s/o: Do some or all of your children climb the walls/doorways in your home?

[*********]

My dh, within the past year, taught both my little boys how to climb the hallway walls and doorways.

 

They love doing it. However, I have to forbid them from it from time to time, because they were doing it so much that the skin on the bottom of their feet and toes was peeling. :tongue_smilie:

 

So, do your children do this? I ask because I had never heard of it or seen it until dh taught the boys; my sisters and I never did this as kids. Also, we are moving in a week to a rental property, and I will likely not allow them to climb the walls there, since we don't own the property; we'll see what dh says about that.

[Scarlett]

My dh, within the past year, taught both my little boys how to climb the hallway walls and doorways.

 

They love doing it. However, I have to forbid them from it from time to time, because they were doing it so much that the skin on the bottom of their feet and toes was peeling. :tongue_smilie:

 

So, do your children do this? I ask because I had never heard of it or seen it until dh taught the boys; my sisters and I never did this as kids. Also, we are moving in a week to a rental property, and I will likely not allow them to climb the walls there, since we don't own the property; we'll see what dh says about that.

 

My ds11 loves to do it and I forbid him to because he weighs almost 100 pounds and it is rough on the walls. I tell him to go outside for that nonsense. ;)

[AndyJoy]

I once babysat my teacher's 7 and 9-year-old boys who claimed they were allowed to climb doorways. I had never heard of/seen anyone doing it and called their mom to verify that she allowed it :D (she did).

[myfunnybunch]

My children figured it out all on their own. I did it too, when I was a kid. I remember I liked the way it made my joints and muscles feel.

 

Cat

[BamaTanya]

We're raising our dc in the same house where I grew up with my brothers.

 

One of my brothers was a door-climber.

 

2 of my sons are door-climbers.

 

No one taught them, so it must be genetic. :lol:

[jenL]

My dh taught my sons how to do this too. He's usually SO anal about the house, so I was utterly shocked when I caught the youngest doing it one day and he announced, "Daddy taught me how to do this!"

[Dobela]

MY son did it when younger but gradually grew out of it. He also stopped it when we put one of those bars in a door frame where he could do pull ups and such.

[jewellsmommy]

My dh, within the past year, taught both my little boys how to climb the hallway walls and doorways.

 

They love doing it. However, I have to forbid them from it from time to time, because they were doing it so much that the skin on the bottom of their feet and toes was peeling. :tongue_smilie:

 

So, do your children do this? I ask because I had never heard of it or seen it until dh taught the boys; my sisters and I never did this as kids. Also, we are moving in a week to a rental property, and I will likely not allow them to climb the walls there, since we don't own the property; we'll see what dh says about that.

 

 

This is funny, because I just posted in the playground thread about how my dd does this. It completely freaks my mother out when dd goes to the ceiling :lol:. It does not bother me or dh. It causes no harm to the walls or doorways, so we allow it.

[Amira]

Apparently my mother was still doing it while she was in college and certainly encourages my children to climb whenever they can. The house we are living in has wide doorways and halls so they can't do it here very well, but I think they'll like doing it again when they can. It doesn't really bother me to have them do it in a rental.

[redsquirrel]

One son did, the other isn't big enough but will.

 

I hate it because he leaves dirty foot prints on the wall/doorway. Also, my younger son tends to want to stand under the elder while he is up there. I have visions of the older kid falling, dropping on the younger.

 

I think my son doesn't do it very often any more. I am thinking the thrill is gone.

[smilesonly]

my ds does it all the time and has since he was around 5.:D

[Elizabeth in WA]

My young gymnasts used to do this all the time. Now they seem to get the climbing need out in their gymnastics practice hours, over 20/week for ds13, the most avid climber.

[*********]

This is funny, because I just posted in the playground thread about how my dd does this. It completely freaks my mother out when dd goes to the ceiling :lol:. It does not bother me or dh. It causes no harm to the walls or doorways, so we allow it.

