DCP Has Problems with Our Routine

[wpgmomma0412]

I apologize in advance for being all over the place.

I’ve had the same child for 8 months that I’ve had since I opened. When I first opened I didn’t really have much of a backbone, I was new to the home daycare business & was willing to accommodate whatever just to get things going. About a month in I had to explain to the mom of her then 13 month old that her 1 hour max nap requests weren’t going to work for the daycare. She reluctantly complied, but since then has always made passive aggressive remarks about her “long naps”. Nap time here is from 12:30-3:00 (rarely is it 3:00pm, everyone’s usually up & already playing by 2:30-2:45). This mom is now due in about a month & the only thing preventing me from giving notice at that time was the fact that she was expecting & I didn’t want to be that kind of person. During that time she was working & wanting her girl to go to bed early to make her life easier (her long naps weren’t the issue, they didn’t have much of a consistent routine at home & let her run the show). Now the mom is home & off work & due in a month & is now wanting long naps back to give her a later bedtime, & is shocked that she doesn’t sleep long “it was nice when she was home last week & slept all night for me & wasn’t already tired by 8, lol.” I almost want to tell her that her daughter is not a robot, I can’t turn her naps on & off. Some days she sleeps for 45 minutes, other days she sleeps for 2 hours. Our schedule has always been the same. In the beginning it didn’t work for her because she was napping too long, & now she has a problem that our same routine is “causing” her to not nap long at all.

A month after I began caring for DCG, I took on 2 other siblings who have since gone. During this time of having the other children she never tried to get me to go back & change my nap policy because I had explained to her that I won’t disrupt the routine to accommodate just one family. It’s been a month since I’ve taken on 2 new children (the previous 2 had been given notice mid February), & she’s trying it again all over again & I don’t think it’s a coincidence.

I’m so tired of being constantly blamed for their lack of bedtime routine & discipline at home & it’s been 8 months & I'm still encountering the same issue. The routine we’ve had & always had here have always worked for all the children I’ve ever had in my care & it fit in perfectly with their home routines & schedule, except for her, & what she is wanting me to change it to wouldn’t really work. I don’t want to be giving the impression here that our policies, routine, & schedule are negotiable. I haven’t really directly addressed the issue yet as I’m not sure how to properly address it politely. This is where I’m asking for some advice from the pros who’ve been successfully running their home daycares for a long time. How do I word it & how do I properly address this issue? Accommodating her new demands aren’t an option as it just wouldn’t work for my home daycare & the children I care for.

Edited to add: I really love her little girl & almost feel as if she’s a part of our family now because she’s grown so close with myself, my husband, & our 3 year old daughter. This has been the main reason I just couldn’t find it in me to give notice, that & the fact that she is expecting. Now she is due in less than a month & I’m kind of regretting not doing it in the beginning when I had an inkling that this would be a recurring issue. It’s so dreadful to interact with her at drop-off & pick-up now because she’s always making remarks about her lack of sleep caused by DCG’s “erratic” napping schedule.