Questions for in-home childcare providers

[mama*pisces]

I'm heavily leaning towards starting an in-home daycare and am looking into how go about getting licensed through the state. So, I am hoping to connect with some mamas who are doing it or have done it, and can give me some good pointers?

I'm a little wary about how my 2 year old would adjust to having a bunch of kids here 5 days a week, ALL day....and then there's the fact that I NEED another baby very soon(that's what my hormones are telling me anyway), so we are TTC. Which brings me to my second concern: are there any mamas that have done the childcare thing while pregnant/with their own newborn? In a way I feel like it would take away from my bonding experience with the new baby...but of course I'm going to have *her*(fine, maybe him) in a sling most of the time, so maybe not?

Other questions:
~How did you get clients(I have one possible client so far, with two kids)?
~How much do you charge? (hope that's not too personal)
~What were the age groups like? I'm guessing something like newborn-2, and 2-4? I have a very good friend that says she is totally on board to help me and be my "employee" if I do this, so she would be with one age group and I would be with the other.
~What do/don't you like about it?
~How do you handle naptime.....where does everyone sleep and how do you get them all to go to sleep at the same time?

I'm sure I have other questions, but it's late and my brain is foggy. Please feel free to share your experiences! I have always loved kids and I would really love to try to make a difference in some kids' lives, and I would love to hopefully open up some parents' eyes towards a more GD approach to parenting....plus I need money!

TIA!

[Aubergine68]

I'm in Canada so can't help you with the `licensing/what do you charge' questions, but here's my take on the others:

-- I think having the other children around has been great for my children. Started when dd was 3, and have had 2 little boys born into my home childcare business. They've always loved the others around and have asked for their friends on weekends. I feel I'm a better parent during the child-centred daycare days than I am on weekends, when I'm distracted by my own priorities.

--I ran the daycare while pg twice and took a week off each time baby was born. It was much like having a baby while having a large number of older children around, I imagine. My dh covered the daycare for doctor appointments and was able to take some leave to help out when babies were born. We decided it would be better for our older child(ren) to keep the routine and the daycare friends around as much as possible. That said, I get sick and tired during pregnancy, but not supersick, and I have a history of uncomplicated pregnancies and relatively easy deliveries. Anything can happen at any time during a pg, of course, but I had confidence that I could handle the children and the pg. That confidence helped.

-- I can have no more than 2 under age 2, no more than 3 under age 3 and no more than six total, including my own children under 11. I like caring for sibling groups or having children that pair off close in age to each other -- ie. two 1 yr olds and the rest 4 yr olds, for example. But it always works out. I like to have no more than 5 children and keep the 6th space for my 10 yr old dd if she is home from school.


-- Having a 2 yr old will take away from your bonding experience with your new baby somewhat in itself. Having other children around may distract him from being a total cling-on to mommy while mommy is caring for the baby, though much depends on his personality. Some little ones are less into sharing mommy than others. ANd your own children are always the hardest to care for.

-- I've experimented with many different sleeping arrangments. Right now, dsage2 and dcg age 1 nap in my room and I have to sit in there with them while they fall asleep. Dcbage4 and dcbage1 nap in the other bedrooms. My older son plays on his own while the others fall asleep and then I spend time with him. I know providers who have all the children nap in the same room, as they do in daycares. If they are all on the same routine, and you keep them busy all morning so they are really ready to sleep, that can work well. I think you'd have to stay in the room until they fall asleep. Having a laptop helps with that . Whatever you choose, it takes a couple of weeks to establish the routine, ime, and then it gets pretty easy.


-- I'm a homebody, so I like being home with my children, not having to leave the house on cold mornings. I love being able to cook for a group of children and experiment with preparing healthy food in different ways for them. I love that my own children understand that there is no tv or computer time during the day when daycare children are here and that they have a good stretch of quality learning and social time every day, free of screens. I love having parents trust me with their children and truly valuing and appreciating me for the difference I make in their family's lives. I take courses in Early Childhood Education at night, and I love setting up centres and educational activities and doing reports on how the children like them, and giving copies to the parents. I love collecting quality toys and having children around who appreciate them. I love reading with children and introducing them to wonderful children's books -- so many don't have books at home, to speak of. I love having a business that my children can be involved in - my 10 yr old dd is interested in everything I do and helps out when she gets home from school. I love bonding with a new daycare baby and winning him/her over so that s/he loves and trusts me, and I love the relief I see in parents' faces when they drop their child off in the morning and know that the child is safe and happy to be in my care.

-- I get tired of the mess, the food splatters on the walls, and the second shift after all the children leave but my own, and dh is away for work, and I need to put another meal on the table, get everyone to sleep yet again. I get tired of the rare parent who disrespects what I put into caring for their children -- thankfully, this is VERY rare, ime.

-- I learn so much from the children, and that benefits my own children. For example, I looked after little boys before I had my own and learned a lot about parenting the opposite gender. I learned in great depth from daycare children about what 4 and 5 yr olds need before my own were that age, so that helped me to be a more effective parent.

[mama*pisces]

Originally Posted by Aubergine68

I'm in Canada so can't help you with the `licensing/what do you charge' questions, but here's my take on the others:

-- I think having the other children around has been great for my children. Started when dd was 3, and have had 2 little boys born into my home childcare business. They've always loved the others around and have asked for their friends on weekends. I feel I'm a better parent during the child-centred daycare days than I am on weekends, when I'm distracted by my own priorities.

