When Do You Know It's Time?

[DCMomOf3]

I have been doing this for 3 years, I am full and get inquiries often. I love the kids but as time goes on I am enjoying things less and less. I am not spending enough time with my own kids, I can't ever leave the house, I'm always stressed about the housekeeping and feeling behind. I am getting moodier and it's not fair to anyone. I love the idea of doing this but I am starting to think home care is not for me and maybe working in a center where I can go home everyday, and leave work behind is better for me. I can be sick, take days off, etc. I have thought about closeing before but I've put so much time, effort and money into this. And I feel an obligation to my parents that is most likely more than neccessary. I think if I didn't worry about finding a job and worry about my parents finding other care, that I may have come to a decison before. I don't want to quit because of a rut but I don't know if this is what I'm in or if it's something more. When do you know it's time?

[TGT09]

Wow, I've been doing it just over a year and I feel the EXACT way you explain! Exactly and have too thought about going to a center where the responsibility is on someone else at the end of the day! I feel like I'm moodier and I hate to admit it on here but I feel like I'm losing my sympathy and empathy which I've always had tons of!

[DanceMom]

I'm soon to hit the three year mark in May. I know its time for me, but I am sticking it out for probably another 5 yrs. My husband will then be due to take over his retiring bosses job and I wont need to work. The only thing that keeps me going in this is knowing that someday I will be done and I do not have to do this forever..because there is no way I could. I LOVE being at home, I LOVE being with my kids and I LOVE the daycare kids..it is the parents that I cannot stand , their lack of respect has killed this for me so fast. My mother in law has been doing it for 30 yrs..and I have no idea how.

[Blackcat31]

I have been doing child care for 16 years and I don't see an end in sight for me. (I bought a separate house to run my childcare out of...so I can't quit til I pay off the mortgage!! LOL!)
My advice would be that it is time to quit when you fnd yourself dreading your work day more times than you look forward to it. If you don't enjoy what you do, the kids can tell, the families in care can tell and it doesn't do anyone any good...so I think it is time to quit when your heart is just not in it any more.

[safechner]

I have been doing this for 3 years, I am full and get inquiries often. I love the kids but as time goes on I am enjoying things less and less. I am not spending enough time with my own kids, I can't ever leave the house, I'm always stressed about the housekeeping and feeling behind. I am getting moodier and it's not fair to anyone. I love the idea of doing this but I am starting to think home care is not for me and maybe working in a center where I can go home everyday, and leave work behind is better for me. I can be sick, take days off, etc. I have thought about closeing before but I've put so much time, effort and money into this. And I feel an obligation to my parents that is most likely more than neccessary. I think if I didn't worry about finding a job and worry about my parents finding other care, that I may have come to a decison before. I don't want to quit because of a rut but I don't know if this is what I'm in or if it's something more. When do you know it's time?

I know exactly how you feel. I feel the same way. I just talked to my husband last night that I might be closing my daycare end of this year. I have been doing daycare for 9 years mark this Tuesday. Don't get me wrong I do love the kids very much but I am overtired. I want to get out of the house to do something with my daughters. While my daughters are in school, I can run some errands, work out at the gym, clean up the house, eat lunch with my husband or my girls at work/school sometimes, etc.. I want to join more sports for my girls so I can be there for the girls. Normally, I closed at 6:30pm and I have find that I get tired all of the time when the girls want me to go to the park or whatever in the evenings but I never do it for my girls. It makes me realized that is not fair for my daughters. I decided I am putting my kids first than anything else. My husband support me 100% that I can stay at home mom for a while then I can find a part time job for night shift.

[kidkair]

Maybe you don't need to quit and instead need to cut back from being at capacity. I think one problem a lot of providers have is that they fill to state allowed capacity without thinking of how many kids they themselves can handle. I for example I am able to have 8 under school age and up to 10 kids. However, I feel best if I'm only watching at most 5 under school age. So to keep my sanity I keep to 4 to 5 kids.

[AnythingsPossible]

I have been licensed for 8 years and have wanted to close for the past 2. I think once you hit the point of thinking of being done, your done. It is hard to think about closing and doing something else. The money certainly isn't the same! I started this to be home for my kids, but as they get older, they resent the fact that I am doing daycare. I know that other people have completly different expreinces, I know people whose kids love that they do daycare, but mine do not fall into that boat. I think it may be because our home isn't "our home" the kids can't come home from school and just decompress, daycare is everywhere, except their rooms. So they are stuck in their rooms till daycare's gone. I planned on closing in January, however I have 3 girls that start Kindergarten next year, so I am going to work through the summer and get them in school. I have an interview for a part-time evening weekend job next week and hope that it could transfer into full time next september. We will see. From my experience, if you can afford to do it, you will be happier. I think if you are ready to be done, your mood will not improve till you do. I get through my day and just wait for the week to end. Not great I know, but that's where I am. The kids have fun here during the day, but I am definately not the same kind of provider I was a few year ago.

[Unregistered]

I've been doing day care for 14 years now. I started my business as a way to stay home with my own kids. Through the years, I've gone through many patches of burn-out where, even though I love the kids I care for, I thought I just couldn't do child care another day. Those burn-out times usually pass, some faster than others. When my kids were younger, my own kids complained daily about not having their home and their mom to themselves, although now that they're older (19 and 16), they can appreciate what I do and are more willing to help out than complain. I think everyone has a different threshold for knowing when it's time to give it up. It's like when you're pregnant for the first time and you wonder if you'll know when you're in labor: you'll know! I figure I'll know it's time to give up my day care when I sit down at the computer and update my resume - something I've said I was going to do but somehow have never done --- yet!