Anyone start their child in daycare at 2 years old?

[connorlevismom]

We have a 7 week old baby and until she was born, the plan was to send her to full-time daycare when she was 12 weeks old. Well, that has all changed. At this point, I cannot see sending her to daycare with all the illness and stuff going around and to be honest, I just am not ready to send her yet. So DH have worked it out with our companies that he will work from home 2 days a week and go in 3 days a week and I will go in 2 days a week and stay home 3 days a week. It is the perfect solution for the time being.

So the plan now is to do this until she is 2 and then send her to daycare 3 days a week to start getting socialization and learning. She will do this until Kindergarten.

So my question is, has anyone started their child in daycare at 2 instead of when they were babies? How did it go? Was it hard on you and your child? Any advice?

I have a 5 year old son who is now in Kindergarten who had been in daycare since he was 3 months old. But the swine flu and all that stuff was not going around at the time and we did not have this opportunity to stay home like we do now.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Kristine

 

[CdnCarrie]

My kids both started at age one. We have one year mat leave here in Canada so most kids don't start daycare until age one if they are going.

 

[RMulieri]

My daughter started at 18months. It was harder for me then her, and knock on wood..We have never gotten anything other than a cold from daycare.She is now 5 and in pm kindergarten and before care daycare...

 

[Disneychix]

My 2yr old didn't start daycare but he did start Nursery School for 2 hours, 2 days a week. I'm not going to lie, it still is tough even after 2+ months. He is a very very shy kid though and other than the drop off he does well.
I wouldn't say we've been hit hard with any sicknesses. He was in a class at the YMCA and went to Rollie Pollies so he has been around other kids and their sicknesses already.

I wanted to add that it is so great you were able to work out such a great schedule. I too changed my hours after DS was born and it's been almost 3 yrs and I haven't gone back! Shh-don't tell my boss!

 

[Heidijs]

My DD started at 3 months old. She never got sick when I was nursing. When she turned one and stopped nursing, she got a few good colds and a stomach bug that season. After she turned 2, she never got sick. I figured she built up a strong immunity being exposed so early on. She did get H1N1 this October but it wasn't THAT bad, high fever and aches but nothing a little tylenol and motrin and PBS couldn't fix! Otherwise she's healthy as a horse.

I have many friends who didn't do daycare and when their kids started pre-school, they were always getting so sick...I suppose they weren't exposed to all the stuff out there and it just bombards their system vs someone who was exposed early on.

Socially, my daughter never had issues going to daycare. I've seen some kids who started at age 1 or 2 and they have a hard time with the separation issue. Every kid is different though. I'd of loved to have stayed home till she was 2 years old and I would have done it in a heartbeat if my job was that flexible!!! I'd consider starting him/her off part time here and there though to get them used to it and help with the separation issue when they start full time etc..

My DD is 4 now and in am pre-school and is a social butterfly...I think being in daycare early on really helped but I know kids who have been in daycare just as long who are very shy.

 

[leslie826]

My DD2 started when she was 20 months. We did it for a year and now I stay home again with my kids. DD2 never got sick while she was there, but she never adjusted well either. After giving it a good try I couldn't do the crying drop off anymore. Of course each child is different. Hope it is easier for you!

 

[RMulieri]

My DD started at 3 months old. She never got sick when I was nursing. When she turned one and stopped nursing, she got a few good colds and a stomach bug that season. After she turned 2, she never got sick. I figured she built up a strong immunity being exposed so early on. She did get H1N1 this October but it wasn't THAT bad, high fever and aches but nothing a little tylenol and motrin and PBS couldn't fix! Otherwise she's healthy as a horse.

I have many friends who didn't do daycare and when their kids started pre-school, they were always getting so sick...I suppose they weren't exposed to all the stuff out there and it just bombards their system vs someone who was exposed early on.

