Many questions...would love your wisdom

[playfelt]

I think this has to be the worst time for everyone. The kids are torn between not really understanding all the Christmas hype and being dragged from event to event, maybe kept out late shopping or left home with a teen babysitter because mom and dad have events to attend so nothing is normal for them. Everyone just seems exhausted and it isn't even Dec 1 yet - well almost.

As to how to handle it not a lot of advice other than to remember that January is the start of a new year.

I also moved lunch up and that helped a lot. I have actually increased the number of transitions - moving from area to area which necessitates a clean up so in a sense there is less mess out at the end of the morning when everyone is too tired and hungry to deal with it. I am finding I need to do more where I am involved or at least sitting in the middle of the room - they act up less when I am watching. Doesn't mean I can't be doing my own thing I just need to do it in the middle of the room. I cut meals back to very basics that take a lot less time to prepare, have given up fighting for good nutrition and just feed them like the parents do at home so less fighting. Not my problem that is the way the parents made them why should I suffer.

Things like craft time are earned and taken away for uncooperative behaviour. Parents can do it at home if it is that important to them. Again not worth my struggle so if you want to do it then do as you are told or we don't. Have gotten very strict with this gang in the sense of my time with them is earned.

I don't take hardly any time off but I take what I call "inhouse vacations". These are times when I am feeling like you are and for a day or few days or week or whatever I need I change things. I eliminate stressors like craft time or baking or outings. I put away toys that cause friction or too much noise or take up valuable floor space. I often rearrange the room to eliminate an issue - in your case you might want to create some more alone stations where a person can go play and no one is allowed to bug them - which means you can also send them to alone stations if they are bugging someone. The odd day of kraft dinner and scrambled eggs for lunch is not going to be the end of the world. Not vacuuming all week will not making anyone sick nor will it prevent illness it just takes time in the evening so eliminate every other time. My point is it might be time to just do less all around and gain those minutes back into your own life both during the daycare day and in the evenings.