2 Year Old and Soon to Be Newborn Daycare

Angela any daycare you like id OK for both children unless stated other wise, for example I have a 4 year old little girl in my daycare and her baby brother is due December 9th, at 6 weeks he will be here in my daycare. Some daycare's don't take infants, some take only infants, most of the children that I raised up in my daycare came to me as newborns. If a provider provides care for both toddlers and infants, then it should be just as good for one child as it is for the other, just a little Advice, when looking for child care you can't be overly picky, you have to be picky, but if you are overly picky it will be very hard to find a daycare that will satisfy you for both kids. I do kindergarten readiness, so while the baby/baby's are sleeping I'm working with the preschool age, and it works out because the preschooler has my full attention and the baby/baby's are able to sleep, cause the older children are working. You just need to find one that has a good set up. J. L.

I understand that this is a tough choice! I have not dealt with this issue exactly and stay at home, but I find that I constantly find great programs for my preschooler (who goes 3 days a week), and sometimes I can't do fun, stimulating programs with him because it's too hard to involve the 2-year-old and the newborn as well.

My thinking is:
1. You want them at the same place. Otherwise you'd go crazy with the hassle, plus it's nice they get to see each other.
2. You'll want to choose a program you like for both kids. If one that handles all ages has a section for kids that are 2 to 5, surely your little one will fit in and come to love it. If he's being dropped off at a place different from his baby sibling, not only will he notice, but he might feel pushed aside. Too many changes at once are not worth it.
3. Try to pick one program and don't change it, assuming he does not hate it.

My issue is my 3-year-old is in a preschool only program he loves. Next year I want the 2-year-old to get into the same one for Early 3's, with my son in 4-year-old. Same time and place. Bingo!

But, if she does not get in (spots are few sometimes), I decided not to switch him (he is pretty much guaranteed entrance for next year). This could mean driving them to two different places if the timing works out. I feel a little silly, but he tried a preschool earlier he hated, and I'm not willing to pull him from the one he loves in case he ends up hating a new one.

You can avoid all this by choosing one place for both of your kids right away and keeping them there, assuming no one is totally miserable. Hope that helps! Keep in mind the newborn and toddler will even out in ability and age faster than you think, and soon they will be liking/doing more of the same things, and eligible for the same programs.

My 2 and 3-year-old can take some classes together!

Angela,

I am a home daycare provider of 6 years in Lakewood. The average age of the children in my care is age 2. Most of the kids have been here since they were infants. I have decided to add a preschool cirriculum in January of 2010. From the feedback of my parents this is a huge convienance since many of my little ones are turing 3 next year and the parents want to consider preschool but not quite sure if they are ready or how to work it out since most preschools are half day. Like you a few of the families have younger brothers or sisters and love the fact that both siblings are going to be together. If you are close and would like to talk I do have an opening for a 2 year old but my next opening for an infant is not till May, which may work for you. The preschool cirriculum is free if your child attends daycare. If not the preschool fees I offer are far lower than any preschool around.

M.

You certainly have a bunch of balls in the air with this one. (<laughing> And I visited over 50 preschools before I found the *perfect* one. 4 were okay, the others were all no goes. And I had SIMPLE requirements -i thought- "safe, fun, & interesting".)

Couple Q's for you to think about:

- If both you & DH are working, would it make sense to have each of you drop off a single child? That way one person isn't running back and forth to two location.

- The both together daycares... are they a single provider, or a company? (Single providers, like in home daycare the kids will see each other, but company types usually have separate rooms. All of my brothers & sisters & cousins & I were in the same daycare at one point, and as the oldest I never saw a single one from drop off to pickup. Out of 9 of us only *2* were in the same class. The rest of us never saw each other.)

- Are you looking for daycare, daycare that transitions into preschool, or preschool? All 3 are very very different, and depending on the philosophy they can be even more different. My 50+ preschool search, btw, was limited to Montessori preschools.

- Have you considered a nanny or an au pair? (With 2 children, either option is usually less expensive that dual daycare) until you hit "potty trained" prices. I was AMAZED that the prices went from 1600 a month to 600 a month, all with that beautiful little sounds of pee hitting water).

- If your 2 year old ends up hating the daycare/school do you have a back up option? And does it involve moving both kids?

IM(not so)HO... I would go with a place that I LOVED if I had any choice in the matter. From a practical standpoint: Early childhood is just so so SO important. And if you're looking at a 9-10 hour full day, they're going to be spending most of their waking time in these places/this place. I would feel comfortable with "okay" for an intermittent short thing (like babysitting for an afternoon or a date), but wherever they are going to be spending the majority of their time... outstanding would be my bare minimum to be acceptable.

:) R

It's a hard place because so many facilities are 2yrs+ and don't take infants. We have a little girl who will be 4 in January and a baby just 7 months. Since our daughter was already in a school she loves - has been there since she was 2, we found an in-home day for the baby between our house and the preschool. That way it would make drop off and pick up more convienient. I wouldn't be so concerned about them seeing each other during the day - most facilities that have infants to preschool keep the children seperated by age, so they won't really be playing together or anything. Look for something on the way to the daycare you like best for your daugther. That way, it is a good fit for both. If you are in the pasadena area, I can give you the places I use - I am completely happy and it isn't a big deal to drop off at 2 places because they are on the same path. Good Luck!