Running an in-home daycare is HARD. Depending on the area you live in and the licensing standards, a home may have to be kept IMPOSSIBLY clean and open to inspection at ANY time. Having been a stay at home mom with two babies in diapers, I know how hard it was to maintain a routine and a clean home and I can't imagine what it would have been like to add more children to the scenario. When my kids were infants and in an in-home daycare, it was a very personal experience and the provider and I worked together a lot... yes, I was very lucky to have found such a great provider at the time.

Every child is different, so the mere addition of a child to a daycare is going to disrupt the routine a little each time. Infants' schedules change daily, as was stated before, and this is something that has to be dealt with. I think the issue has more to do with differing opinions on the parent/provider's part. The parent here was right in seeking other care. As to the money lost, well, I've lost hundreds (literally) of dollars for similar circumstances, having to pull my kids from one daycare or another for various reasons. It happens, unfortunately, and I'm not one to sue. That's personal choice.

As far as breastfeeding, I applaud the mother in trying to maintain this with her child even though she has to return to work. I nursed my youngest for 18 months (yes, in front of my older child) and did everything from going to daycare on my lunches/breaks to pumping all day and providing milk (along with a haberman feeder, as opposed to a bottle because she wouldn't take a bottle). As with any issue involving leaving an infant in daycare, this requires work and communication on the part of both parent and provider. It sounds like this particular parent was willing to do anything she could to accomodate the provider's wishes while doing what she believed was best for her baby. Hopefully she will find the right situation for her baby so that she can continue to be the stellar parent that she is (working full time and still maintaining as much contact as she can with her child).

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