Transitioning my 18 month old from one caregiver to another

[Nightswimming]

Hi,

My 18 month old has been with his current babysitter (a SAHM with a child around his age) for 10 months. They are moving and he will soon be starting with another babysitter (also a SAHM with a child around his age).

Does anyone have any tips on how to make the transition from one caregiver to another the easiest on my son? We have been having playdates at the new caregivers house one time a week (with me there) for the past few weeks (I just found her a few weeks ago) and I think on day #1 I will pick him up early. Is there anything else I should do?

Thanks! I am nervous about this transition as I really would have liked my son to be with his original caregiver for a longer time.

--Katie

[~pi]

We did this exact thing at the same age!

Having playdates is fantastic -- there were a few of those for us and I think it really helped DS get comfortable with the new person. We also talked about it a lot with him. He wasn't very verbal at that age, but he clearly understood us, and we explained that he would now be going to X's house to play rather than Y's, and they would play with toys and have snack, and nap in the room upstairs, etc. We had that conversation about once a day for a couple of weeks.

I was really nervous about the switch, but it actually went beautifully. There were a few tears the first week, but it was way, way easier than the transition into child care in the first place.

Good luck!

[mamabutterfly]

We just did the same thing at 19 mo. It has gone much better than I expected! We played with me there a few times, and overall my dd seems to have taken to the new sitter very quickly. I think they fact that this age is so much more playful than even just 6 months ago helps a lot.
I'm sure you can also give the new caregiver hints of a few routines your ds is used to around meals or napping or whatever, and all these 'familiar' cues should help.

Good luck!

[Allie2]

I am a SAHM that happens to work my buns off with a home daycare too. My best suggestions for transitioning at this age are to send famililar things like their blankets and fav toy from home, be really excited for them to get to go to a new place to play, don't sneak away but not be afraid to leave if there are a few tears and let the new caregiver know their "secrets" .

The blankets and fav things from home are wonderful because they smell like home. A familiar smell can make all the difference in the world to a confused child.

Being excited will eventually carry over to the child. If you think the caregiver is super cool with the best toys and friends ever then your child will too because they like what you like. Maybe not the first day but soon. I have one little guy that tells his dad every morning, "Sorry Daddy. You don't get to play with Allie's toys today." lol

I always ask parents not to sneak away. While it's easier for you it can scare and frighten a child. Even if they are upset seeing you leave, by telling them you will be right back after work and waving goodbye they will quickly adjust to the new routine that Mama or Daddy leaves to go to work but they always come back. The tears pass quickly especially at this age when they are easy to distract. Usually within 5 to 10 minutes they forget all about being sad.

Telling your caregiver your child's quirks will really help her, help them. For example I have one little girl that needs to hear twinkle twinkle before nap. I have another than gets very upset if his hands are dirty so I bring wipes to the sandbox now. He loves to play but gets hysterical when he's done and doesn't have clean hands. Even things like Tommy's favorite toys are trains or Suzy loves to color can be soo soo helpful to your caregiver those first few days since she then has some info to use to distract them.

Good luck! I hope I helped a little.

[Nightswimming]

Thank you for the responses. They are very helpful and I will be using them. Knowing that others have successfully done this with kids of similar ages is helpful as well. I am trying to stay as positive as possible about the change!