I just started a new DCK for 11-9 mon-fri, two times a month it would be tue-sat 11-9. Yesterday was his first day and I'm really not sure. He's a nice little boy but my evenings will be very limited now. I really didn't think it would be a big deal. However, his mom came in last night and said her schedule just changed to 6 days a week!! Monday-Saturday........

UGH...

The money is great but idk......

I told her at the interview I would be laying him down to sleep between 6 and 7. I got him up right before she picked him up. This morning she complained saying he wouldn't go to bed last night like he usually does......

What would you do?

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Hmmmm that wouldn't work for me. Or if it did it would cost an arm & a leg and possibly not be worth it for them! Bedtime for my kids is 9pm so I probably wouldn't put child to bed unless they were tired. A 6-7pm bedtime just doesn't work for my kids. They'd be up at midnight ready to party! I guess it depends on your family and how that works. I wouldn't personally want to work 14hrs a day, and not 6 days a week either. If it was my only income maybe? I don't know.

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I wouldn't be able to do that!

The money wouldn't be worth it to me.

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My kids are school agers and they are in bed by 7 pm. Otherwise, they wouldn't be able to get up in the morning.


This little boy is only 15 months. He needs his sleep.

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I would never do those hours! My time in the evenings with my family is too sacred to me. That being said, I think laying him down around 6-7 is going to backfire and he won't sleep for mom at night. If you decide to keep him, I would suggest eliminating that part of your schedule. You could still have him do quiet activities then, but I know if my own kids slept for 2 hours right before I wanted them to go to bed they would never go to sleep at bedtime! Just my thoughts. Good luck if you decide to keep him!

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I think given the fact that your own kids are in bed by 7 and mom already complained about him not going down well last night, you are probably going to be frustrated with the situation quickly. I imagine if he continues to not go to sleep for mom, she is going to request you not put him down at 7. Are you willing to do that? Something to consider.

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He laid down on the floor because he was so tired. So I laid him in the pack and play....

My kids go to bed at 7pm, I will not have another child up when they are sleeping.

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I have to weigh in and say that my 15 month old son goes to bed at 7 PM and would totally fall back asleep if I picked him up at 9, brought him home, and tried to put him down again. My little sleepyhead would have no issues with this!

If your kids are going to bed at 7 PM, I'd put him to bed at 7 PM and no later. If he's not going to bed for mom at home, then that is the proof that the situation probably won't work. I wouldn't want to have such a long day, then get my own kids to bed, and when it's finally time for a break, have a DCB who is still awake. If he won't sleep when your kids sleep, it would not be worth it for me.

Good luck!

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I would say in this case you may want to not keep him. It isn't so much that he can't sleep that much, but I have very often found that if you give a child a couple of hours "catnap" like that, it will be midnight or later before they will lay back down again. Some kids may be ok with being awakened after a couple hours and then go back down, but mine have never been.

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I do evening shift daycare and I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. They get here typically around 3:30 and leave anywhere between 10:30 and midnight.

I put them to bed at 8:30pm with my kids, same bedtime routine and their mom takes them home and outs them straight back to bed.

It may take the child a week or two to settle into a routine but I've never had a problem with any of my afternoon kids.

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Wait wait wait wait.... You're open 6-6... Now you're open 6-9?! You're crazy girl. lol I'm sure it will be an adjustment, but if you hate it already I would really weigh the facts. Is that money worth it? I know in some financial situations it would be. But that's a long lllloooooonnnnnngggg day. I couldn't do it. Heck, I'm generally ready for bed by 9 myself, the idea of still being at work at that time is exhausting just thinking about it. And at that time of night, if a parent came to me complaining their kid wasn't sleeping, I would probably say "Tough S***!" And close the door

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Mom is stimulating him too much on pick up. Have him in his jammies and encourage her to be as quiet and careful as possible getting him settled.

I have a mom that picks up at midnight and wonders why they stay up til 3am. She comes in and I carry them out to her and she gets all kissy and "mommy missed you sooo much", puts their shoes on, and wakes them up, climbs into he car with the rap base going.

Dumb! but not my problem, I have a schedule here and it is followed.

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totally agree. I tell new moms to my afternoon program to carry them to the car asleep, buckle them in and put them straight to bed if they are picking up after bedtime. Don't wake them up and give them Mountain Dew and snacks. I do bedtime story, bedtime snacks, teeth brushing, and night time potting. They don't need anything when they get home.

I've had a few moms who started here and didn't follow my advice and suffered for it until they started doing what I recommended and then it's always peachy.

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Did you tell her that when she interviewed?

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I do evening shift too & prefer those over the day shift kids.

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honestly I think you are going to hate it and your kids are going to REALLY hate it when this toddler is around every Saturday. it's only been one day and there are already issues coming up? i dont think its going to work. and I would imagine that this mom is sleeping and barely see her child sounds awful for everyone. what kind of job requires these hours??

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yes. I mentioned that at the interview. see my first post.

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Oops, I read it wrong. I thought you meant you were going to lay him down from 6-7, like for a nap LOL!

You have to do what works for your family. He may settle into the routine nicely after a few weeks but if it causes you too much stress you should term. Bedtime is sacred for me and my little ones at our place because it is the only time that I get to settle down with just them and snuggle. I wouldn't want to share that moment with someone else's child.

I have done the same thing as you in the past though...taken on kids I really probably should have passed on because the money was so tempting. It is hard to term afterwards because you feel bad.

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Just depends on if the money is worth it to you. I did a late nights for a child at one point and it was very hard on my family and my personal life. Money was good but in the end it wasn't worth it to me. So ya...I work 6-6 and that's it. I need to have dinner with my family and spend time with my own kids. Sometimes my kids want to watch things on tv that's not appropriate for young children. Not fair to them to have to adjust their evenings all the time for my job. I can pay the bills working 6-6 so for me that is what we do. You have to determine what's best for you and your family.

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I do 24 hour care and previously watched a 14 month old from 5-10pm while his mother was in school. I only take 1 child for that type of shift and we took him with us wherever we went like he was one of our own so it didn't limit us much. 6pm may be a little early but ours would fall asleep around 8pm and we left him sleeping. He would wake up for a minute when his mom picked him up but he was a passed out in the car before he got home. If you really dislike doing it though I would say don't do it because it will definitely make you miserable.

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