Originally Posted by jen:
I agree with you...the older they get, the more they need you. But, it seems to me, that daycare makes it worse instead of better. How do you drive your kids to activities? Do you bring all the daycare kids along too?
I have three kids and we are BUSY and their schedules almost always conflict with daycare. How do you manage it?
Do you only have a couple of kids? Helping my middle schooler with homework after school is next to impossible. He gets home at 3:45, my daycare parents start arriving at 4pm. I'm lucky in that my hubby is home by 3:15 at the latest or I would have to quit today. There is no way I could get my dd to gymnastics, help my ds with homework, pick my son up from his after school tutoring sessions 2xweek, much less help with homework.
I've been at a loss as to how doing daycare helps when you have older kids. They do need so much more! I can't imagine what summer is going to look like when they are all stuck here until Dad gets home from work. Fortunately, he works at the golf course in the summer so he's home by noon or so. Seriously, how are taking them to dances, helping with homework, driving to activities, and all the rest with a house full of littles who also need your attention?
Here the schools plan for most parents working 9-5, so that makes it pretty simple for us. Rarely do they have anything we need to do during a school day and the times they did we had 6 -8 months notice. I know I am very fortunate to have that....
After School activities end at 6pm and I am able to pick up by 6:10 and still be pretty close to the front of the parent line. All plays, band, chorus etc. performances are scheduled at 7pm.
Karate ends at 7pm, they can ride the school bus there. I arranged that before I told my kids they could join, just in case...
DH is home 3-4 days per week (works a 24/72 hour schedule) for Doctors appointments, etc. It takes two alot of the time to keep up with all 3 kids.
The bus gets the kids home at 4pm, I have dinner ready before they get here, last DCK out the door by 6pm, homework is immediately after dinner IF they need help (rarely now that they are in Junior High). Ours has a homework period built in with help available, that accounts for the slightly longer school day.
Some nights we are in the dining room until 8pm doing homework, but typically that is due to procrastinating or a difficult topic that required more help from an after school tutor. (also available at school til 6pm for $5, so worth it!!)
School is often canceled/delayed/early release on a whim, here, we lost almost two whole weeks in January due to less than 6 inches of snow...there is no way an employer would have put up with that...
Because I am home, It did not effect us one bit...
Granted there are a few things I cannot do, but much, much less than most of the other parents around here who seem to work from dark to dark, year round.