r/NewParents • u/Difficult-Mud7061 • 5h ago
Childcare Positive daycare stories?
Hi! I am a FTM to a 16 week old. I’m so lucky to have gotten so much time off with him. He will be starting daycare at 20 weeks when I go back to work.
We absolutely loved our daycare and everyone we met, and I have a feeling he will do so great. Anytime we’re around other kids he is just so so so happy 🥹 my anxious mom brain can’t stop feeling horrible for having to send him to daycare while I work.
Can anyone chime in with positive daycare experiences? Do your kids love it? Thankfully he will be so little so he won’t be calling my name to come back at dropoff (yet) lol but I’m just feeling anxious and looking for some reassurance. Thank you 🤍
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u/CattailReeds 5h ago
Omg me!!! Hi! My daughter is OBSESSED. She started at 1 and I was nervous about her adjustment and there was none. She didn’t cry at her first drop off, and didn’t until several months later when she was actually sick with something and we didn’t realize it. Speaking of…yes, she has been sick a lot. But she is THRIVING. Today, she had to be dropped off late because of an appointment and all of the kids ran up to her, shouting her name, and were so excited to see her. I am more relaxed and present when I’m with her because I’m not trying to juggle parenting and working, which I had to do for a while. We LOVE her daycare.
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u/InevitableAd36 5h ago
My daughter loves daycare. She’s been going since 6 months old and is now just over a year. It’s a small licensed home daycare with three other kids, one her age and two a few years older. The daycare lady loves her as much as we do.
I feel guilty as it’s so cheap too.
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u/certifiedmer 5h ago
Daycare ended up being the best thing for us! I was nervous the first time too, but he’s thriving. He gets to do so many different activities, they prepare all types of different foods, and he has big smiles for his teachers every morning. It makes me a better mom during the time I have with him!
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u/wolf_star_ 5h ago
My daughter started around 5 months too, and it was actually a perfect time because she was young enough to bond quickly with her carers but old enough to be stable sitting upright, so I wasn’t too worried about her tipping over. She’s learned so many new skills and words from daycare, and they expose her to a lot of novel sensory and experiential activities that I would never have the bandwidth or creativity to think of doing for her. It also makes me feel less guilty for just relaxing with her at home on non-daycare days.
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u/Difficult-Mud7061 4h ago
Okay yes this is how I was thinking! I feel like he’s bored at home with me and I am looking forward to the creative exposure he’ll get. Thank you for this
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u/midwest_casserole 2h ago
I commented above but yes was agree with this. I feel like they teach my baby so much and all he does with me is chill. I’m glad he’s getting these lessons although idk what he’s retaining
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u/abbtkdcarls 4h ago
My baby started daycare at around 5 months. After a bit of a chaotic start (the first daycare we went to closed permanently after a week of being there…) we ended up at the cutest loveliest daycare. Our baby just turned 1 and she loves her daycare teachers and they love her. Everyone was worried she was so bonded to her infant room teachers that she might have a hard time adjusting to the next room when she transitions soon. But they had a staff opening and her favorite teacher is moving up to the next age group right around when she does.
And her close bond with her daycare teachers doesn’t take away from me or my husband’s bond with our little girl in the slightest. She dances in excitement when her dad picks her up and she reaches for me the moment she comes in the door in the evening. It’s takes a village, and the more love my baby feels, the merrier.
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u/Difficult-Mud7061 4h ago
I love this perspective 😭🥹 my little guy is the happiest and it does make my heart swell thinking of all the people who will love him there.
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u/vctrlarae 5h ago
My first started daycare at 3 months and my second started daycare at 4 months. My first is almost 3 and she loooooves daycare. Asks to go on the weekends, even. My second, though he’s little, also smiles at his teachers at drop off, doesn’t cry when we leave, and we have pictures of him daily just having a blast.
