My mum waited for me to ask for them. I was three, or maybe four, so she took me to get them done. She reckons I was fine getting them pierced but never let her touch them, she would clean them in my sleep. Anyway needless to say they got infected and had to come out.

I had them done again when I was 10 and I asked. Same thing. Was too much of a sook to let mum clean them cos they hurt, got infected, had to come out.

I then got them done again 12 months before we got married because I wanted to be able to wear some nice earrings and this time, being that I could look after them myself, they were fine. Thank god.

Point of the story, I wish mum hadn't been such a goody goody parent and got mine done while I was small enough to not remember how much they hurt. XD
And personally from having it done as an adult once they're done, and they're cleaned properly and not infected all the time they don't hurt at all. It's that initial shock that's the shock.

Personally at the age Ava is I would probably give it a miss now. She would be old enough to know they're there and might play with them, and when they're infected they hurt. Z might just scrape in, however, does she pull her ears when she's teething? Jacksons does and I think he'd rip ear rings out if he had any XD