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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>Breastfeeding (my baby) + daycare....help
momneedscoffee 08:13 AM 08-24-2015
Any mom's out there breastfeeding while doing daycare? I am, my daughter is 6 mo. Refuses a bottle too. It seems like whenever I sit down to feed her, someone needs me, is fighting, sneezes snot all over their face, etc. No matter what I do to prepare the kids to deal with themselves for 20 minutes. I am still near them, they just don't get that I can't stop to help them, unless it's an emergency obviously. My baby nurses herself to sleep so if she is interrupted, there goes her nap. I guess I'm just trying to see if there is anyone else dealing with this and how you handle it? Maybe there is something I can do different? I have an ergo and moby wrap, bit haven't been able to feed in them comfortably.
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mamamanda 08:37 AM 08-24-2015
Yes, I feel your pain. My Ds just turned a year & is still nursing. Typically I would just say carry her with you & nurse while tending to the kids, but my Ds was so easily distracted that never worked. My best strategy was to spread out a large blanket with a special activity that they don't have constant access to & remind them to stay on the blanket. Practice this when you can sit right with them until they learn the rules. A few activity suggestions are puzzles, Legos, magnetic dolls, small world play sets, etc.
Also, if you can teach your lo to go to sleep on her own it will save you so much stress. I've done child care while nursing both ways. My first Ds only nursed to sleep & never napped well. He still struggles with sleeping at night & I've had to work hard to teach him to go to sleep on his own. We are finally into a good rhythm at 4 years old. With this lo even when he fell asleep nursing I would jostle him a bit & lay him down drowsy but awake. He nurses until he's full & then lays in his own bed to go to sleep by himself. Its wonderful!Sometimes I nurse him to sleep if he wakes during the night, but he goes down on his own enough during the day it doesn't throw him off. It truly makes chip care a MUCH less stressful experience. And he sleeps so much better than my older son ever did.
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Baby Beluga 08:38 AM 08-24-2015
I have not nursed my child while doing DC. I do however remember someone suggesting a "nursing box" that had special toys/activities for the children to use only while you are nursing to help keep them occupied. Perhaps that is an option?
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Nisaryn 09:02 AM 08-24-2015
Yup! My baby is also 6 months old and I nurse him while caring for 3 other infants so this isn't as big an issue for me (the sneezing etc). However, sometimes they DO seem to get hungry all at the same time! I just try to prioritize since the others are on schedules, like who comes first. Sometimes my baby is first, sometimes he is last. Same goes with diaper changes...who stinks the most gets changed first! LOL.

I would just try to make sure the children are engaged in something they can work on by themselves, such as some coloring/drawing, puzzles, things like that.
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littletots 09:44 AM 08-24-2015
My dd was 4m when I started fcc. I took on 1 client 6m old. I only had the two until they were 1yr. I nursed my dd until 3y5m. I had 1:3 ratio. When I had my son similar 1:4 ratio. Nursed him 3 yrs. It becomes part of the routine. Kids don't notice, look or care. I tend to have long term nursing dck. Dcp appreciate I understand how to warm, feed bm & can give them tips for success
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Nisaryn 12:50 PM 08-24-2015
Originally Posted by littletots:
My dd was 4m when I started fcc. I took on 1 client 6m old. I only had the two until they were 1yr. I nursed my dd until 3y5m. I had 1:3 ratio. When I had my son similar 1:4 ratio. Nursed him 3 yrs. It becomes part of the routine. Kids don't notice, look or care. I tend to have long term nursing dck. Dcp appreciate I understand how to warm, feed bm & can give them tips for success


This is how it is at my place as well, I'm actually part of a BFing friendly providers network. I received training through WIC and the Breastfeeding coalition on keeping breastmilk, how to teach parents about storage, scalding for lipase and a variety of other things. All my parents breastfeed and came to me specifically b/c I advertised as BF friendly. I allow them to come in and BF their babies, open door.
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momneedscoffee 02:26 PM 08-24-2015
Thanks! I need to sleep train my little miss. I started out laying her down before she was totally asleep but soon got into the habit of laying down and nursing her to sleep. She sleeps great at night! She lets me move her to the crib and will sleep all thru the night. Any sleep training advice? Is it too late?
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momneedscoffee 02:28 PM 08-24-2015
Originally Posted by littletots:
My dd was 4m when I started fcc. I took on 1 client 6m old. I only had the two until they were 1yr. I nursed my dd until 3y5m. I had 1:3 ratio. When I had my son similar 1:4 ratio. Nursed him 3 yrs. It becomes part of the routine. Kids don't notice, look or care. I tend to have long term nursing dck. Dcp appreciate I understand how to warm, feed bm & can give them tips for success
I have no problems with breastfeeding nor do I care if the kids watch me. My problem is just that the other 3 kids alays seem to go nuts when I am trying to nurse a fussy babe!
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grateday 02:30 PM 08-24-2015
I am being honest. Children will always need you for something.

