Trampoline or No Trampoline?

my Kids have been on trampolines since they could crawl. tthey are the best for releasing e nergy and good exercise with mom. You couldd rrun 5 miles or jump on this for 30 minutes and guess which workout would wiln. TRAMPOLINE THe only precaution we do have is there is a safety net are around them. And a wonderful game fore them to play is put the in a circle and throw the ball to each other doesnt matter and whoever drops it is out. there are so man;y uses for trampolines.
Get them one;

We got one about two years ago for Christmas but before we could put the darn thing up one of my twins broke her arm!!! Therefore it was awhile before I would even agree to put the temptation up. Finally we did and my twins are now 7 but last year they would go outside to jump on it and 5 minutes later they were back in the house saying it was too hot. Maybe placing it in a more shaded area would make a difference but in my opinion it was a complete waste of money. I just don't think they are old enough yet to enjoy it and with you having such smaller kids I am not quite sure it would be such a good idea at the moment but its really your decision but I feel like our purchase was a waste of money. I know other parents though that have one and can't seem to keep their kids and everyone elses kids off of it. Also another thing to consider as well is if someone elses kid gets on there and gets hurt-you are held liable for that. Also you are supposed to report to your home owners insurance that you have one which might propose an increase in the amount you pay for home owners insurance. It's just like having a pool-its considered a "risk". If absolutely noone elses kids will be allowed on it then you should be alright even if you get the parents permission they can still sue after the fact and then wouldn't you be in bind? Your insurance would claim they weren't aware that you had one and they may refuse to cover it so guess where the money has to come from....thats right you. Unless you report it to them and have that covered but I don't know a whole bunch of people that do so and even though the rule in the house was no friends and such allowed -its gonna happen. Even friends and family can come back to sue "after the fact". Even though the parents gave permission call me cautious but you have to be this day and time and I'm not a lawyer by any means but this is some of the horror stories I have heard from my cousin that is a paralegal.

I got one when I was 10, but I was also involved in gymnastics. I did have a rectangle one, since they are easier for spotting and you can tell where you are a little better. I loved it and was on it all the time and it was always great fun to get my parents and grandparents up on it for a bounce or two. I could usually jump with one other person and we would try and double jump each other, but if they haven't been on one much make sure one person at a time. At the time my neighbors had a 2 year old and she came over and jumped a lot with me and we were just careful on the tramp and had a parent or two on the side spotting, or I would help spot and let her parents jump with her. If you think they would all enjoy I would say go for it, has the 9 year old at least done some kind of gymnastics class to be comfortable on one? I would have them all try one out if they haven't been on one before.

Also make sure you have ground rules- number of people at a time, if they are allowed out without parents, with friends, socks on or off? It is much safer and easier to jump barefoot if you have one of the black ones that are normal for backyard use. I don't know much about the nets that people now use and if they work or not, so that is something else to consider. I used mine for a long time, about 12 years and then since I was no longer at home or visiting regularly my parents took it down so they didn't have to keep moving it to mow.

Just going to ad with all the posts about injuries etc. We used to flip ours upside down when we were going to be out of town to make sure the neighborhood kids didn't come and use it, especially since only maybe one or two had every been on it before. Also of course they can get hurt, but you can get hurt doing a lot of things. I had a cousin who broke her hip when she was little swinging. So make sure they know how to jump and with the little ones you can jump with them holding their hands, so they can go far. And have the rules posted where you can go over them and then oldest can read them.

Trampolines can be dangerous but then again so can riding your bike. I can only tell you my experience. I have a 14, 9 & 7 and I am on my second trampoline and have had one for 9 years now. I have the net enclosure which I would not have one with out. I have not had one injury in 9 years. I had rules at first but now all three of my kids go on there and ruff house all the time. For me it has been a better investment than our swingset as the kids have used the trampoline more.
Hope this helps!

Trampolines are dangerous.
Look it up on line...
You definitely need to get the protective netting that goes all the way around. We don't have one but 2 of our neighbors do. They don't use them all that much, either... I'd rather invest in something else.
LBC

I know a lot of people who have them and have not had any injuries occur, but I do know that this can happen. My husband was adamant when the kids were younger that we not get one. A 3 and a 4 year old are extremely young. I wouldn't suggest it.

We've had one for a couple years now. Our kids are only 5 and almost 3. (We do NOT have a net as it was my trampoline when I grew up.....) We watch very closely. They know they have to jump in the middle. They are not allowed near the edge at all. Of course, I'd prefer a net but at this point, the kids follow the rules so well that it's not a big deal........

But both our kids absolutely LOVE the trampoline. It's good exercise too.

And yes, they can be dangerous but almost everything in life is. Getting into your car for a drive is dangerous...... You have to decide what is right for your family. Our insurance company didn't have a problem with the trampoline either..........

Make rules. Don't let kids with big age differences jump together. It's when big kids start jumping hard and are "stealing" each others' bounces and fooling around that injuries tend to happen.......

