really isn't much harder to grab the key on the way to the door then it is to get to the door. The key is always in the same place, relatively close to the door, and hasn't been a hassle at all. We also have an escape ladder so they don't need to go to the door anyway. Besides, if they really needed out a door, they could crawl through the doggie door which will accommodate children and me easily but not the average adult. :001_smile:

[Hunter's Moon]

To clarify, I'm surprised and concerned about the restrictions placed on teenagers. Younger kids...well, I understand that we all have different comfort levels. But for teens to not be allowed to do something as simple as answer the door. I find that pretty extreme. I mean, seriously, what happens when they move out? Are they supposed to call home and have mom drive by to deal with the scary stranger at the door? Good grief!!

 

We have 91 registered sex offenders in my city. I live in the center of my city and most live and are employed in that area. We also had 3 Latin Kings living on our street. All were arrested, but they lived there for quite a bit before being arrested.

 

I am 16 and still won't answer the door by myself. If a parent is inside, sure, but only if I know the person. If not, I call my father downstairs.

 

Our door with the doorbell is all the way downstairs and anyone ringing the bell can see that. It is not downstairs with a room off to the side. It is just downstairs in a long hallway with no rooms on either side. They could easily hurt me or my mother and then get away before my father could come help us. I am not saying they would ring the doorbell to randomly stab us, but they don't know who is upstairs. They could try to rob us or something and hurt us to get through. They might think someone in the house usually works so if my mother or I answers, they will assume the man of the house is at work.

 

I'm not paranoid, overly sheltered, or over protected. I just use my brains when it comes to opening our door by myself, even with someone upstairs. (I am not saying you don't use your brain, but everyones scenario is different.)

Edited June 28, 2010 by BeatleMania

[Hunter's Moon]

Hmmm. Maybe it's just because I've never seen such a set up before, but it just strikes me as very dangerous.

 

DISCLAIMER: I'm not saying that people who have this set up are weird, reckless, freaks, bad parents, *insert whatever here* ....I'm just saying that the SET UP itself would scare me. /DISCLAIMER ;)

 

Seriously though...I'm picturing someone crawling through a smoke filled room at 3am, sleeve over nose & mouth, just trying to find the DOOR in their disoriented state...never mind locating & retrieving a tiny key, getting it into a lock right side up, turning it the right way, etc....(and not dropping it somewhere)...

 

That's the scenario that goes through my head - that's why it seems unsafe.

 

I don't know about the others whose locks are like this, but we only have one door with that setup. Both our doors lead to a different street, so the front door with the doorbell is like that, but the back door is not. It was like that when we moved in.

 

I can see where this would seem strange though. I thought it was a bit strange too but we've had no troubles with it that way.

[AnitaMcC]

It's a bigger stretch to assume that Very Bad Things will happen if you let your 13 year old answer the door unsupervised.

 

No its isn't a stretch... bad things do happen. Our police say teens should not be answering the door to strangers. I will trust our police to know what is safe and not safe in our neighborhood.

[AnitaMcC]

To clarify, I'm surprised and concerned about the restrictions placed on teenagers. Younger kids...well, I understand that we all have different comfort levels. But for teens to not be allowed to do something as simple as answer the door. I find that pretty extreme. I mean, seriously, what happens when they move out? Are they supposed to call home and have mom drive by to deal with the scary stranger at the door? Good grief!!

 

My teens can answer the door... if they know the person. I don't even open the door to strangers if I am not expecting anyone (like a repairman) until I have my nice big dog right with me and even then I only open it a little with my foot blocking the door from being opened more.

 

But then again, bad things do happen at the most unexpected time!!!! I know this to be true... I experienced them. No I am not paranoid (although I have every right to be)... I just like to make sure we use reasonable precautions and IMO and IME opening doors to stangers is just not always a good thing. So I am not going to take that chance with my kids (or me).

[LuvToRead]

I only let my kids answer the door if I know who it is, and it has nothing to do with fear they will be abducted. Sometimes it's the guy selling meat from his truck, who I've told several times we don't want any. Sometimes it's my BIL, who I am currently at odds with and I'm not in the mood for the polite banter. We've also had our share of drunks (this is usually at night, though) who have run off the road.

[swellmomma]

Hmmm. Maybe it's just because I've never seen such a set up before, but it just strikes me as very dangerous.

 

DISCLAIMER: I'm not saying that people who have this set up are weird, reckless, freaks, bad parents, *insert whatever here* ....I'm just saying that the SET UP itself would scare me. /DISCLAIMER ;)

 

Seriously though...I'm picturing someone crawling through a smoke filled room at 3am, sleeve over nose & mouth, just trying to find the DOOR in their disoriented state...never mind locating & retrieving a tiny key, getting it into a lock right side up, turning it the right way, etc....(and not dropping it somewhere)...

 

That's the scenario that goes through my head - that's why it seems unsafe.

 

 

We had this set up at our old house because ds is a runner. I switched to the dead bolts needing an inside key when he was around 5 and kept it that way. I kept the key on me at all times (including while I was asleep). We had the rear patio doors to get out of in case of emergency and the front door can not be unlocked. The patio doors had a pin lock at the top but the kids knew how to unlock it in emergencies. Having had a fire int eh house etc I still liked the set up we had.

[oldskool]

No, I do not let the kids answer the door. The only reason I will answer it is if I can see through the window that it is our neighbor.

 

Lesley

[Parrothead]

Yes, my dd is allowed to answer the door.

[AlaskaGrownFamily]

I don't even answer the door. So. No.

[SonshineLearner]

My kids aren't allowed to open the door, unless I'm home and they can see who it is. With me not there, I don't want them to answer at all. By the time they look to see who it is... the other person knows that they are there.. but not answering. I do like to leave my dog out while I'm gone so he can bark. Think... big 65lb dog lunging towards the window. Love that "biggness" of the dog... He's HUGE & BIG and I hope that the other person on the other side thinks that he'd rip their head off... and he just might as long as they don't have a dog biscuit.

:)