 

I know; I quoted you in that thread and said I was gonna spin off and post a poll. :D

 

I hate it because he leaves dirty foot prints on the wall/doorway. Also, my younger son tends to want to stand under the elder while he is up there. I have visions of the older kid falling, dropping on the younger.

 

We have a 'No walking under one another' rule, as well as a 'No knocking one another down off the wall' rule. We had a close call with one of the boys almost landing on the other's head. :001_huh: Hence the rules.

[nono]

My dd taught herself to "spider-up" the doorway. We think it is cool.

 

 

I do remind her though, that if I had done that, my Mother (whom she loves dearly) would have had my head! "NOT NANA!" is always her reply.

 

Oh yeah, Nana....:001_rolleyes:

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

My kids haven't discovered that, yet, but a friend just posted a picture on facebook of her son climbing up the door frame.

[jewellsmommy]

I know; I quoted you in that thread and said I was gonna spin off and post a poll. :D

 

 

 

We have a 'No walking under one another' rule, as well as a 'No knocking one another down off the wall' rule. We had a close call with one of the boys almost landing on the other's head. :001_huh: Hence the rules.

 

 

I just figured that out!:lol: I feel so dumb. Thus the s/o! I am having an off day. Gee, it seemed like such a cosmic coincidence :001_huh:.

[LizzyBee]

My ADHD kid is the only kid I've ever seen climb doorways. When I posted here about it a couple years ago, I was surprised at how many kids do that. Where do they even get the idea????

[Sputterduck]

No, but... I miss doing that myself.

[*********]

I just figured that out!:lol: I feel so dumb. Thus the s/o! I am having an off day. Gee, it seemed like such a cosmic coincidence :001_huh:.

 

Oh please don't feel dumb. I just was interested that other children do this too, and was curious how common it is. :)

[Truscifi]

My children figured it out all on their own. I did it too, when I was a kid. I remember I liked the way it made my joints and muscles feel.

 

Cat

 

Ds showed a friend who was over last night how he could climb up and touch the ceiling. She was shocked we let him. Dh and I both said that of all the crazy things we did as kids, that was one of the least likely to cause injury.

[6packofun]

Not all of my children have caught the doorway climbing bug for whatever reason. My youngest dd did it and now my 5 yo has been doing it since age 4. He loves to see how fast he can get up to the top and touch the ceiling. I just banned him from doing it a few weeks ago because he jumped down from way up there and he's a little guy--he jarred his teeth together and complained for a couple days that they hurt so NO more! LOL

 

If I'd ever had a nice home of our own and not older rentals, I'd probably have said no to anyone even trying it, though.

[coffeegal]

A few of my children do it. I'd forbid it, a house is not a gymnasium, but dh encourages it and uses the trim for pullups. :glare: It's not a hill I'm willing to die on. ;)

[elise1mds]

I don't *let* my children do it... but the next time I find a child perched near the ceiling or in the top of his/her closet wouldn't be the first time. :glare:

[ravinlunachick]

I have never heard of nor seen such a thing! Now I can't wait until dh wakes up so I can ask if he ever did it.

[Soror]

My almost 7yo taught himself, doesn't both me, assuming his feet are reasonably clean.

[Heather in AL]

I didn't vote in the poll, because my kids never did this, but my brother and I did (door jams only)!! We even have photos of us up at the ceiling! :D

 

I always thought my kids were strange for not doing this, even after I told them about it. I guess my brother and I were just natural-born monkeys! :lol:

[Mrs.MacGyver]

We do let the kids climb and be crazy in the house. That is one of the factors involved in buying a house for us. Dh was adamant that he could have a house that he could modify for kid fun (and his, actually).

 

We currently live in a log home with cathedral ceilings in the great room, and the first thing Dh did when we moved in is to put up rock climbing handholds on the tall wall in the living room. They blend into the wall so nicely that no one ever notices them until someone (man or child :D) starts climbing them. We also have a few trap doors, a hidden room and two hand swings (that - yes - hold a grown man) hanging from the log rafters. I was a little skeptical at first (I grew up in a "don't touch anything" house), but Dh manages to do these things so that the house still looks very nice - plus already having the "rustic" look to the house helps out a lot!