Socially, my daughter never had issues going to daycare. I've seen some kids who started at age 1 or 2 and they have a hard time with the separation issue. Every kid is different though. I'd of loved to have stayed home till she was 2 years old and I would have done it in a heartbeat if my job was that flexible!!! I'd consider starting him/her off part time here and there though to get them used to it and help with the separation issue when they start full time etc..

My DD is 4 now and in am pre-school and is a social butterfly...I think being in daycare early on really helped but I know kids who have been in daycare just as long who are very shy.

My niece and nephew who were never in preschool or daycare started school this year and they have been out sick every other week.My sil also has her house a very "sterile" place( everything is scrubbed and scrubbed) she doesn't understand why my daughter never gets sick.I guess it was all the exposure at daycare.

 

[connorlevismom]

I just wanted to be clear that this is not a bashing against daycare and sickness. Like I said, my son was in daycare from 3 months until he started kindergarten this year. There is nothing more germy than a 5 year old coming home from a school with 700 students. My house is far from sterile.

This is more of a situation where I have this opportunity to stay home and only work 2 days a week and not have to pay daycare. I have a pretty good paying job so I don't have to completely give up that salary and I still get to get out a couple days a week. It just seems like it is to good to pass up and so that is the main reason we are doing this. No paying for daycare and still getting to stay at my job.

Kristine

 

[RMulieri]

I just wanted to be clear that this is not a bashing against daycare and sickness. Like I said, my son was in daycare from 3 months until he started kindergarten this year. There is nothing more germy than a 5 year old coming home from a school with 700 students. My house is far from sterile.

This is more of a situation where I have this opportunity to stay home and only work 2 days a week and not have to pay daycare. I have a pretty good paying job so I don't have to completely give up that salary and I still get to get out a couple days a week. It just seems like it is to good to pass up and so that is the main reason we are doing this. No paying for daycare and still getting to stay at my job.

Kristine

Oh I understand..I think it is great you can stay home.I stayed home and worked night shifts with no sleep till DD was 18 months, after that she was more mobile/active and hardly napped and I couldn't sleep and go back to night shift so she went to daycare. If you have the opportunity to stay home , do it

 

[puffkin]

DS was in a small private setting from 3 months until 2 1/2. She watched him and a few other kids. I felt it was the best of both worlds in that he got a lot of personal attention but still was socialized with other kids. He was ready for more of a school setting at about 2, but we felt loyal to his provider and decided to wait until he was 3 to switch him. Well, she ended up closing her business when DS was 2 1/2 and we sent him to a center. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it there and DS is absolutely thriving. It only took him about a week to transition and it was mainly just getting used to their routine that he had issues with. I think 18 mo-2 is the perfect time to introduce them to that environment.

DS never gets sick other than allergy things (ear infections and runny nose during peak allergy periods). He has NEVER thrown up in his life and only had "blow outs" once when he was a baby. I trully believe being around other kids and germs his whole life built up his immunity. He also is incredibly social and interacts well with other kids when we attend functions outside of school.

 

[Drusilla]

A bit of a story here but please read b/c it does have a point!

When our first dd was born, dh worked 3rd shift 8pm-8am and I worked pt from 9am-1pm. dh would stay up with dd in the morning while I worked, I would come home at 1:15pm, dh would sleep til 7pm, get up eat, shower and off to work again. It was a crazy schedule and he was sleep deprived but we did it b/c we didn't believe in having kids to let someone else raise them so we made it work.

Our second dd came along 3.25 years later and we continued on the same schedule as we had been. When dd#2 was 9 months old, I had to have knee surgery which was supposed to be walking w/crutches for 2 weeks and then back to normal. Well there were complications and I ended up being on crutches for 9 months, had therapy 3x a week, couldn't work, couldn't do stairs, etc. Everything was pretty much on dh's shoulders, working 3rd shift, taking care of dd's, the house, everything. It was hard but we made it.

1.5 years later I found out I had to have my knee totally replaced. Aggghhh! Well I wasn't going to put dh through what he had been through with my prior surgery so I researched daycares, talked to parents in dd#1 school class for recommendations, etc. Found a great daycare that had a spot for dd#2 (who was now 2 yrs) and started her 2 days a week prior to my surgery to see how she did before I went under the knife. She did great! The plan was to have her at daycare full-time while I recovered from surgery and then pull her out and go back to taking care of both girls at home like we always had.