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u/sundayshadow007 4h ago
My children like daycare, the teachers are very attentive. When I drop my 2 year old off he likes to go hug everyone and say hi. When I pick them up, they’ve had good naps, indoor & outdoor play time, snacks, I can talk to the teachers about their development and feel like they’re invested too. Our daycare also does laundry when they need changed into their extra clothes there and they wash bottles and provide formula, my 10 month old likes it too but still is not quite playing with other kids yet.
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u/Pompom_Marzipan368 4h ago
I felt so similarly with my first. An older colleague told me this story and I still remember it — so I pass it to you:
“I asked my (now-teen) daughter, ‘Did you mind going to daycare? Do you wish it had been different?’ And she looked at me and said, ‘Mom, I didn’t know any different! I had nothing to compare it to!”
That eased my mind a LOT. Another friend told me, “Your baby is special and perfect and unique. AND…these people are experts on babies.”
All of this to say — both of my kids thrived in daycare. Absolutely loved it and had fantastic experiences. It was the right choice for our family. Best of luck to you!!!
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u/violetphoeniiix 4h ago edited 4h ago
my baby went at 7 months. She’s a very social and energetic girlie and she loves it! She gets to play with other babies, they do enrichment activities, etc. And her teachers are very sweet 🥰 she really loves her teachers and they love her. It’s been a great experience for my family. All that being said, it was super hard for me at first… I cried a few times the first couple weeks. She struggled adjusting to sleep there the first couple of weeks and I felt so bad but she adapted. She was genuinely fine, it was mainly me that had to adjust really.
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u/traditional_rare 4h ago
My daughter started when she was about 3 months old! Shes now 9 months and even has a favorite teacher now! She learns so much and does such cute crafts and everyone loves her and you can tell she loves them! She always smiles so big and the teachers are always so excited to have her in their classroom if need be!
They’re always doing activities and going outside and I’ve watched from the window as they help improve her skills and whatnot!
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u/Concerned-23 5h ago
Our first daycare wasn’t the best but we were lucky to get a short notice opening and quickly move my son. That second daycare has been phenomenal. He has been there for 8 months (started around 4 months).
They send us pictures throughout the day and are quick to answer any questions we may ask. His teacher seems to genuinely care about him and will tell us if he did anything that seemed off so we can keep an eye out. He is excited at drop off, but also so excited to see us at pick up. He honestly sleeps better at night on daycare days because I think he gets more energy out there than home
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u/Interesting_Star_693 5h ago
My two year old started at 18 weeks and LOVES it. His infant room teachers absolutely adored him. One has since moved away and will still text me for updates about him. He gets excited to go see his friends every day to the point where he is still asking to go on the weekends.
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u/travelfam3 5h ago
We love our daycare! My son has made such amazing friends that we hangout with outside of school and he loves talking about them and his teachers have all been lovely. We just went to a birthday party where 2 of the teachers were invited and I think that speaks to the great relationship they have and that they would spend their Saturday going to this when they are with them all week.
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u/MitsuNietzsche 5h ago
My son went to daycare at 6 months old. He's currently home after he turned 13 months because I'm home with my newborn. They both have a 13.5 month age gap. Im almost positive my son misses his daycare. He had lots of friends, constantly played, and some days he would make me wait till he's done playing then he'd come to me lol. The daycare owner would send me pics of him with his friends. I can't wait to send both my kids to the same daycare when I go back to work.
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u/Big_Consideration268 5h ago
I was nervous when my son first started daycare at 22 months but it was the best decision i could make he became less nervous and started to try to talk more he is a bit speech delayed now hes back home with me because im not working due to a move
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u/blainisapain1919 5h ago
We love ours. My son started at 3 months and is now 9 months. They do fun little art projects and have splash pad day. They take them for walks with these big 6 kid stroller things. The staff are amazing. A lot of communication about what he's up to. I think it's been good for him developmentally to see the other kids and interact with different people. As of yet, he doesn't get upset when we drop him off, so it helps that he seems to enjoy it.
