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Thread: Newborn

  1. #1
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    Newborn

    Good morning all!!

    So this question is pertaining to my own, soon to join us, son. In 4.5 weeks, I will have my C-section and my new little guy will join us. After 2 weeks, I will be reopening the daycare. And I have some worries.

    When I started daycare, my youngest was 4 months old and I had a small group. I was able to leave him on his blanket on the floor, playpen or silly saucer. This time around, he will be 2 weeks old and I have a full group, and, to be honest, many of them are not very 'aware' of their surroundings. There is absolutely no chance that I will leave him on the floor without me sitting RIGHT beside him, and I fear that if I put him in a playpen, certain children will throw things into it. I know that they will have to learn and adjust, but I obviously do not want the babys wellbeing at risk while they do.

    I have thought of getting a carrier, but hubby thinks that is a bad idea, due to he will always want up.

    For those whom raised a newborn in the daycare setting, what somethings that you did.

  2. #2
    Euphoric !
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    I never had a child while running a daycare but I have heard some providers get hubby to take the parental leave to be the main caregiver of baby while the provider runs the daycare .... Then if your bf hubby can hang out with the daycare kids while your feeding..... However if that is not a possibility can you put the baby in his bassinet or playpen behind a gate or if you have a super yard open it up and put the playpen in a corner and then put the play yard around it (in an L shape) and it will be big enough that the d is won't be able to reach him .... Is there such a thing as netting that can go over a playpen (my kids are older but I think there was for outside use to keep bugs away) you could always use that so the dcks can throw stuff in but you have to watch and when you see them head towards the playpen you just have to be a broken record saying gentle with the baby ... No toys for the baby ..ect ..... Good luck and congrats on your new son !!

  3. #3
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    My youngest was 8 months old when I opened, but when she was born my daughter was 4 and my son had just turned 3. I was worried about my son accidentally hurting her or throwing something on her, too. Instead of a large swing, which I thought would be unsafe, since he could get behind it and push it way too hard, we got a little travel one. It fit on top of the kitchen table, or on a wide counter, and that way I could put her in it and he couldn't push it. Those little bouncy seats usually fit on tables too, I think. They have rubber feet so it doesn't move. Obviously I never left the room when she was in it, but it helped to have somewhere to put her where he couldn't reach while I was making lunch or something.

  4. #4
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    My second was 6 mths when I first opened my daycare and I now have a third who is 6 mths old now but he was only 4 weeks when I started the DC back up. I used a wrap (stretchy long piece of fabric) for a while until the children go used to having him around and we did short stints on the floor where we all sat around him and they asked questions and "shared" his baby toys with him. Your baby will love the snuggle time being close to you in the wrap and when they are brand new it helps them sleep better and they get used to all the noises of the daycare which will help them sleep through the noises better when they are older. I use the excersaucer, toddler/infant rocking chair and highchair alot right now (I don't use a playpen in my daycare other than for napping). I also do a bunch of floor time while we are all doing circle time or if we are just playing on the floor but never leave even for a second.

  5. #5
    Euphoric !
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    Baby carrier, all the way. Your baby at a few weeks old will not learn to only want to be held later on. Even carrying the baby all day at 3,4 or 5 months old will not result in a needy helpless child. It will make your life WAY EASIER. Baby will be calm, happy and protected and you will be free to work with the other children without having to worry about baby's safety.

    Once baby is older and the others have adapted to babes presence then you can start putting baby down for chunks of the day.

  6. #6
    Euphoric ! bright sparks's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lee-Bee View Post
    Baby carrier, all the way. Your baby at a few weeks old will not learn to only want to be held later on. Even carrying the baby all day at 3,4 or 5 months old will not result in a needy helpless child.
    I beg to differ. I think exclusively using a baby carrier runs the risk of a clingy child. You can't make an assumption like this for every child. Some are needier and clingy to begin with and this won't help. No one can say that it will not happen with any degree of certainty. It can depend very much on the individual child.

