Originally Posted by Unregistered:
As a parent and (not as a provider whose job is made easier by long, extended naps), I totally agree with you- especially for a 6 year old! I only have my kids in daycare two days a week (ages 9 months and 2). They go to bed any day I have them easily and on schedule. On days they go to daycare, they are not even tired and I can not get them to sleep until at least 2 hours after their scheduled bedtime. I will be asking the daycare to log their naps for the next month so I can troubleshoot this issue. I hope the daycare will honestly log the naps, as my suspicion is that they are sleeping way over their usual 2 hours.
Your nine month old only sleeps two hours when with you? I could see that for a 2 year old, although most of my twos take a solid three he nap, but an infant needs sleep, just as much as they need food. I imagine they go to bed easily bc they got to spend the day with mom with very little naps and are exhausted. The days they are at daycare, they miss you and come home well rested and ready to spend time with you, so instead of putting them to bed at 7 on those nights, go for a long walk, play at the park, cuddle and read books and lay them down later, like 9, after a warm bath. If your daycare is anything like most, your infant prob still gets a morning and afternoon nap and your toddler prob has rest time from 12-3 or similar hrs. I can totally understand not having a 6 year old nap, unless they are tired, but 9 mos and 2 yrs would be required to nap as they need it for healthy growth and development and are usually VERY tired after playing all morning. Maybe speak with your provider and see what their schedule is during the day so you can adjust your routine at home to accommodate it. If your kids are not used to napping and are only two days a week, I imagine your provider is in a tough spot trying to maintain consistency, so I would be delicate about how you approach it or you may end up finding a new daycare, and like I said, napping is pretty much non negotiable for those young ages in most daycares, so you may be searching for something that is hard to find. Good luck to you!