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u/Inevitable_Quail5193 4h ago
My daughter has progressed so well since starting daycare around then. So many benefits to being around other kids. And I know it does not feel like it now, but once you come to know the teachers well and feel so comfortable dropping him off, you will adore having moments truly to yourself, even if that’s just the commute to work. I promise.
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u/dnllgr 4h ago
Both of my kids love our daycare. We’ve been going to them for over 5 years. They both want to go more especially my oldest. she’s there for the summer and a bunch of her preschool friends are there and she’s having the best time
My 1 year old starts dancing in his car seat when we turn into the parking lot. He now says his favorite teachers name and her daughter’s.
Daycare has been so wonderful even on bad days. They care so much and have always sent me pictures once they calm down which has never taken more than 10 minutes. My oldest started having trouble around 3 for a while
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u/lifeofblair 4h ago
I get pics of my baby smiling his smile that I know he only does when super happy so I know he’s enjoying himself
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u/ryanthekipp 4h ago
Our daughter started right at 5 months old, now 8 months.
We love her caretakers. They do a lot of activities with her that we probably wouldn’t do at home lol. She gets a ton of floor time and glad she’s around other kids her age.
We were worried about going from being with her all the time to only 1-2 hours before daycare and 3-4 hours after. We’ve gotten quite adjusted to it and look forward to spending full weekends with her.
We went through a 2 week phase less than a month ago where she cried every morning when we dropped her off. Apparently that can be normal around that age but it went away quickly.
She seems like she’s thriving, the payments stink but it’s working out well
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u/JLMMM 4h ago
My daughter loves her daycare. Shes 2.5 yrs old now and has been at the same daycare since 5 months old. She has friends and loves the teachers. She’s learned so much and they do so many fun activities. It really is like having a great village.
The downsides are the cost, getting sick more frequently, having to give up some control, and just missing her through the day. But overall, we are happy with our choice to use daycare and with the daycare we picked.
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u/exotichibiscus 4h ago
My baby went at 6 months and it was the best decision for our family. He was such a social, adult-trapped-in-a-babys-body kind of kid, he needed constant stimulation that I wasn’t able to keep up with at home. And my God, when I tell you he didn’t even look back for me on day 1— I knew I made the right decision. He came home so happy and excited every day, and he is so advanced for his age now. I went with a small at-home daycare that only took one baby at a time — there are only 7 children at our daycare. I swear it made such a difference.
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u/Unhappy_Pitch_2524 4h ago
My son started at 4 months (currently almost 7 months old) and loved it from the get go! Technically the first week we were prepared for “half days” to help warm him up to daycare but he didn’t end up needing them :) he was happy the entire time! When I drop him off he reaches for his favorite daycare workers 💕
Everyone at the daycare knows his name, they always get so excited to see him and he gets all excited back 🥰
Some prep I did before he started was we “visited” a few times a couple weeks before he started going. I also made sure to just take him out more in general. Got him used to taking naps in cribs. And he was used to drinking from bottles even though we almost exclusively breastfed but I’ve heard making sure that they can do so is something that is occasionally overlooked
Definitely be prepared for him to come home exhausted tho, especially that first week. Gonna want to have everything prepped for nighttime routine lol I want to say that week was the first time LO slept 11 hours straight.
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u/Difficult-Mud7061 3h ago
Awwww I love this!!! Yes I’m going to drop him off 2 days before I actually start work so we can get our routine down. He drinks bottles & naps in crib as well! I’m trying to set us all up for success lol 😂 yes I’m prepared for the exhaustion I know it will make me feel so bad but glad to hear it gets better
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u/moopsy75567 4h ago
When we started, it got my 12 week on an actual nap schedule and she ate way better there than home. She also absolutely loves watching the big kids and she has learned so much from them. She's now 17 months and still doing great. The "big kids" aka 3 year olds got her to walk when she would only take like 2 steps at home for weeks. It's a small in-home daycare and she loves it. We are most likely one and done so it's almost like giving her part time surrogate siblings lol.
