Hi! I am looking to transition to somewhat of a preschool setting and need advice on the best way to go about it.
A little background: I have been in business for roughly a year and a half. I currently have 5-6 children on any given day (licensed for small daycare). I recently took on twin 4 1/2 month olds whose 3 yo sibling has been with me for 6 months prior to the start of their care. One infant is very laid back the other is extremely demanding. Mom and dad rock both infants to sleep despite knowing I do not do that here and kids sleep fine. Parents have been paying extra since older sibling started to build a credit (which is decent size at this time). I am at my wits end with the demanding child. Almost 6 months and cannot be left alone to play in a safe area for more than a couple minutes which is extremely inhibiting my care of the other kids.
Bonus problem! I am currently 17 weeks pregnant and was initially planning on only taking a week. I am however rethinking that decision due to these two infants ( the relaxed child is slowly getting more and more demanding due to parents behavior).
I have found that I enjoy (and look forward to my days more) when it is just toddlers in care. We can work on projects and do more learning based activities. Since the infants have started I basically start every week over retraining them to sleep and get back and schedule). I would ideally like to transition to toddlers in the morning doing preschool activities (I live next to a large daycare so would put my infant in the daycare next door during morning hours) and transition to a simple daycare in the afternoon having only my infant in care and allowing primarily free play and going for walks after nap time (1-1 1/2 hours roughly).
My question is I need advice on how to go about this. I would love to pay the credit and term the infants now BUT mom and dad are friends as well as clients (not the best idea I know). Being pregnant is also taking its toll on my quality of care for them as it is physically hurting me to be bending and stooping and carrying to avoid kiddos screaming (demanding boy goes from 0-60 in seconds due to mom and dad immediately responding to every whimper). I am also feeling extremely guilty about the amount of time I am having to spend "ignoring" the toddlers in my care. I have looked into hiring a part time assistant but it isnt realistic nor cost effective and would essentially moot the point of having these kids here.

I apologize for the long post but would appreciate any and all advice. Thanks!

Steph

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