Stairs and gates

I have a few questions about stairs and gates that I hope some of you might be able to answer.

How old were your kids when they started crawling up stairs? How about crawling backwards down them?

When did they start actually walking up the stairs? Walking down?

Also... do you have gates at the top/bottom of all of your staircases? Has anyone not put gates? How did your kids handle the open stairs?

Thanks very much!

 

Mine started crawling up the stairs at about 11 months. They have learned to go down 1 step by putting their hand on the wall and stepping down easily. (I think they learned this step from getting out of their PBK chair.) THey still don't crawl backwards down them, but one day it just happened..they went for the stairs and started truckin'! We are in a 3-level and yes we do have gates, screwed into the walls and attached at the wooden banisters. I'm soooo afraid of them falling 17 stairs to a ceramic tile floor! THough upstairs we haven't put a gate up because the only time they are up there is with us and we guard like hawks. We do intend on getting a gate ASAP though...it's hard to find one that works right with the banister/drywall combo...that are secure enough.

 

QUOTE(idril @ Jul 17 2008, 07:58 PM) [snapback]882611[/snapback]
How old were your kids when they started crawling up stairs? How about crawling backwards down them?
up ~10m
down ~12/13m (I can't remember exactly when)

When did they start actually walking up the stairs? Walking down?
up ~14m
down they have been walking down while holding a hand or railing since about 18 months, but Nick often still opts for a backward belly slide.
My boys have only recently (~26m) started walking up/down stairs without holding on to a railing/wall for balance.

Also... do you have gates at the top/bottom of all of your staircases? Has anyone not put gates? How did your kids handle the open stairs?

We have a split-level home and have one gate at the top of the upper (main) level of the home, preventing them from getting down without 'permission'. At this point it is only a mental reminder for them as it is in no way a physical barrier if they wanted over. Anytime two adults are home it is open, but when mommy is alone and needs to get stuff around the house done upstairs (cooking, cleaning, etc.) it is closed. We are just this week getting some new furniture to better child proof the audio equipment we have down stairs in order to give them free reign all the time.

 

crawling upstairs 11 months, downstairs 13 months. They start walking them holding a hand or rail around 18 months and since about 22 months dd has had it pretty much mastered (no rail or hand needed), ds still holds onto a railing most times.
We have a gate at the bottom of the stairs, not at the top. We are always litterally right behind them when upstairs.

I would be okay with no gate stair wise, just not containment wise!!!!

 

Thanks ladies! My girls started crawling up stairs at about 10 months and crawling backwards down them around 11.5 months and everyone here told me they were freaks for doing it so early. I'm glad to hear we're not the only ones doing stairs at an early age.

One of my daugters is starting to try to walk up the stairs rather than crawling, but we don't have a bannister low enough for her to reach so she pushes off the wall or uses a hand as a support. We have several mini-flights of stairs (two or three steps) and she uses the half wall on the side of the stairs as support and walks up the stairs but hasn't attempted walking down. They're both trying to bump down the stairs on their rear ends rather than crawl backwards now.

As for gates, we have a gate that blocks off the family room and kitchen from the rest of the house, but once we open that gate, they have access to a flight of stairs going down to the garage and a flight of stairs going up to our bedrooms. I don't wan to gate everything off (we have two full flights and three mini-flights) so for now we just watch them if they're near the stairs. I think in the next month or so we'll need to put a gate -- at least the mental barrier kind -- at the top of our flight leading down so that neither of them inadvertantly trips and falls down the stairs.

 

Elizabeth is 15 months and is JUST starting to learn to go backwards down the steps. She has been going up the steps for a while now. Since early May - so around her 1st bday. I do keep the gate closed on the steps whenever we are up or downstairs b/c they are too tempting for her! She LOVES to climb them. I can't remember when mine started walking down the steps. We went from the backwards crawl to the bottom bopping and then to walking - LOL!

 

My boys were crawling up and down at about 10 months. They didn't even try to walk up or down until they were closer to 2. We have never had a gate in our house--we actually bought one when they were 6 months, but never installed it, and returned it still in the box 1 1/2 years later. My boys learned by climbing up and down on 2 step stepstools pushed together. At first they would never climb more than 3-4 steps, as they got more confident, they gradually worked until they made it all the way up.

 

My guys climbed at 11 months, down probably 12 months. They walk down using the banister now. We have a gate at the top of our stairs since they can get out of their cribs. We shut it at night. We also have one at the bottom that retracts so sometimes I shut it now when I am in the kitchen because I can't see the front hall or them IN the front hall for that matter.

 

We're in a 3 level townhome so we're dealing with the gate issue as well. One of my boys just started crawling up the stairs but we just carry him back down. The other thinks that the stairs lead to the gates of hell or something so he stears clear of them. We have a gigantic metal gate nailed into the wall that blocks off our living area from the two flights of stairs that lead down to the garage. It's a pain, but I'm not taking any chaces. Then we have one at the bottom of the staircase that leads from the living area up to the bedrooms. We are going to aslo put one at the top of those stairs as well. I just want to add that we felt the same way about not having one up there because I am literally ON TOP of them when we are upstairs in the bedrooms. However, (and I know this is a stretch) I was thinking about what would happen if one of us fell asleep (I've seen DH do it while "watching" them) or bumped our heads and passed out and the boys were left unattended. It just made me think that it may be a good idea to be extra cautious and put one up. Sorry to be a Debbie Downer :blush: . Just something to consider.