Daycare when #2 comes along
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Category: Have A Baby?
Forum Name: First baby? Second or more?
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URL: https://www.ohbaby.co.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=25927
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Topic: Daycare when #2 comes along
Posted By: sally belly
Subject: Daycare when #2 comes along
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 1:26pm
I wasn't quite sure what to call this 
For those with 2 or more kiddies – I’m just wondering if you kept the older child in daycare when #2 came along? Liam currently goes to DC 2 days a week when I’m at work. I have had people tell me (including the Plunket nurse) that we should try & keep Liam in there as I will need the break (this I am not arguing with!). However, we won’t be needing to hold his place there as I won’t be going back to work in the foreseeable future. For those that did keep #1 child in DC, did you feel guilty at all? Liam seems to be thriving at DC & we like the interaction he is getting with other kids (he has the tendency to be shy) & until he starts kindy there really isn’t any other option for care – is there? Our neighbour who is a trained early childhood teacher has offered to look after him at her home but we prefer the DC option simply because of him being able to interact with more children. Any thoughts/experiences would be welcome. -------------    
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Replies:
Posted By: bub
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 1:34pm
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Brianna is at kindy 5 days a week i kept her there the whole time i think the day i had Amelia DP picked her up early but thats it, it gave me time with Amelia and then i spent time With Brianna when she got home. ------------- mother to Brianna, Amelia & Mathew. http://lilypie.com">  
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Posted By: floss
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 2:12pm
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We put Sienna in daycare when Noah and Lola were 4mths old as it gave me some timeout with just the 2 kids and then it gave Sienna a chance to interact with kids her own age and she loves it, so I would say keep him there. ------------- My beautiful big girl Sienna 15.04.06 Double the trouble double the fun Noah & Lola 10/11/07 |
Posted By: katie1
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 2:18pm
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My eldest was two when Harry was born and lots of people told me I should put him into daycare for the break but to be honest I have loved having them both at home. I have just made sure I keep rotating toys and activities for him.
I think your situation is different though as he has already been in daycare and loves it. If he is settled and happy there I probably wouldn't disrupt his routine. He will have lots of changes anyway. |
Posted By: monikah
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 2:36pm
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if he is already in day care and doing well in there i would keep in there. the social interaction is obviously doing him well. it also keeps him in some kind of routine til he goes to kindy. im not a mum yet so this is just an opinion but ill be doing something similar as my 2 will hopefully close together and im all about routine and its a good way of getting kids together. as its only 2 days a week id say its a good break for you but he still has plenty of time at home :) ------------- 
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Posted By: emz
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 2:44pm
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Sally, we are in the same position as you (although hopefully I will still have my part time job, but with the recession I doubt it ). I think if Jack hadn't been in care already I wouldn't have put him in, but seeing as he is and he is really thriving (was very shy and withdrawn with other kids before starting there) we are keeping him there. Plus when I go full time the following year we get places for both the kids a lot easier than if we were just on the waiting list.
I'm looking forward to just having me and a newborn 2 days a week as Jack is quite a handful and very possessive. Shame it'll only be for 6 weeks though before I'm back at work... So anyway, I would keep him in if you can afford it. You should qualify for 9 hours subsidised anyway unless the navy pays heaps more than the army 
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Posted By: sally belly
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 3:05pm
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Thanks girls for all your opinions. I guess i need to discuss it with DH a bit more seriously at some stage.
emz, I really don't think we'd qualify for a subsidy but is there an easy way to find out? DH's pay will go up again soon when he goes back to sea & gets command pay & seagoing allowance. -------------
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Posted By: busyissy
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 6:27pm
| They say (those shadowy child experts), and I agree, that you shouldn't make any major changes in your child's life up to 3 months before and 3 months after the arrival of a new baby. It is a very disruptive and uncertain time for children their life changes very rapidly, suddenly mum is too busy to do all the things she used to do with them etc. This is a long winded way of saying that if it is part of his routine now and a part that he likes, then keep him in DC. It will also give you time to bond with your new baby. |
Posted By: busymum
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 7:05pm
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We are both home full time atm (SAHD plus PPL for me) and still have DD2 in kindy two mornings a week. She seems to enjoy the extra activities available and I think it gives her a chance to "grow up" (be independent) a bit too. If you want to keep him in DC then go for it - you can always pull him out if you need to later. While it can be a pain doing the pick-ups and drop-offs, you may well enjoy the break from toddler questions a couple of times each week. -------------  |
Posted By: MrsMojo
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 7:43pm
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Michaela's staying in kindy once this one comes. In fact being pregnant with this one was one of the reasons I wanted her to get into kindy so when a place came up at the start of the year we grabbed it even though the hours didn't really suit her routine at the time. When this baby is born Michaela will be doing 8.5 hours a week at kindy over two mornings. -------------  
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Posted By: yummymummy
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 8:56pm
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Gina was going to daycare 3 days a week when Emma was born and I was so grateful to have those 3 days! It gave me a chance to have some rest and focus on Emma while knowing Gina was taken care of. Gina really loves daycare too and we didn't want to introduce any more changes to her routine on top of the new baby. I did feel a little guilty about having Gina at daycare while I was at home but knew it was for the best.
Our situation was different however as I knew I was going back to work soon after and any break from daycare would have been a very temporary thing so didn't seem worth it. ------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: Peanut
Date Posted: 16 April 2009 at 9:08pm
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We have just been talking about the same thing!
Our plan is to keep DS in DC full time until the end of Nov when he is due to go up to the over 2's when that happens we will drop him to 1 or 2 days. I figure that way we have some flexibility when the new baby arrives and he will be changing to the next bit of DC at the same time as dropping to 2 days rather than dropping days, and then 6 or so weeks late changing to the over 2's. -------------  
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Posted By: Febgirl
Date Posted: 17 April 2009 at 10:13am
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DD who is 14 months currently goes to daycare 3 days a week when I'm at work. When bubba #2 comes along, DH is going to take a month off work so DD will stay at home for that month, then go back to daycare 3 days a week when DH returns to work. Only thing I'm not sure about is that she'll be turning 2 by the time she starts back so will be transitioning to the over 2 room - hopefully it won't all be too much of a change for her.
Financially it will be challenging having DD in daycare 3 days a week while I'm not working, guess what my maternity pay will be going on! ------------- Two little girls under 2! 
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