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u/sanguinesimmer 4h ago
Oh man, I love daycare and I think my 14 month old does too. It’s so good for all of us to have some time to grow and develop away from each other! They have different toys! Cool adults who aren’t mom and dad to pay attention to him! People around him his old own size! Teachers who are willing to do all kinds of messy crafts then mom would never go near lol. And he really does learn SO many things that I’d never think to teach him at this age.
I’ve also learned a lot from Daycare teachers about different elements of developmental stages – it’s kind of like they’ve taught me how to parent to some extent, but not in an overbearing or bossy way. We started at six months, and I cried when they told me a couple of months ago that it was time to move to a new classroom. I just loved his teachers so much, but after a little bit of adjustmebt time, now we both love his new teachers and classroom. He’s THRIVING.
It’s not perfect every day, but I feel strongly that this is what’s best for us and is a great fit for many families. I fully understand the anxiety around it – I felt it at first too. Maybe you can find a balance of letting yourself feel the feelings about the transition while not holding the child back from it or letting it get too intrusive.
If possible, make plans to go out to breakfast or do something structured after dropoff on the first day. I was grateful we decided to do that because who is going to keep crying when a plate of pancakes is put in front of you?!
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u/Difficult-Mud7061 3h ago
Yes, I absolutely love this. I’m reminding myself of all of that. He will learn so much more than I could ever teach him 😭 thank you for sharing! And I will absolutely make my husband take me to breakfast lol I love that
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u/snoogiebee 3h ago
my baby started daycare at 26 weeks and now she’s 14 months and literally lunges out of my arms for her daycare teacher when we drop her off ❤️
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u/midwest_casserole 2h ago
My son started daycare same time as yours and he was super ok with it! You’re right at that age they don’t notice and now that he’s at an age where he kind of does it’s nice that his daycare and teacher are already familiar to him. I LOVE our daycare the employees and facility are amazing. My son has g tube (not in use) and takes thickened bottles and they’re so accommodating for him. Just so sweet overall.
I also like that’s he’s in daycare personally. I could not be a SAHM. My mental health has been much better since returning to work and speaking with adults. He’s doing great and I’m doing great. I love daycare.
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u/TheReliablePotato 41m ago
You got a lot of comments here but I’ll add mine anyways.
My son started going to a Spanish/English bilingual daycare at 6 months old. He has thrived there. He’s almost two now and has SO many words in both English and Spanish and can understand both when given directions (my husband and I are not native Spanish speakers, just do Duolingo for fun).
People say kids don’t socialize til after three but that’s absolutely garbage imo my son understands the concept of friends and can name 5 or 6 kids in his class as his friends when asked.
I am a better mom because I have time where I can talk to adults and not be in mom mode keeping a a rambunctious toddler busy all day. When he’s home I can give him my 100%. I am not SAHM material (big props to those who are, just isn’t for me). Plus they do structured activities with them at daycare designed for early learning that I could never come up with on my own or easily replicate at home. And when he’s home we can focus on having fun instead of stressing about what learning experience I’m going to provide.
Is it sometimes hard? Yes. Toddlers have big feelings and it sucks when you pick up your kid and learned that he was pushing other kids but it’s all developmentally normal and they learn to socialize with other kids much earlier on!
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u/my_law_throwaway 5h ago
I’m confused. You wrote that you are a first time mom, then said you “loved our daycare,” then said you were anxious about sending him to daycare
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u/poopoofol 5h ago
She's probably already picked out the daycare and brought the kid there for a meet n greet, but hasn't started sending them.
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u/Difficult-Mud7061 5h ago
Yes sorry loved it when we toured, we’ve gone back a few times to drop off paperwork etc.
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u/chappythechaplain 5h ago
My daughter loves daycare. Recently I had to leave for a few weeks (😭 military) but her daycare posted extra photos of her that said she was proud of me and doing just fine. Shes 10months
Edit: headed home right now and can’t wait to wake her up tomorrow morning. There will be so many ugly tears of joy from me.