Having been a gymnast and having taught it for 4 years, there's no reason why your kids at that age can't have a trampoline.

But, if you're really serious about it, I'd sign them all up for gymnastics classes for a month or two so they learn from a professional how to jump on it correctly and how to fall on one without getting hurt seriously.

Circular ones are recommended for personal use because the centripetal force pushes them into the center of the trampoline.

You'll need to come-up with explicit rules about who can use it, how many kids at a time, etc. Personally, I would have one, but I've been extensively trained and would feel comfortable teaching my kids the proper techniques and safety.

Good luck with your decision.

What a coincidence -- you ask this question and I just visited my best friend's son in the hospital last night. He is 10 and he broke his femur on a friend's trampoline a few days ago. He had to have a steel rod attached to the bone. He and a friend were jumping and horsing around and they fell and the friend landed on him just right and broke the bone. A femur is pretty hard to break. My daughter's best friend growing up broke her wrist on hers, and the neighbor kid last year got a pretty bad concussion when he ran into his sister on one. If I were you, here's what I'd do: I'd ask my pediatrician what he thinks; I'd check with my insurance company to see what they think; and if you do get one I'd make sure it's one-kid-at-a-time on there with you closely monitoring it.
http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/ped...

I wouldn't get a big backyard trampoline because of the risk of injury and increase in homeowners insurance. But we do have one of those little trampolines that were an excercise fad about 10 years ago. I have two kids, 2.5 and 5, and they love it. They take turns jumping on it, and they can use it all year 'round. In fact, I just heard my husband yell "stop jumping on the bed - go jump on the trampoline if you want to!" : ) I got it used off of craigslist for $20 a year ago, and I have gotten way more than my money's worth. I don't know if the 9 year old will get a lot of use, but the little ones will.

We had one for several years. Our daughter loved it. When friends were over, i supervised it and if they didn't follow rules, they got off the trampoline. We did have the enclosure around it. It got a lot of good use before we sold it this Christmas.

We sold it because daughter is 15 now and no longer used it.

It is a personal choice. I lot of people have distinct opinions about trampolines. Like another poster mentioned, you can also get hurt riding your bike. Practice safety.

Most every home with children in our neighborhood has one and I have not yet heard of anyone injured. You might check with your HOA and I know some insurance companies will not cover you if there is an injury.

I grew up with one with no net and we never got hurt. Our experience with the trampoline was positive.

My kids ar 3, 5 and 7. We got them a trampoline for christmas and they are still on it every day (weather willing). It has the enclosure netting so they cannot fly off. We used to make them use it one at a time, but now they jump together as long as they follow the rules and only jump up and down (no fancy tricks). I even get in it sometimes. It is great exercise! It is really huge, so make sure you have enough room. The ground has to be really flat and no trees above. We are all very happy with it. It is a little bit of an eye sore, but I can live with that. They are only little for such a short time. Hope this is helpful.

.

Yes, they are great fun for the entire family and good exercise! Have rules and since your kids are still pretty young, get a safety net/enclosure that you put around it. Happy jumping!

My children are now adults but we had a trampoline the entire time they were growing up. There is a 12 year age difference between the three of them so we had it with little kids and teenagers and no one got seriously hurt. With all the stuff about childhood obesity now it's no wonder when people won't let their kids go outside and play. We made rules about how many people could be on it at a time, etc. The rest is just common sense. You don't let a teenager jump with a two year old, etc. I now have two grandchildren ages 2 and 3 and if we were willing to still move it around the yard to mow, etc we would get one for them. I remember looking out the window and seeing 13 and 14 year olds playing "all star wrestling" on it and thinking what worse things they could have been doing. Go for it, your kids will love it.

We had one at our last house, but couldn't take it with us when we moved, and my boys (7&5 at the time) really miss it. Our new back yard doens't have room for one, or we'd get them a new one.
Yes, people hurt themselves on trampolines. I had a cousin break his arm on theirs when we were kids. Kids can break stuff falling out of bed, tho. Just get one with a good safety net, and keep the occupancy to a minimum.

My 3 year old just hurt her knee BAD on a trampoline. Could not walk the next morning.

Not good for little ones and here is why:

Small children do not know to BEND THEIR KNEES upon impact. They lock their knees and injure them.

My advice is to wait until they are older. LOTS of injuries on trampolines.

Better check with your homeowner's insurance first! That was one of the first questions I got asked. Lots of times they will flat drop you or hike your rates like crazy. Know why? Because it's too great of a risk for them because odds are they are going to pay out. I wouldn't have one.

My mother-in-law almost lost her leg-yes, almost lost her leg-because of a trampoline injury. She was playing with one of the grandkids just jumping along and came down on her leg the wrong way and crushed the artery that runs behind the knee. She didn't even fall off the trampoline. She had to have multiple surgeries and she still wears a knee brace 2 years later because of the other injuries she sustained at the same time!