Rant - Mother Won't Let Child Get His Sleep

[permanentvacation]

My 2 year old has been horrible every day for months. If I weren't so broke, I would have kicked him out day one! He cries all day long, forces himself to cry, hits the other kids, cries at everything I say to him; even something simple like " push your chair in", he's just a mess all day long. At nap, though, he's dead asleep and I swear he'd sleep all day long if I let him. I have to wake him from a dead sleep every day. Then he's tired and hateful for the rest of the day.

I tell everyone who picks him up exactly how his day went. The grandfather says I never have a nice word to say about him, and the other family members just say something light-hearted as if to joke about him having a horrible day and making everyone else's day pure Hell here. I guess since they aren't the ones having to put up with him, they don't care that we have to live with him being like this all day long.

His mother came in 2 days ago and told me that he slept overnight for 12 hours. That was the first day that he behaved! He was a perfect little boy! So I told his mother that obviously sleep is all he needs. But she wants to work 12 hours per day to make the money she wants/needs. She makes much more than she needs. She goes the ocean every other weekend and goes on little weekend trips all the time.

Her story is that she works 12 hours but also wants to spend time with her son. So she makes the grandmother keep him awake until she gets home from work so she can spend time with him. But that makes him not be able to get the sleep he needs, so all day long, he's crying, hateful, mean to the other kids, so none of the kids like him, and he's in trouble all day long. Every day, he (and everyone in daycare) has a completely horrible day all day long!

It's great that she wants to enjoy time with her son. But not if it's at his expense.

[nannyde]

Put him to bed the minute he arrives. Sleep till nine or ten and then back from noon to four.

[Cat Herder]

Put him to bed the minute he arrives. Sleep till nine or ten and then back from noon to four.

Child Care means meeting a child's needs.

Early Childhood Education comes AFTER meeting a child's needs.

Children can't learn if their basic needs are not met. His need for this much sleep is temporary. Most likely he is in a rapid growth phase. Simple. No guilt. :hug:

[permanentvacation]

I do put him to bed as soon as he gets here. But he just screams and cries for the longest time; I think because he's so exhausted and over tired. I've tried being really nice to him and comforting him, tried reprimanding him for screaming like he does, tried telling him that if he can stop crying, he can go play, it just goes in this never-ending circle of trying everything I can to get him to stop crying. Some days he will lay down and sleep immediately, others, it's a vicious circle of me trying to figure out what to do to get him to either sleep or stop crying and play.

And now, to be bold face told by the mother that she knows he just needs a couple of more hours of sleep, but she refuses to allow him to get his sleep because she wants to work long hours AND see him, I know I will always be fighting this losing battle until he simply doesn't need as much sleep or until he accepts that he needs to come in to daycare and take a morning nap.

I just don't understand parents who put their wants above their children's needs and don't care how badly they are negatively affecting their child.

[Cat Herder]

it's a vicious circle

I know I will always be fighting this losing battle

Put your star on the calendar today. :hug:

You deserve it. lovethis

[permanentvacation]

Cat herder,

Thank you. I definitely feel like I'm earning my gold star!

[daycare]

I have this child. Parents do what works for them and I do what works for me.

The child comes I my home to basically sleep. Sometimes the child sleeps 5-7 hours when he. Obviously the child needed it.

I would stop waking the child up and go on with your day. Let them wake up when they are done sleeping.

[Leigh]

Put him to bed the minute he arrives. Sleep till nine or ten and then back from noon to four.

[Heidi]

I have this child. Parents do what works for them and I do what works for me.

The child comes I my home to basically sleep. Sometimes the child sleeps 5-7 hours when he. Obviously the child needed it.

I would stop waking the child up and go on with your day. Let them wake up when they are done sleeping.

Offer him a nap at arrival. On days he doesn't sleep then, let him sleep as long as he wants. If the persons picking him up have to be the one to wake him, so be it. Maybe then, they'll see for themselves WHY he needs more sleep. If not, then your day just got easier.

I would make him a super-cozy mat of his own, in a quiet area. Have a party about it. Yeah! You have your own, super cozy bed now!

Please remind yourself that this is not his fault. He's just a little boy. It's so easy to forget that sometimes when they are so contrary.

[Thriftylady]

I agree, I would quit waking him up, that would be my first step. The next would be keep trying to slip a morning nap in there.

[KiddieCahoots]

I have this child too! He is now going on hour 3 of sleeping, form the moment he got here this morning, and will take a 2nd nap later as well.

All this sleep = happy, functioning baby.

So frustrating when everybody KNOWS EXACTLY what the child needs, yet your alone with solving the issue, cause parents wants are coming first.

Keep giving him his sleep, the only way to make the day bearable for you, him, and the children in your care.

[Leigh]

I have a child who "won't" nap at home on the weekends-he's the best napper I have ever seen. On Mondays, he often takes 4 hour plus naps at my house. His parents just can't believe it when they ask me how I do it. I just tell him that it is naptime and he runs in and covers up and is out in seconds-he has done this since day one-no training from me.

[daycarediva]

Put him to bed the minute he arrives. Sleep till nine or ten and then back from noon to four.

I have this child. Parents do what works for them and I do what works for me.

The child comes I my home to basically sleep. Sometimes the child sleeps 5-7 hours when he. Obviously the child needed it.

I would stop waking the child up and go on with your day. Let them wake up when they are done sleeping.

Yup.

"I can see you're tired. You take a nice rest and you will feel so much better when you wake up sweetie."

and I would NOT wake him.

I have a 4yo who sleeps at drop off until breakfast, voluntarily. Then he often naps voluntarily during circle/story time and all of indoor play. He is OUT the second his head hits the mat at rest time and is good for at least 2 hours.

His parents think 6-7 hours of sleep a night is good, since they both 'require much less sleep than other people.' They think because THEY do, dcb does, too. THAT doesn't apply to children.

[jenboo]

Is he able to nap away from everyone so guys screaming doesn't bother him? If so, I would put him down for a nap as soon as he showed signs of being exhausted. Make it sound exciting for him. Put audio books on, etc. I borrow them from the library and the kids love them!

[CraftyMom]

I agree with everyone else, I never wake a sleeping child...unless it's time for them to leave. (Or if it's my own child who lately want to take a nap at 5:00pm instead of regular naptime )