Many of us will fondly remember the excitement of going to a sleepover as a child, from carrying out silly dares to hiding behind cushions during a scary film.
Such sleepovers generally involve staying up as late as possible, and of course, boasting about it for weeks afterward. For parents of sleepover-age children, however, such gatherings aren't nearly as fun, especially when they end up with an exhausted kid the following day.
One mother says she was recently left furious to learn that her eight-year-old daughter and her pals had stayed up until 4:30 am at a school friend's sleepover, a time she regards as "ridiculous".
According to this mum, her young daughter was completely "knackered" the following day, and she's now even considering contacting the mother of the sleepover host to complain.
The ticked-off mum took to Mumsnet to ask others what they thought, writing: "Just picked up my eight-year-old daughter from a sleepover at her friend from school's house and it turns out she and her friend were up until 4.30 am.
"The mum came into the room and said it was time to calm down and go to sleep... at 4.30 am! I'm really unhappy, in what world is letting eight-year-old girls stay awake till that time unaccompanied may I add as the mum was in her bed, okay?
She continued: "12 am - fair enough, maybe 1 am at a push if excited but 4.30 am is ridiculous and my daughter is knackered.
I don't know whether to text the mum. She certainly won't be back there for a sleepover. Am I being unreasonable?"
Other parents were confused why the mum was taking what they viewed as a completely normal rite of passage so seriously, and felt she was "overreacting".
One wrote: "Did you ever go to stay at someone's house when you were eight years old? This is completely normal when you are eight and excited.
"The mum could have told them to pipe down every hour from 11 pm and it wouldn't have made any difference."
Another agreed: "Yep, totally normal, you are being unreasonable, sorry! We’ve done sleepovers and they always take the p*** a bit, it’s just part and parcel.
"My nine-year-old has conked out mid-afternoon after sleepovers several times. One night of no sleep won’t do them any harm, they’ll catch up! Early night tonight if she lasts that long and she’ll be totally fine."
"Oh, it's no big deal. It was a one-off. Stop overreacting. Your daughter probably had loads of fun, even staying up past her bedtime. Don't be a fun sponge", one mum quipped.
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