Will you still be taking them after LO is born? (While you're on leave, I mean.)
I am considering having DS still go in order to give me a break (I know, that's awful...I feel like I'm shooing him away..
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I probably won't have him go everyday the entire 12 weeks I'll be off. I'm thinking he can still go the first week or two I'm home until I can be the best mommy I can be to him again and then take him on Tuesdays and Thursdays (or maybe Monday, Wednesday, Friday...depending on how tired mommy is...)
I am justifying this to myself by saying it's not fair to him to be stuck at home with a sleepy and cranky mommy when he could be living it up at "school" with his friends. (He LOVES his daycare. He's been trying to convince me since yesterday that it's OK to go back even though he still has "bumps" - his term for his rash)
I totally just rambled, but I'd appreciate your thoughts, ladies!
Re: If you already have kids and they go to daycare
DD will be transitioning to a 3 day per week schedule (she currently goes 5 days) and I'll be starting that the first week I start leave in Jan. Then we'll have a nanny starting later in March when I'm getting ready to return to work. I have no guilt about this because like your DS, my DD has a blast at her daycare and the way I see it, it's another way of providing stability for her during this whole transition since there will be enough changes going on. An additional bonus is that I'll be able to bond with the new baby.
I figure we have to pay for daycare regardless, so if I feel like I want her home some of those days, I'll just keep her home. Otherwise, it's a way for me to practice transporting two kids around and practice for getting back into my work schedule.
Yes and Yes.
Dd will continue to go to "school" while I'm home. We want her routines to remain as unchanged as possible. As I will be going back to work, we also would risk loosing her place at the daycare.
In addition, she loves school, and her friends and like you I am afraid that I'm not going to be super mommy in the beginning especially since I've not been home before. We only send her 4 days a week, and like you I'm sure I won't be sending her as much anyway but it is a nice luxury to have the option.
lol, well, we only pay for the days he goes (It's a great policy, but because of that policy we don't get a second child discount)
I appreciate the responses, ladies! I'm glad to know I'm not alone. Like I said, the fact that he has such a blast there makes me feel better.
My DD only goes 2 days a week and I am going to continue to send her for preschool hours (9-12). It will give me a little alone time to bond with this LO and it will also give her a chance to get out and learn and play with friends, etc. I actually wish I could send her 3 days a week when I am on maternity leave for those couple hours.
This baby is due in January, and we're planning to have DS stay in school until May/June, then we're going to give him a summer break before starting kindergarten in August. I'm not planning to return to work, though.
My rationale is that he's learning a lot at school, and he likes it. With a newborn, I personally won't be able to do that good of a job preparing him for kindergarten. I also think it will be easier for him to stick with his routine.