 

We have long winters and super active kids/dad, so we just thought that we should embrace the climbing and craziness and make it easy and safe to play and explore in the house so that the nice things we do have don't get destroyed.

[Aura]

Okay, I missed this when I posted in the playground thread, but I'll repost part of it. :tongue_smilie:

 

Just a word of caution to those of you who let their kids climb walls.

 

When they were kids, my dh & brothers did this in their hall. My dh was all the way up and then fell. My mil still has his cheeks (not the ones you kiss) imprinted on the wall. :lol: She covered the dent with a picture. The kids might not get hurt...but their surroundings are a different story. :D

 

This is why I say things like: Don't climb the walls. You'll put a hole in the wall! Don't slide down the stairs on the mattress. You'll put a foot through the wall, and the mattress is in bad enough shape! :D

 

 

 

 

Anyway, my kids would definitely do this all the time if I let them (and still do sometimes even when they know they'll get in trouble).

 

I also have this crazy rule about not touching ANYTHING glass--not windows, not mirrors, not pictures, not the TV screen--you get the idea. That one, I'm having a lot harder time getting across. :glare: But I get so tired of all the fingerprints on EVERYTHING.

[mommymilkies]

I used to all the time when I was younger. But we had oak framed doorways, so I couldn't hurt anything. Our current doorways are mostly pine or drywall, so my children are not allowed to here.

[Pretty in Pink]

My children have, and would love to, climb up the doorways and such but I don't allow it. Hands and feet off the walls, thank you very much. ;)

[Mommy22alyns]

I am thoroughly confused. Can someone explain this or show me a picture or something? I've never heard of this, but both my girls are gymnasts. I probably wouldn't let them anyway.

[Pretty in Pink]

I am thoroughly confused. Can someone explain this or show me a picture or something? I've never heard of this, but both my girls are gymnasts. I probably wouldn't let them anyway.

 

Sure. They stand with arms and legs spread open (like they were going to make a snow angel) in a doorway and place one hand and one foot along the doorframe on each side; then, the shimmy up by bracing their weight against the doorframe.

 

The same can be done in a narrow hallway but using the walls instead of a doorframe.

[bairnmama]

I live in a rental. It's a turn of the century farmhouse with tall ceilings and my ds figured out how to do it when he was almost 5. He goes all the way to the ceiling and then hangs from the molding in the doorway. Since he's started letting go and dropping to the floor, he began taking one of the couch cushions and putting in the doorway to land on. The only thing that bugs me about it are the dirty hand and foot prints on the molding and walls... but they get to scrub those off themselves as the price of climbing, lol.

[sleepymommy]

My boys taught themselves and have been at it for way too long.

 

Ds7 climbs up to the top of the doorframe and hangs upside down.

 

Sometimes I wonder if they are monkey kids in human disguise!

[bairnmama]

Sure. They stand with arms and legs spread open (like they were going to make a snow angel) in a doorway and place one hand and one foot along the doorframe on each side; then, the shimmy up by bracing their weight against the doorframe.

 

The same can be done in a narrow hallway but using the walls instead of a doorframe.

 

 

My ds was too short to do it that way when he first tried it. He holds onto the molding on one side of the doorway with both hands and then just shimmies up that side with his toes. When he gets to the top he grabs the top molding and inches to the middle before dropping down. He's a gymnast too and is trying to make the team. He also keeps asking when I'm going to put a set of rings in his room hanging from the ceiling... I'm thinking a tree outside is a better spot, lol.

[Pamela H in Texas]

Just a note on your poll question.

Unless you have a baby, a kid isn't "too young."

My son was doing it at two! He absolutely loved it.

Only a kid who, with his hands above his head is still shorter than the width of the doorway couldn't find a way to do it if they wanted.

I don't know when my son switched to the "snow angel" version. He was always quite short so that may have been later.