3 months after my knee replacement when it was time to pull her out, dh and I talked to her teachers who were amazed at how she was thriving, we noticed a big difference in her at home to, she listened better, followed directions better, knew how to do things for herself way way way before dd#1 did the same tasks. So we decided that maybe daycare wasn't such a bad thing, dh was more rested too since dd#1 was in school and he was getting more sleep during the day and was able to have family time before he went off to 3rd shift job, so we decided to leave her at daycare 2 days a week.

About a year later, dh found out he was getting laid off. Luckily he found a great paying job but the only downside was that he would be traveling alot. So back up to 5 days a week at daycare for dd#2 - blessing that I didn't pull her completely from daycare a year earlier or I would've been pressed to find a daycare that was great and had a space for her. She spent about a year (maybe 1.5 yrs) in the daycare fulltime before she started junior kindergarten this year.

She thrived in daycare! She can count to 100, she knows all her abc's, the sounds, she can write, she can read site words (me, dog, cat). Now I'm not saying that she is a genius or anything but these are all things that dd#1 couldn't do when she started junior kindergarten. I credit most of her accomplishments to the teachers at the daycare for working with her as much as they did.

So I'm someone who went from not wanting my kids in daycare but had to use them by necessity really, and now I'm a HUGE advocate of the right daycares.

My thoughts on germs/sicknesses that spread at daycare. dd#2 has a much stronger immune system now since she has been exposed to most of these things since she was 2 than dd#1 who was kept home until junior kindergarten and then exposed to everything for the first time when she went to school at age 4. dd#1 is still much more likely to catch a bug and get sick even now in 3rd grade than dd#2. In a roundabout way exposure to germs is a good thing as it builds your immune system gradually and naturally.

Thanks for listening and good luck to you.

 

[Elise79]

My DD is now 17 months she started going to a childminder when she was 10 months and has now started in a nursery.

She is very happy and loves being with the other children and doesn't mind me leaving her.

She started in childcare at 10 mths as in the UK we get 9 mths paid maternity leave then upto 3 months unpaid.

My concern is I could have worked from home with her upto about 9 mths old but from then on she was too active and needed too much attention for me to be able to actually do a fulls days work. I have tried it from time to time when I have had child care issues and would suggest you think about that aspect.

 

[bdiddy]

When I was pregnant with my first (she's 5.5 now) I was working full-time and we found a daycare we liked and had her signed up and everything before she was even born.

Well...I had her and 8 wks off and changed my mind for a couple of different reasons but I ended up staying home with her during the day and working at my same job but at night 5 days a week from 5-9. It actually worked out really nice. Well, my work decided to open up a corporate daycare across the street from us and I ended up enrolling her when she was 13 months old and I went back full-time. The place was called Bright Horizons and it was awesome! It was also nice that the place was brand new and my DD was one of the first kids going there.

Anyway...she started in the infant room and then went to the toddler room at 18 months and she really loved it. There really was such a difference in a tiny baby and 13 months old. She's also been very ahead verbally so I knew she would let me know if she didn't like it! She really flourished there and learned so much. Well, then I got pregnant with my son and I decided to quit my job all together because I didn't make enough to pay for 2 kids in daycare full time even with the discount. I would have barely been bringing home any profit after gas money, work expenditures, etc... so I decided to stay home.

We pulled her out of the daycare when she was 2 yrs & 2 months old and I actually felt terrible about it! She really did have so much fun there and I was worried about giving her the same kind of thing at home. She was home with me for a year and then started preschool, did that for 2 yrs then started kindergarten this year.

I do think that by her having such a wide array of caregivers from an early age - Me, Dad in the evenings, daycare, preschool has really made her a very flexible easy going child. I also think the older kids are when you put them in new things the harder time they might have adjusting - at least when I think about my son. He's only been home with me and didn't do so good starting him at preschool this year and I actually had to pull him out because he wasn't ready.

