When you go out alone at night...

[*anj*]

Does anyone in your house wait up for you?

 

If someone had to get up at 5:30 am and you were out past that person's bedtime, would you be upset if they went to bed at their normal bedtime?

 

Or do you not even think about such things, it's no big deal, the chances are slim that anything would happen, so the one who needs his/her sleep should go ahead and climb into bed?

 

Or do you generally avoid going out at night because everyone feels safer and more comfortable that way?

[Guest Virginia Dawn]

I can go out and don't expect dh to stay up for me, but I try to be home well before midnight. I don't do it often though.

 

ETA: I do wait up for dh.

[Prairie~Phlox]

now I rarely go out late, but occasionally dh will be out late and I do not wait up for him. If I go out and am out late, he does not wait up for me either, he's usually asleep on the couch though.

 

Phlox

[Crissy]

We are usually all in by bedtime, but on the rare night that it doesn't happen, we wait up.

We've never talked about it, but I thought about this very thing when I was out late on Saturday night.

My husband had been up very early, but while he showered and got into bed, he wouldn't sleep or turn out the lights before I was home.

I do the same when he's out late.

 

The only exception is when he's out of town and doesn't return until 3 or 4 AM. I leave the lights on for him, but I can never stay awake that long.

[Joanne]

I work outside the home 2 nights a week (soon to be 4, for a temporary time). I work 6 - 1:00 am. I do not expect anyone to wait up for me, indeed it would be bad for their work (or school) if they did.

 

ETA: One night a week, my DH works all night. I usually stay up way too late that night just getting some alone time.

[SW in IL]

If someone in my house had to get up early, I wouldn't mind that they went to bed while I was still out as long as they'd answer the phone in case of an emergency. Also, when I'm out much past when other people in the house go to bed, I don't mind if they go to sleep.

 

But if I'm going ot be home around their normal bedtime or sligtly later (say half an hour to an hour) AND when they don't have to be alseep in order to get up the next day to go to work or whatever, I end up feeling like they don't care if I get home safely when it wouldn't be that much of an inconvenience for them to stay up.

 

Coloring my view, however, is the fact that our home phone doesn't work properly and the people in the house are likely to sleep through the whimpered half ring it usually gives off. Also, I'm out past anyone else's bedtime so rarely, that I don't feel like it's too much to ask that they wait until I'm safely home maybe twice a year.

 

Sue

[Parrothead]

We don't wait up for each other any more. I used to wait up for dh before we had dd. Now I don't. I don't expect him to wait up for me either. I'm just glad he remembers to leave a light on for me.

[Tammy]

It is no big deal in my house....There is not a lot I would give up my sleep for.....really, LOL!

[Ferdie]

No one waits up for me, but I am usually back before 11:00pm and out with friends locally, (no freeway driving). My dh goes to bed pretty early, too.

[Danestress]

But when I do, it seems like normally DH is still up when I get home. Then again, I'm not out later that 10:30 or 11:00. But I wouldn't mind at all if he did go to bed, and I might go to bed if he were out really late, though he also doesn't make a habit of it.

 

When we had a teenager driving and living at home, I almost alway waited up for him. I just didn't like going to sleep until I knew he was home safe and sound.

[Jennifer3141]

I never thought about any of this before. I just go out and leave DH a note if I'm going to be gone long. He usually leaves for work around 4:00. I'm hoping he'd send out a search party if he noticed my car was still gone. lol

 

Jen

[Once]

When dh is out late working at the office before a conference I do not stay up on purpose. But if I were out I would hope that dh would stay up for me until I am safe and sound. But there has never been a case where I was out that late. (He is a bit of a night owl!)

 

How is that for a double standard!

[Kris]

I would wait up -- but I wouldn't expect anyone to wait up for me. I'm the night owl in the house, so it would be easy for me to do it. My Sweetie, though, it usually toast before 10:00 p.m. when he's home. So unless he felt he had some reason to worry, the poor guy would be out like a light -- but probably on the sofa. :D

[Amy in Orlando]

I'd rather dh NOT wait up for me. He's useless late at night. I DO ask him to leave the porch light and a light in the kitchen on for me if he does go to bed.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I'm the night owl so I'm almost always up when my dh comes home. And even on those rare occasions when he's come in very, very late, I always wake up immediately because I'm such a light sleeper.

 

Dh on the other hand, goes to be much earlier than I because he usually gets up at 4 am. So I don't expect him to be up when I get home. There was one time when I was gone for 3 days and I came home and he was in bed. I was a bit disappointed but I did understand. And when he told me the next day that he'd been up all night the night before with an emergency situation, then I really undersood!

[snickelfritz]

I'm only out late occasionally. scrapbooking is the most usual and it's common to get in after midnight after that. He does sleep with the cell phone right by him and he leaves lights on for me. I actually prefer him to go to sleep early, since it makes him more willing to get up early with the girls the next morning and let me sleep in.:D

 

If he's out, I wait for a bit. If he's close, I might try to wait on him. I just don't sleep well when I'm expecting him to come home.

[Nestof3]

I'm sort of confused. I go out at night -- to the grocery store or something, but I never go out after my husband would be in bed (well, except the couple of times I ran to 7 Eleven after my husband was in bed). No, I wouldn't expect anyone to wait up, but then again, I don't go out in the middle of the night. If someone had to get up at 5:30, I think they need all of the sleep they can get.

 

I too always have a cell phone with me, but I wouldn't go somewhere I felt was unsafe alone anyway.

 

I personally go to sleep late and thus end up being the last to go to bed, so I guess I wait up for people. :)

[jmgconner]

If either of us was out late, we would wait up for the other.

[Lizzie in Ma]

Or do you generally avoid going out at night because everyone feels safer and more comfortable that way?

 

Yup, that's exactly what I do. I really hate leaving the house after dark. (There ARE things that go bump in the night AND they live under my bed too) :D

 

I used to wait up for dh as much as possible but I am old now, and tired. ;)

[Academy of Jedi Arts]

Or do you not even think about such things, it's no big deal, the chances are slim that anything would happen, so the one who needs his/her sleep should go ahead and climb into bed?

 

That's me. I always say- If there is something to worry about you will get a phone call, so otherwise don't worry.

 

But- if my dh out late for work, I do wait up for him just because I like to talk to him after not seeing him all day.

[Gretchen in NJ]

We almost always go out together so this is not an issue for us.

 

If dh is travelling on business and is due home late, I do try and stay up to great him.

[abbeyej]

It's very rare that I'm out late, but if dh needed to be up early, I would expect him to go to bed (though he might not anyway, lol). I know he feels better knowing I'm home safe though, and this doesn't happen often. On the other hand, he's out more frequently -- often a flight getting in late, or something like that. I generally, but do not always, wait up for him.

 

I think each of us considers waiting up to be a courtesy. Not absolutely required, and sometimes the next day's duties take precedence... And while we'd both feel better knowing the other is home safe, there are occasions when circumstances make that difficult. ... And I certainly don't think it's a safety issue.

[OH_Homeschooler]

No, sleep is too precious. DH has a business that keeps him out late at least once a week (always after midnight, which makes me feel old to think that's late). And on the rare occasion that I get out with some friends on a weeknight and stay out until after 10, I'm not surprised to find him in bed. He usually gets up at 5, so I don't expect him to be up.

[sleepy]

Or do you generally avoid going out at night because everyone feels safer and more comfortable that way?

 

I generally don't go out at night (can't really even think of why I would go anywhere, or where I might want to go), but if I did, dh would wait up for me. If he's out late I usually can't fall asleep until he's home.