I would look at your environment
How much space are you giving them?
Are you far away or close to them?- Children do better with an adult in the same room, an adult who they can go to and trust for guidance.
What do the children need when you are doing this?
How many are present when you are doing this?
What are there temperments or personalities? Do some do better seperated for a short time because you need time to breast feed?
What do they usually need when you are doing this, so that you can plan ahead?
What can they be doing while you are doing this?
How long does it take to do this? (Children have short attention spans).
What are you giving them to do and is it age appropriate? Attention span appropriate?

Will pumping and putting into a bottle be helpful in your situation? Or not helpful? (Bottle might help with the latch re-latch issue for busy moments)

Can you plan a queiter moment during the day for the actual breastfeeding (less pick ups, less kids).

Do you have a daily routine schedule?

I always talked about privacy and covered up. I had girls that pretended that they were nursing there baby dolls, it was kind of funny. I even had to bottle feed a 9 month old and nurse my son at the same time, at times (quieter times during the day).

I did this up until my son was 3 years old (albeit approaching 3, those needs were less and less). I don't know how I did it. But those were all the questions that ran through my mind when I did it.
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Thriftylady 02:36 PM 08-24-2015
Since you asked for advice, I will give you mine! Quit nursing to sleep, put to bed awake always. It will be tough for a few days, but it won't last long, it will get better. You are not being a bad person if baby cries. I would also start working on the bottle. There will come a time when you want a few hours away and lil one has to be fed. I tell parents to let dad feed at least one bottle each day. It isn't to late, but it may be a little harder now.

As far as the kids needing things while you have to nurse, the suggestions above are great. But it is kind of a rule that when you are least available to help people, they will need it the most lol.
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spud912 02:49 PM 08-24-2015
Have you tried baby wearing while breastfeeding? I never had any success with it but have heard so many stories about how easy it is.

I breastfed two of my daughters while providing child care. My middle daughter was a big handful while nursing, but luckily I only had 2-3 kiddos in my care (one of which being my daughter) at the time. I frequently found games to do while I nursed, like I Spy or I had them find things for me (bring me something red). It usually entertained them long enough to finish nursing.

With my second, I adjusted her schedule so the nursing sessions were during down times (like during naps). During the other times, I would set them up with an activity that is contained and keeps them busy, like putting them at the lunch table with playdough/kinetic sand or a quick educational show.

I am a little less "crunchy" when it comes to sleep training. I just did what came natural for all 3 children, which is my own version of CIO . I started it fairly early out of necessity to get things done. The first 1-2 weeks are trial and error but with consistency, I have 3 excellent sleepers. They are all in bed by 8-8:30 pm and they all go to sleep in their own rooms and beds within 5-10 minutes, which is pretty good IMO (I have a 6 year old with a vivid imagination, a 4 year old and a 1 year old).

I hope this helps!
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spud912 02:52 PM 08-24-2015
Oh and wanted to add that my middle daughter NEVER would take a bottle, so I feel your pain in that respect. She completely self weaned 2 weeks shy of her 1st birthday and her doctor said it was close enough to 1 to start cows milk. I was sooo glad to be done breastfeeding her !
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melilley 12:34 PM 08-25-2015
I feel your pain! I'm breastfeeding my 5 week old and have 4-5 other kids to take care of (3-1 year olds and 2-3 year olds) and it does seem that as soon as you try to feed the baby, the other kids know it and act out. My baby will drink bottles so I pump when the kids are eating and try to nurse at nap time, but that doesn't always pan out and I have to nurse while everyone is playing. I've found that it's easier to do when we go outside. The kids can run around and I can peacefully sit and watch all the kids while I nurse. Other than that, I go in the playroom, which is gated off and if they start to argue or cry, I just do my best to diffuse the situation. I have a Boba wrap and have NO idea how people nurse while wearing one of those. I can barely get my baby into it...lol
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