Wanting to quit..

[playfelt]

Starting to do anything that is totally new is overwhelming till we get the hang of it and daycare is no different. It gets easier once you settle into a routine. At the same time the novelty can wear off quickly and what seemed like a good idea now comes with pitfalls not considered before such as lack of adult contact, lack of time away from our own children, wear and tear on our house, etc. If you can identify stressers and find a solution for them then you are more likely to start to enjoy doing home daycare again.

At the same time it is not wrong to say you made a mistake and really want your life to go in a different direction and then make plans to do that whether that is going back to your old job, moving on to another job outside your home, reducing the number of children you care for so that you can go out more or adding the maximum number of children so you can worry less about paying bills.

[scharron]

Thank you all for your replies!! I was liking it before this pt child started. She is 11 months old and only 2 days per week if that. Next week she is only coming 2 half days. I told her parents today (this is her 3rd week) that she isn't adjusting and she is not coming often enough and they are going to find new care. I feel a sense or relief along with stress. I have decided I am going to cut out pt alltogether and just take ft children (if i can find them!) That's another issue..I have been technically open since January and the only ft child I have is temporary. It's been so hard finding ft kids I really want this to be successful..I'm just feeling down and discouraged.

[Crayola kiddies]

part time children take much longer to transition. I too only take full time children now but when I was taking part time I insisted they come full time for the first 4 weeks and then they could go part time after that . but I found it very hard to find kids to fill the off days and for my area its just easier to take on full time kids. my part time is a minimum of 3 days per week. so 2 days and 1/2 days would be a nightmare...... good luck ....

[Momof4]

No, I never want to quit, but I do get burned out sometimes so I know I have to slow down and take care of myself and allow a few mornings in a row letting the children freeplay so I can recover and get my energy back. We all have parts of the job that drain us, for me it's interviewing which makes my days really long and transitioning new crying unhappy children. But once all of the children are happy and content I love my job every day.

There is a huge learning curve to this job and experimenting with routines until you figure out what works best for you is necessary. Try to prep food and crafts the night before but use your crockpot to save you lots of time and keep the crafts super simple. Playdo can be used over and over, washable markers are great - simple is best!

[sunnydays]

Glad you are getting rid of the part-time child...that is no fun trying to adjust a child who will not easily adjust because of such a limited time with you. I hope you get some new full-time kids soon! I only do full-time as well for the same reason.

[DaycareLady]

I opened in January and although I have worked in daycares, the school board and high stress jobs...I was totally over my head when I was full (with 5 plus my 2) in the first few weeks!! I had 3 babies (plus my own 11 month old) and 2 toddlers (plus my 2 year old) and it was NUTS! I had to really think about what I was doing and in the end I ended up letting a few go , revamping my schedule, uping my fees and reminding myself that things don't have to be perfect!! This forum is so amazing and the main reason I didn't just shut down!! It DOES get easier but remember this is YOUR business and if something isn't right, you can change it...even if it means letting a child go!!