when other people watch your kid...

someflower6

my parents recently watched my neice (1 yr) and nephew (2.5 yrs) while my sil and brother went on vacation. my SIL has them on a very strict schedule-- all their nap and feeding time are set in stone. this was very convinient for my parents because they could just follow the schedule and never had to worry about what to do next.

they're coming to visit next week and want to watch Lilly while i'm at work (as opposed to send her to daycare). my mom asks if she's on a schedule like my SIL had and i'm like uh... not so much. not at all, really. she eats approximately every 3 hours, but even that varies. i feed her when she's hungry, i play with her when she wants to play, and i settle her down when she wants to nap. there's really no rhyme or reason to it sometimes, i just follow her lead.

how do i explain this to my parents? i don't think they'd have a problem with the concept, i just don't know if they'd be able to follow through with the execution. what kind of "tips" do you give to the people who watch your kid? when do you suggest feeding and napping times, things like that?

tia!

princessjenney

My kiddo is not on a schedule either but there are obvious signs for when she's sleepy (like rubbing her eyes). Eatting I don't really get obvious signs for but if she seems fussy and it's been a while since she's eatten I assume she's hungry and she usually eats.

What ever the cues are for your DD just let them know so they know what to look for. I'm sure they'll do fine even if they just use process of elimination.

two-pink-shoes

With my parents I don't worry about it b/c they obviously raised me (and my brother) so they know how to tell if a baby is hungry, tired, etc.  We left him with some friends who don't have kids for several hours on Sunday and I was so nervous he'd have a breakdown so I gave him some Tylenol before we left and gave them an extra-large bottle of BM.  I just told them if he cried to give it to him.  After 2 hours he started crying, they fed him, and he went to sleep.  With people who aren't family I will always try to make things as easy as possible for them, even if it means wasting a little bit of my stash.  

I think if they were watching him for longer I'd try to explain more about the cues he gives.

someflower6

thanks ladies. my mom is really good with babies so i think she'll be fine. she seemed to take it in stride when i laughed at her when she asked if lilly was on a schedule. she replied "so basically feed when hungry and put her to bed when she's tired?" i'm sure we'll be on the same page!

BelhurstBride

Ditto TPS with the extra bottle thing. When I my cousin watched DD while I was working half days this summer she relied on trying to feed more than anything. It was a little aggravating for me (I hate pumping with a fiery passion) but it worked for her and kept both of them happy.

WildcatPrincess

My ILs watched her this past weekend and we basically told them she eats every 2-3 hours so if she got fussy and it had been that long they could feed her.  It was at bedtime so we told them she usually goes to bed around 8 or 9 but not to panic if it was later than that since no one else had ever put her to bed before and we didn't know how she'd react.  Basically she falls asleep while nursing/eating so we leave the exact bedtime up to her.  My MIL was kind of relieved, actually.  She watched our nephew a little while ago and SIL has him on a very strict schedule that MIL was afraid to mess up, she preferred the laid back approach.  As it was DD was up until 10, but she just slept later the next morning to make up for it.

celiabwatson

My dad watched him for a week a while ago while I was at work. I made him a fun chart (because that's the kind of guy my dad is). The first column said "If I'm..." and the second said "then I probably want..." So you could read things like, "If I'm rubbing my eyes and whining then I probably want to be rocked to sleep in my rocker." "If I'm crying like I'm trying to tell you something important and it's been 3 hours or so then I probably want you to give me a bottle from the fridge." It was cute.