--I ran the daycare while pg twice and took a week off each time baby was born. It was much like having a baby while having a large number of older children around, I imagine. My dh covered the daycare for doctor appointments and was able to take some leave to help out when babies were born. We decided it would be better for our older child(ren) to keep the routine and the daycare friends around as much as possible. That said, I get sick and tired during pregnancy, but not supersick, and I have a history of uncomplicated pregnancies and relatively easy deliveries. Anything can happen at any time during a pg, of course, but I had confidence that I could handle the children and the pg. That confidence helped.

-- I can have no more than 2 under age 2, no more than 3 under age 3 and no more than six total, including my own children under 11. I like caring for sibling groups or having children that pair off close in age to each other -- ie. two 1 yr olds and the rest 4 yr olds, for example. But it always works out. I like to have no more than 5 children and keep the 6th space for my 10 yr old dd if she is home from school.


-- Having a 2 yr old will take away from your bonding experience with your new baby somewhat in itself. Having other children around may distract him from being a total cling-on to mommy while mommy is caring for the baby, though much depends on his personality. Some little ones are less into sharing mommy than others. ANd your own children are always the hardest to care for.

-- I've experimented with many different sleeping arrangments. Right now, dsage2 and dcg age 1 nap in my room and I have to sit in there with them while they fall asleep. Dcbage4 and dcbage1 nap in the other bedrooms. My older son plays on his own while the others fall asleep and then I spend time with him. I know providers who have all the children nap in the same room, as they do in daycares. If they are all on the same routine, and you keep them busy all morning so they are really ready to sleep, that can work well. I think you'd have to stay in the room until they fall asleep. Having a laptop helps with that . Whatever you choose, it takes a couple of weeks to establish the routine, ime, and then it gets pretty easy.


-- I'm a homebody, so I like being home with my children, not having to leave the house on cold mornings. I love being able to cook for a group of children and experiment with preparing healthy food in different ways for them. I love that my own children understand that there is no tv or computer time during the day when daycare children are here and that they have a good stretch of quality learning and social time every day, free of screens. I love having parents trust me with their children and truly valuing and appreciating me for the difference I make in their family's lives. I take courses in Early Childhood Education at night, and I love setting up centres and educational activities and doing reports on how the children like them, and giving copies to the parents. I love collecting quality toys and having children around who appreciate them. I love reading with children and introducing them to wonderful children's books -- so many don't have books at home, to speak of. I love having a business that my children can be involved in - my 10 yr old dd is interested in everything I do and helps out when she gets home from school. I love bonding with a new daycare baby and winning him/her over so that s/he loves and trusts me, and I love the relief I see in parents' faces when they drop their child off in the morning and know that the child is safe and happy to be in my care.

-- I get tired of the mess, the food splatters on the walls, and the second shift after all the children leave but my own, and dh is away for work, and I need to put another meal on the table, get everyone to sleep yet again. I get tired of the rare parent who disrespects what I put into caring for their children -- thankfully, this is VERY rare, ime.

-- I learn so much from the children, and that benefits my own children. For example, I looked after little boys before I had my own and learned a lot about parenting the opposite gender. I learned in great depth from daycare children about what 4 and 5 yr olds need before my own were that age, so that helped me to be a more effective parent.

Thank you, that was really insightful!

The first part I bolded because it really resonated with me. That thought actually ran through my head a couple of times in debating whether I should do this or not. I think it would indeed make a better mother, because it will require me to draw on patience that I probably don't even know I have at the moment. I tend to get rather impatient with my ds and have yelled at him much more than I care to admit.... - so I think having other kids around will help me to work on my patience and in a way treat him as if he wasn't my own, which to an extent is a good thing!

And the second part I bolded....you make it sound like such a wonderful experience that I would totally fall in love with! Food splattered on the walls is no biggie...I'm going to be living in a rented house though, so I can only let it go so far , but you definitely make it sound worth it. Thanks for taking the time to share your experience!

[Aubergine68]

Originally Posted by mama*pisces

I think it would indeed make a better mother, because it will require me to draw on patience that I probably don't even know I have at the moment. I tend to get rather impatient with my ds and have yelled at him much more than I care to admit.... - so I think having other kids around will help me to work on my patience and in a way treat him as if he wasn't my own, which to an extent is a good thing!

I get together regularly with a group of friends who do home childcare in my area (met most of them online). At our last gathering we were talking about the fact that our own children often get our impatience and frustration where we'd never use that voice or those words to someone else's child.

After nearly 7 years of providing home child care, I have to say that as much as I have come to love the children I care for, being a parent is so different and so much harder than being a caregiver! My children do sometimes get the worst of me, I'm ashamed to say -- and they show the worst of themselves to me, too. Mommy gets the tantrums and attitude that little ones don't show to anyone else, because little ones trust mommy to love them no matter what, I think!

But I think it is very true that caring for other children helps me to maintain a higher standard of patience and respect for my own children as well. I think I am a far better parent in general because I challenge myself in this way every day.

My own goal is to treat my own children 24-7 with that level of respect and gentleness that I show to the daycare children. It is an ongoing project