DCP Asking to Cut Nap Almost in Half...

[Laurel]

Nope, wouldn't do it. I probably wouldn't tell mom I didn't, just smile and nod if she mentions it again. Baby needs his sleep, mom needs to think you are doing what she wants, you need a happy baby! You need to do what works for your group.

Edited to add: or shorten afternoon nap so she gets crabby baby instead of you!

[DanceMom]

Biggest request of my daycare life ! Parents always want naps cut shorter Because "they have a hard time getting child to sleep at night".... I hate being dishonest but I always just say I do and when I ask the next day how it went putting them to bed - I'd always get a "soooo much better they went right to sleep" response - when in reality I never changed the nap times. Happens every single time with every single parent :

[Boymom]

Biggest request of my daycare life ! Parents always want naps cut shorter Because "they have a hard time getting child to sleep at night".... I hate being dishonest but I always just say I do and when I ask the next day how it went putting them to bed - I'd always get a "soooo much better they went right to sleep" response - when in reality I never changed the nap times. Happens every single time with every single parent :

That's exactly what I was thinking and exactly what I'm going to do! I don't like to lie but I also don't like being told how to run MY daycare! Especially because he didn't sleep for ONE night. Shoot, even my older (4) son still wakes up in the middle of the night and tries to get in bed with us and he doesn't take a nap at all! That's a whole other story !

[Rockgirl]

I don't lie to parents about napping....I just let them know what I'm willing or unwilling to do--they can decide if it will work for them.

[Blackcat31]

That's exactly what I was thinking and exactly what I'm going to do! I don't like to lie but I also don't like being told how to run MY daycare! Especially because he didn't sleep for ONE night. Shoot, even my older (4) son still wakes up in the middle of the night and tries to get in bed with us and he doesn't take a nap at all! That's a whole other story !

What option you decide to go with is completely up to you but don't you think lying to her is just a band-aide for a little problem that could potentially be bigger later?

I don't think she is trying to tell you how to run your business.....she is trying to figure out how to manage her child and their bed time schedule/routine. Her request isn't spiteful or controling...

It seems to me the logical thing to do is to explain how group care works and what the consequences of what she is asking you do to will be.... child will be cranky on your watch, won't cure the getting up in the middle of the night issue (common for kids his age)

Educating parents is a better and more productive way to go than lying IMHO.

[Blackcat31]

I don't lie to parents about napping....I just let them know what I'm willing or unwilling to do--they can decide if it will work for them.

[Boymom]

What option you decide to go with is complete up to you but don't you think lying to her is just a band-aide for a little problem that could potentially be bigger later?

I don't think she is trying to tell you how to run your business.....she is trying to figure out how to manage her child and their bed time schedule/routine. Her request isn't spiteful or controling...

It seems to me the logical thing to do is to explain how group care works and what the consequences of what she is asking you do to will be.... child will be cranky on your watch, won't cure the getting up in the middle of the night issue (common for kids his age)

Educating parents is a better and more productive way to go than lying IMHO.

You're right. I wouldn't have been able to actually lie anyways because I was already feeling bad about even saying that! I just am having a rough day and I need a vacation so incredibly bad. In fact, I'm going to schedule a vacation. Little things are starting to get to me and I'm not myself. So I apologize for saying that! It's always better to tell the truth! I am just having other probs with this family and this was just the cherry on top!

[MrsSteinel'sHouse]

No, no, no.
"I am so sorry if I keep him up or wake him early he is falling asleep in his lunch!" would be my response.
and at my house afternoon nap is 3 hours most days! I put the babies down 11:15- 11:30 and they are asleep until 2:30 sometimes 3. But, as I tell my parents- we play hard and sleep hard! But, most of my kids will not be in bed before 8:30-9 at night so it all works out. I always tell me parents in interviews that I am sure to give the kids "early naps" so they will go to bed at night for them! (I have a friend who puts her own kids down 4-6!! eek!)
Good luck.

[Play Care]

I don't lie to parents about napping....I just let them know what I'm willing or unwilling to do--they can decide if it will work for them.

This.
Though in this case I would tell mom "State regulations prohibit me from waking a sleeping infant." I think my analyst would flip if I were to wake an infant so they could be on a "schedule" as the only acceptable schedule for infants is an infant led one...

[Blackcat31]

You're right. I wouldn't have been able to actually lie anyways because I was already feeling bad about even saying that! I just am having a rough day and I need a vacation so incredibly bad. In fact, I'm going to schedule a vacation. Little things are starting to get to me and I'm not myself. So I apologize for saying that! It's always better to tell the truth! I am just having other probs with this family and this was just the cherry on top!

:hug: :hug:

[Unregistered]

It's funny how parents want you to cut nap time shorter. Not napping or taking shorter naps is not an option for me. During the morning if a baby is here before 9:30 they take a morning nap because that's when I do lessons. In the afternoon I'm cleaning up after lunch, trying to eat lunch really fast myself and if I'm lucky I get a few minutes to sit and relax with a little bit of peace and quiet. My age group ranges from infant to 4 so I never know how long "resting" time is going to last. If she's worried about he or she taking shorter naps tell her to use her lunch break to come keep him or her up and entertained.

[thrivingchildcarecom]

I have had this problem repeatedly over the years. I finally came up with what I think is a satisfactory response. Check out this response I sent to a mom who felt her 2.5 yr was out of the nap phase:

“I want you to know I completely understand how hard it is to get young children to go down at night, especially with their increased need for independence. And although I would agree that some children do just fine without a daily nap, unfortunately, in daycare settings we are mandated to provide children with a Rest & Relaxation period during the course of our day. What usually happens here is due to our constant morning activities a child will fall asleep. If, however, they do not fall asleep they can get up and resume their day. What I would suggest is that you tell Johnny that if he is not sleepy he does not have to take a nap, but just to relax his body during that time of day. I hope this helps.”

After that note, she completely understood my position and told her child he could just rest his body at naptime. Of course, most of the time he fell asleep.

I try to use our regulations and mandates to my advantage whenever I can.

[Ariana]

Can I just say, I hate when daycare gets the blame for the parent's schedule being interrupted or inconvenienced. Not sure when parental responsibility became a thing of the past God forbid the parents have to take care of their own children!!

End of rant.

Agree! I never adjust my schedule or childs schedule to accommodate parents lack of education and knowledge about sleep. I am the expert in this situation. I just tell them flat out that I do not do that.

[daycarediva]

Classic 50 hour a week family that picks up at 5:30, drives home, dinner, bath and put baby to bed and gets upset that the child gets up once in the night. I would not wake the baby up. No way.

My FIRST question when presented with this is "When is bedtime?"

Before 8:30, they're lucky not to be laughed at honestly. Spend time with your child. Get into a great routine. GO OUTSIDE and play after dinner, tire them out (like I do for rest time! ) give them a great warm bath, a book snuggles and they WILL fall asleep.

IMHO- kids resist sleep at older ages because they aren't getting enough parental attention during the day. When you solve that and push bedtime back to GIVE them the attention, it magically fixes bedtime issues.

[lovemykidstoo]

So was this mentioned at pickup last night or drop off this morning?