Originally Posted by laundrymom:
I have the perfect solution for you! You could keep him in a family childcare and take advantage of the family vibe, smaller numbers, and general things you loved, and keep his 8/9ish bedtime!!! Just wake him 3 hours before you do now, plus that would give you even MORE quality time with him each day.
I know I know great idea isn't it?? Win win. More time for mom and son, bedtimes stay the same and you get the environment you wanted for him to begin with 
Really?? When I pay someone for a service I don't expect to have to edit my families daily life for this service. I do not feel that waking up at 4am is a good solution. But good try.
That would STILL be disrupting my son's sleeping schedule. The big problem is that I want an in-home daycare that will allow my four year old to stay awake during your break time. When I was searching for an in-home daycare that would allow this, I did find providers that were willing to let my son go without the unnecessary nap. But there were other things I did not like. (Food provided, dirty home, too many kids, etc). I could never find one that I liked that didn't have the nap policy for older kids. I've settled on a center due to this, I'm happy with it. I would've been happier with a great in-home provider that met all of my/my child's needs, but was unable to find one. I came to this forum because I wanted to really question the nap thing. I really wanted to know why providers take these long breaks. I really wanted to know why I had to resort to putting my son in a center.