[Pretty in Pink]

My ds was too short to do it that way when he first tried it. He holds onto the molding on one side of the doorway with both hands and then just shimmies up that side with his toes. When he gets to the top he grabs the top molding and inches to the middle before dropping down. He's a gymnast too and is trying to make the team. He also keeps asking when I'm going to put a set of rings in his room hanging from the ceiling... I'm thinking a tree outside is a better spot, lol.

 

I have seen people mount swings in their children's rooms by anchoring them in a stud in the ceiling...I don't see why it wouldn't work with rings as well. :D

 

I have one friend who turned her garage into a mini gymnasium for her gymnasts. They have rings, a rock climbing wall, climbing ropes...it's really neat!

[bairnmama]

I have seen people mount swings in their children's rooms by anchoring them in a stud in the ceiling...I don't see why it wouldn't work with rings as well. :D

 

I have one friend who turned her garage into a mini gymnasium for her gymnasts. They have rings, a rock climbing wall, climbing ropes...it's really neat!

 

 

I know, my cousin had a swing in her son's bedroom... but my ds's room is upstairs over the living room. I keep imagining the landings over my head making the light fixtures shake and shudder! :tongue_smilie:

[dirty ethel rackham]

My boys did it but outgrew it. I doubt dd will, but then again, she's a competitive rock climber. It's in her blood.

Maybe sports such as gymnastics or climbing can provide an outlet for that energy.

[Dandelion]

My kids have never done this (just never exposed to it).

 

However, they do climb all over (and slide down) the banisters. As long as they do it safely, I'm fine with it.

[Kirch]

Yes, my youngest figured out how to do it (his nickname is "monkey") and then his older brother had to tackle it once he saw his brother doing it (with much frustration and many tears until he finally did it!).

[Aubrey]

My only stipulation is to check for footprints & wipe them off if you see any. I think only the oldest has done this & not in this house--I guess it's not as conducive? LOL And only in doorways. I guess our hallways are either too wide or it hasn't occurred to him. *shrug*

[In The Great White North]

I voted "no" because it apparently never occurred to my kids and I never showed them how. But I used to :D

 

Maybe we have too many trees outside to climb?

[Ellyndria]

I used to climb doorways when I was younger!

 

Sure. They stand with arms and legs spread open (like they were going to make a snow angel) in a doorway and place one hand and one foot along the doorframe on each side; then, the shimmy up by bracing their weight against the doorframe.

 

This was one way I did it. I also climbed the doorway by putting my back against one side, and both feet on the other and scooting up that way.

 

I voted that my DS was too little to do it but I would let him when he was older (if he wants to, but it doesn't seem like something he would do). He's too little because we have wide doorways and he couldn't reach. Then the ones with actual doors are more narrow, but they don't look very comfortable to climb. He currently doesn't even know anything about climbing doorways.

 

I don't remember who taught me to climb the doorways... if my mom or dad mentioned it, or if I came up with the idea myself. I will have to ask if to see if anyone remembers.

 

ETA: My mom says I saw it on some tv show and I decided to try it.

Edited July 21, 2011 by Ellyndria

[Remudamom]

I caught one of the 17 yr olds last week.

[ravinlunachick]

Ah, Youtube. You never fail me! ♥

 

 

 

[dragons in the flower bed]

Some of my boys are able to do it. Some of them aren't. I have an uncle who was reported missing at age two, then found in the ceiling. He had climbed up there and was monkeying around inside of it.

[herbalgirl]

We currently live in a log home with cathedral ceilings in the great room, and the first thing Dh did when we moved in is to put up rock climbing handholds on the tall wall in the living room. They blend into the wall so nicely that no one ever notices them until someone (man or child :D) starts climbing them. We also have a few trap doors, a hidden room and two hand swings (that - yes - hold a grown man) hanging from the log rafters. I was a little skeptical at first (I grew up in a "don't touch anything" house), but Dh manages to do these things so that the house still looks very nice - plus already having the "rustic" look to the house helps out a lot!

 

Wow! Our 3 oldest boys climb the door frames. Your place would be their dream house! :D

[Ellie]

:confused: :blink:

[Maverick_Mom]

My children do not climb the walls.

 

They make me do it. :D