How Early Are You Open In The Morning

[MaritimeMummy]

I open at 7am, which I guess doesn't seem that early, and about 4 out of 5 mornings, I have my FT DCG here first thing, right at 7. She's here until 5:45 most days. I have talked about her before.

I guess my problem is that my kids are still asleep when she comes. We spend the next hour tiptoeing around and whispering, playing with "quiet" toys. To be perfectly honest, she really has problems controlling the volume of her voice, and she stomps a lot...my pleas of "please keep your voice down", and "Let's play with this toy QUIETLY" fall on deaf ears. Even from the moment she gets out of the car she's jabbering loudly and squealing. She comes in the house, her dad carries her and he puts her on the floor, the first thing she does is RUN STOMPING into the living room and she announces, "WHERE'S (DD)?" So I have resorted to turning the tv on during that hour. Does anyone else have this issue, where DCKs show up before their own kids are awake? Please keep in mind that my home is very small, it's a 2 bedroom, one level bungalow with the play space in the living room, no useable space in the basement.

I think that part of what is starting to drive me crazy and starting to really contemplate not opening until 8am is what happened yesterday. Dad dropped her off, and said, "If you need to call for anything, might as well call me because DCM isn't available". Okay, fine. DCM shows up at 5:30. She laughs, "Oh, I feel so bad, here I was at the beach today and DCG was with you!"

Um, WTF?! She was my only DCK yesterday and I had such a screaming headache that it would have been very nice if her mom could have come to pick her up early. I was so numb from the headache that I could only nod. I'm livid, and that little action made me seriously consider shortening my hours.

[laundrymom]

My day kids here before 7 lay down. @ 7am lights on and sweeper is going. Everyone is up by 7 here. Why don't you just wake your kids up earlier? Oh and I start @4am. Off by 530-545 pm

[MaritimeMummy]

My day kids here before 7 lay down. @ 7am lights on and sweeper is going. Everyone is up by 7 here. Why don't you just wake your kids up earlier? Oh and I start @4am. Off by 530-545 pm

Oh, no, I don't wake my kids up, that is asking to wake little dragons. They are so tired and cranky all day long if I wake them. I leave them wake on their own, that's just how we've always done things. DD has been waking at 8 since she's been 9 months (she's 3 now), I really don't want to disrupt that natural routine.

[laundrymom]

I understand that. Mine were about that age when I gave them an earlier bedtime and started waking them early. School here starts at 8 and kinder busses pick up @730. That's been almost 20 yrs ago now. Lol man I'm old. Lol.

[daycarediva]

I open at 6. BUT seeing as I am having a very similar issue to you, I want to change that to 7:30. I only have one family arrive at 6 and the little boy is just like your dcg. LOUD! Sorry, but 6am is wayyyy too early for my kids (and dh) to be woken up by your kid stomping and running through my house. I don't have a tv, so that isn't an option. My ds is getting woken up, and he is not a napper, so by 3:30 he is MISERABLE and falls asleep at 7-7:30. So we are tip toeing around in the evenings as well. I tried to have him nap yesterday when he was woken up so early, but he slept for an hour and was up until 12:30 this morning, only to be woken up bright and early at 6! I am interviewing new clients to term this dcb, based simply on the hours.

[SilverSabre25]

Open at 7 'cause I'm a night owl NOT an early bird and 7 is freakin' early for me :P

I have one dcb who occasionally (few times a year) has to arrive by 6:30 but it's with prior notice and DH is saint and usually gets up for him. But I will *never* take a kid who has to regularly arrive earlier than that.

My kids wake on their own also and the dcks rarely bother them anymore. We don't stay silent at all, but I do discourage noisy toys (unfortunately I have a few now :P Darn in-laws and baby toys...).

[EchoMom]

I have the same issues. My earliest is at 7am but they're all pretty good about being quiet and I run a high velocity fan in DS bedroom to drown out the noise.

My problem is that I still nurse my 12 mo old DS and he's a terrible sleeper. So when he starts to wake to early at 6:45, 7:15, etc. I have to run in and nurse him a little to make him fall back asleep. Then I'm laying there with him thinking hurry up hurry up fall asleep I need to be able to greet parents when they show up. Stresses me out.

[kayla]

My first group gets here at 6:00 am on the dot. It is three little ones, and they too do not understand to be quiet. The mom knows my dh and baby are sleeping but does she try to have her children stay quiet?? Nope I have never heard her ask them to be quiet, the little girl shrieks the boy stomps all around and the baby throws a tantrum right away.... I don't know how but my husband and child manage to sleep through it. Mine is only temporary though right now... It will end in january.... Normally I open at 7, but boy am I sick of parents acting like we have the easiest job like oh you get to stay home and do laundry all day... umm no I get to deal with your child who listens to no one then when I tell you about it oh really that never happens when shes with me... Oh because she is with you how often??? sorry for my little rant but I have been in a mood lately that I can't seem to shake... so sick of ungrateful parents!!

[MrsSteinel'sHouse]

6:30, 6:00 if necessary and I will watch until 6:30 pm. I do not mind the early hours. Dh is up by 6:30. My teen age boy can sleep through anything! I wish the little ones would wake him! But, when he was little he was always up at 6:30 so was his sister.
It is all about finding what works for your family. Personally, I need dependable kids and usually that means early hours. (nurses, teachers, hospital, bank kidlet is here 6:30 some mornings even!)

[MN Mom]

I open at 7am and am SUPPOSED to be closed by 5pm except for Wednesdays, which I close early at 4:30pm. I would close at 4:30pm every day as my 2 FT families are here by 4:30 (at the very latest). It's my PT families that give me trouble and are never on time. They pick up @ 5:30-6pm. I charge by the hour though with a minimum charge of $20.00/day (unless it's After School Care), so not a big deal. I still get paid. :-)

[countrymom]

I open at 7am and just started a new boy who is very loud, but I think he has a hearing issue (he will be going for tubes) but we are working on it. can you gate a certain section off, like when she comes you only stay in the kitchen or you can get a small chair (ikea poang chair) give her a blanket and she can sit and watch tv.

[MaritimeMummy]

can you gate a certain section off, like when she comes you only stay in the kitchen or you can get a small chair (ikea poang chair) give her a blanket and she can sit and watch tv.

Oh, staying in a designated area isn't an issue, I don't need to use a gate for that. She's pretty good about that. But no matter where we are in the house, it's close to the bedrooms and it's just a matter of the house being so small. the bathroom is between the two bedrooms, too, so once she goes to the bathroom before my two kids are up, that's it. She can't just go in quietly, she always HAS to give me a running commentary, no matter how much I SHH her. ::

[NeedaVaca]

I open at different hours depending on the dcp schedule and I do know in advance. My problem isn't so much the kids, it's the parents! I whisper as softly as I can and the parent in the loudest booming voice says her goodbyes to the dck. I find it so strange that she would hear me whispering so quietly and still talk so loud...She will even say her loud goodbye and then when her child is leaving the room for the play area will yell all the way across the room for a last goodbye! I might start posting a sign on my door to use quiet voices in at drop offs.

[Blackcat31]

I open at 7:30. I am willing to come in at 7:00 but it hasn't happened in years so I get to daycare about 7:10 or so and my first arrival is here at 7:40.

I close at 5:30 sharp. Most my kiddos are picked up between 3:00 and 4:00 but I have two families (3 kids) who are here until 5:15-5:30.

[SunflowerMama]

I used to open at 7a but this year moved to 7:45a (have to drive my own kids to school...no bus). I close at 5p.