I'm just really glad that I got to experience all the different aspects of being a mom and working part-time, full-time and then staying home!

 

[connie1042]

I run a home daycare. I usually get the babies at 6 weeks. I had one family start when their daughter was 3. That child sat on the couch for 6 months waiting for her mom to come home. It did not matter what we tried, that is where she said she was going to sit. Then all of a sudden she decided to join in. She is now 9 yrs old and comes over just for the fun of it. Her baby brother started at 6 weeks. He is very out going and has no separation issues. Loves Kindergarten and other people. I do think some has to do with the kids, but it is like if a child falls down and you panic, so does the child. If you say , your okay come on let's play, the child is off and running. You have to do what you a comfortable with.

 

[jlstwinmommy]

When my twins were born, I was able to take 6 months off and then go back to work part time (3 days a week). For us, it was more cost effective to have a nanny until they turned 2 (infant care is crazy expensive for one, much less 2). So, essentially, my kids were home for the first 2 years. At 23 months, they started a preschool 3 days a week. The first few weeks were hard with drop off. My DH (who has morning duty) started staying for 15 minutes or so every morning and reading the class a story. It helped my twins transition and the rest of the class loved it (as well as the teachers). After a couple of weeks, they didn't really need the extra transition time, although DH would still do it if he didn't have a pressing meeting at work in the AM.

Now, they are in Kindergarten and thriving. My older DS was in daycare from 12 weeks on and I have to say I liked having the twins be able to stay home for those first couple of years (I also liked that I was able to go down to 24 hours a week and spend more time with them).

 

[KirstenB]

Our older dd went to an in home daycare till she was 3. Then we started her at a center. In hindsight, she could have gone at 2, I just was afraid of her being exposed to more kids' germs.

She did just terrific there!! There were so many activities, like tumbling, computers, plus all the non-academic learning, like how to line up, how to participate in a classroom setting, etc. We had such great experiences at these different stages for her, both in home daycare, and the center. I was very pleased.

 

[happymommy]

I thinks it's great that you want to wait, with all the viruses out there.

My DD started preschool at 2 and a half. Mind you, it was less than 3 hours a day, but still. She honestly was not ready. She got very stressed out, and sucked her thumb a lot. I wish I had waited with her. She was very very shy, and really I think that was the reason.

Most toddlers are not as shy as she was (or even is at 10). So 2 may be a good age to explore this option.

Maybe get through this winter, then see how your family is coping. It's been rough for all of us - my kids have been sick a lot, lots of families I know have had so many illnesses. Don't get ahead of yourself - the spring will be here, then you can see what you need to do.

I guess I feel lucky - my DH and I always agreed that I would stay home with the children when we had them. Of course, it's more work than I bargained for - and he works enough hours for the both of us! Mixed blessing. Some days I'd love to get out and have someone else do the laundry!!! But in the end, we are all blessed if our family is healthy.

 

[disney_dreaming_mom]

My son is 2 years old and we just started him in day care part time. In fact, our situation is a lot like yours. I am working part time and stay home with him most of the week while my husband has a crazy 100 + hour work week. We recently started him at a Private Daycare/Pre-School mainly for the socialization aspect. I have also been worried about swine flu and such but I make sure he washes his hands immediately when he gets home and that makes me feel a little bit more pro-active about things. He loves the whole daycare/pre-school experience and is doing great.

 

[ajpa]

Both my kids started in a Montessori pre-school between the age of 2 & 3. The preschool wanted kids either potty-trained or in the process of potty-training.

Prior to that I would bring them to a stay at home mom who looked after them in her home, so there was not much socialization there.

It worked out very well. The first week was an adjustment, specially for the older one, who is shyer. But once they adjusted they settled in well. It was very good preparation for kinder & elementary.

 

[DawnM]

My oldest two went to an in home daycare until age 2 and then went to preschool full time.

Dawn