    I think it would be helpful to adopt a few different methods. Exclusively in a baby carrier may not result in a clingy baby for some people, for others it will. A general assumption can not be made by anyone but when it's to late it's only you who is going to have to deal with the consequences. I think whenever the dckids are confined to highchairs, boosters etc that you should make sure that this is time for little legs to be able to have total freedom as their will be no issues of dckids accidentally hurting the baby. When your newborn is very little you could have them in a Moses basket on a table outside of the room, depending on your layout obviously, where you can see them and be within a couple of steps away if they need you. The other alternative is the XL play yard as someone else suggested to keep them in the same room but a safe distance from harm. The dckids also need to learn about safety around the little one so I think it's important that for a certain portion of the day that under close supervision the kids should interact closely with little one. Obviously a newborn is different than a couple of months old but it would be an important lesson for the other group to learn. I don't believe one solution exists or one method is ideal. A baby carrier for sure under some circumstances but carrying constantly is not in the best interest of the child or your physical well being either. My kids were in bouncy chairs a lot. I didn't put the electric bounce on as they need to be able to learn to sooth themselves but it meant they were safe and could see me but I had both hands free.

    I understand that not everyone has the luxury of taking maternity leave but 2 weeks off after having your newbie isn't even mat leave. Not much of an adjustment period for you or the little one so I'd be looking into the paternity leave for your partner or seeing if family or friends could make a regular weekly visit to help you out. That way you aren't spreading yourself to thin. Extended periods of time with your baby while they watch the dckids and vice versa where you get to do an activity with the dckids which couldn't be done with a newborn in tow.

    Good Luck and make sure you and your loved ones take care of you inbetween you taking care of everyone else

  7. #7
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    Thanks everyone for the ideas!

    Unfortunately, paternity leave is not an option and I do not have family that are able to help out. And being that I just opened in this area in September, I can not afford to take a longer leave and risk losing my current families.

    All of my families signed on knowing that I was expecting and are great families. I am sure that they will be understanding if the normal amount of crafts are not sent home weekly. At least I hope so! Lol.

  8. #8
    Expansive... Artsand crafts's Avatar
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    When my baby is born (August) I am planning on doing what I have done with very young dc infants (the youngest was 3 months). I will keep him close to me when I have to do meal prep, washroom break, etc. in a bouncing chair and will not leave them alone for a second with other dck. They are only around dck if I am there to supervise. For my own baby I will also be using a wrap for the first few months with a combination of floor time in dc areas to get used to be around other kids under my close supervision. I used wrap and carrier for my now 2.5yo son and he did not become a clingy child. He is very independent and like trying to do things himself. He is not even too much into hugging. I think it depends on the kids personality more than using a wrap/carrier or not.

    I follow semi-attachment parenting philosophy for my own, but do not agree with not letting them cio and get away with whatever they want. I think tantrums, whining, and misbehavior has more to do with not setting limits more than being close to your child. If I am asked I would only recommend AP to stay at home moms, not kids that will be going to daycare. Following AP with 5 or more dck at a time would be impossible.

  9. #9
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    MANY years ago I was running my daycare when we had our last daughter, I also had a C section, I came home from the hospital to be greeted by 4 little ones that could not wait to see the baby or myself. I never had maternity leave with any of my kids and funny enough, the kids just knew that she was so little and that they were not to touch her or hurt her in any way and they listened so well. I think if you set boundaries right from the start, then you will not have to many problems. I always had her in a playpen off to one side of the room, where I could see and hear her, but once the little ones were playing, they seemed to "forget" she was even there. It all worked out and everyone was happy Good luck with the newest addition to your family, such a wonderfully exciting time

  10. #10
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    When I had my last child I started my daycare when he was three weeks old and it was upstairs. I was nursing. So I made sure he slept in his crib with the door slightly ajar and a gate across so no one would go in. For the first month I nursed in the living room on the couch. After that I moved to the his bedroom in a rocking chair and left the door wide open. I made sure the children had something to do or put the t.v. on for 30 min. I made sure my son had a schedule from the get go. Nowadays I find more and more that the children aren't on a schedule at young age and that's up to the individual. I know that for all my children they slept like a dream from day one at home, ate at regular intervals after a month. So things were pretty consistent. My advice consistency. The children want it and the baby needs it, whichever way you decide to do it.

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