i did the home alone thing too...
i don't remember how old i was, but i know i was younger than 6. basically, i took a laundry basket thing (one of the rectangular ones, not one you have standing in the corner of your bedroom/bathroom), sat down in it, and pushed off from the top of a luckily small set of stairs. i think i wound up bouncing down and was fine after, but my parent's still try to make fun of me sometimes...
