It's official: My kid likes going to daycare.

In September we left the big daycare center we were at and switched to a small home daycare. You can read about the transition here. We noticed an instant change in "drop off time" from everyday ( for nine whole months): screaming / crying / pleading for us not to go to bearable half and half ratio of happy & upset (an improvement in my book!). Well March was the month. March was the month where everyday she is happy to go, says "Bye bye Daddy have a good day, Love you!" and waves as I exit with no issues what so ever. It's been a solid three weeks without one tear at drop-off. I don't pick her up at 3 but from what Lauren tells me it's gotten to the point where she doesn't even want to leave! On the weekends she randomly sings a song that goes something like "Gabbbbbie Maggggggie Gabbbbbie Maggggggie" and tells us she loves them. (Gabby is Sierra's daycare provider and Maggie is the other little girl at daycare). 

I am overjoyed that Sierra is in a place where she's feels happy, comfortable and loved. GO SIERRA! -Craig

In honor of my little independent woman here is today's Thursday Tunes:

Home Daycares vs. Daycare Centers

Last year Sierra attended a large daycare center here in Boston. The center had many rooms, a gym, security cameras everywhere and many teachers and directors milling about. This year we decided to remove her from the center and enroll her in a small home day care near our home. The center vs home daycare debate has been going on forever and there is truly no right answer. The only ‘right answer’ I can provide to you is whatever works for you and your family is whats right. Not all centers are the same and not all home day cares are the same. Our center had many pros and cons, but in the end the cons outweighed the pros. It was always very clean, bright and full of huge castles and ride on toys. The children had their very own cots to sleep on. Thats about all the pros I can think of. Sierra went through four teachers in less than one year. When a child is that young it takes them awhile to warm up and feel comfortable with someone and then when they finally do POOF they were gone and here came someone else we had to get to know. Some teachers did not know she was vegan even though it was posted on a wall, we walked in as they were feeding her buttered popped corn once. It was very expensive and did not feel cozy what so ever, it was on the third floor of a building that houses dentists, doctors and offices.

Two weeks ago Sierra started at a home day care only a few blocks from our own home. The daycare is licensed by the state and goes through all the same red tape, inspections and scrutiny that a day care center does. It is safe, cozy and feels like we are dropping her off at an aunty’s house and not an office for children. Sierra is now one of only three children instead of one of 30. Making the decision to switch was not easy but I am glad we did it. Sierra went a full 9 months at the center and nearly every day drop off was a NIGHTMARE (sorry for the all caps rage but trust me it was bad). We are only two weeks in our new daycare and Sierra is already much better. This is not to say that if your child is sad at your center you should switch to a home and all will be better like I said earlier the only ‘right answer’ is what works for you and your family. 

One of the most important things about the home daycare to me is it’s size. I love that Sierra is only one of three other children. When there are 10 children in a room with only one adult it is impossible that your child will receive as much one on one attention as when she or he is only one of three, it’s just numbers people. That personal attention truly matters to me. I want Sierra to be in an environment where she feels loved, appreciated and special. She’ll have her entire life in school to feel like a face in the crowd, I want her to enjoy this unique period in her life while she can.

Another reason I love the small size is the freedom it provides. Something I never liked at the center was the children were in the “Toddler Room” which didn’t have a door, it had a gate. The children were not free to move about if they wanted. This type of environment made it seem like it was some sort of toddler farm. At the home daycare there is a living room, a play room, a kitchen, etc and everything is connected GATE FREE. Sierra can play with the babies in the living room and then decide she wants to draw at the art table in the play room. She doesnt need to bang on a gate and cry and be told “It’s not art time”. This type of freedom would not be possible at a center there’s just too many children and not enough adults to supervise. There is a curriculum and structured play time at the home day care it’s just not as rigid or gated if you will as the center.

I am not trying to persuade any center-families to come over to family daycares, or vise versa. I just wanted to take a minute and tell you my experiences with them. As a family we are overall much happier at the home daycare and I feel Sierra is getting a greta amount of personal attention she wasn't receiving at the center. Whatever makes you and more importantly your child the happiest is what you should do. Feel free to leave your responses or own personal stories about daycare, good or bad, in the comments below! Thanks. -Craig

I won't miss this face in the morning. I much prefer how this morning went: "Bye Bye Dada Ruv You!" as she skipped off to play with her little friend Maggie.

Daycare Blues!

It's 8:02 AM on a Friday and I am sitting in my favorite little coffee shop with a large iced coffee and my laptop. I should be on my way to work but after the morning I had I feel I deserve a coffee, a bagel and 15 minutes to actually sit and decompress before boarding the bus to work. My morning goes one of two ways: good or bad. The way the day goes is dependent upon Sierra's willingness to go to daycare, she always goes, just not always willingly. Some days she practically leaps from my arms and runs to the plastic slide or to the out stretched arms of her teachers, today was not one of those, it was one of these: Sierra clings to my arm, leg, face, etc screaming at the top of her lungs for MAMA MAMA MAMA and trys to wrestle me for her binky. Picture trying to put a cat into a bath tub, it's sort of like that. On days like that I feel like a terrible parent but theres nothing I can do, I need to pay the bills! Sierra is a toddler she doesn't understand work, bills and 'the man' yet. So I shut the daycare door to her screams, crys and pleads and walk with my head hung low to the elevator. See how I need a coffee and a bagel now?


Two weeks from now this will all change, we are taking Sierra out of daycare. Not because we are unhappy with their care or because we can't stand the bad days but because Lauren is a teacher and it is the summer. It better for the family financially to have Lauren stay home with the baby then it would be to have her work some crap summer job and make just enough to keep Sierra in daycare. Even though I know it's our best bet I have very mixed emotions about it. On one hand Sierra loves spending time with us, doesn't seem to miss daycare on the weekends, and we have more of the bad mornings than the good ones, the daycare offered us our spot back in September if we want it, oh yeah and we'd be saving $1350 a month. On the other hand Sierra has been there 9 months and I'm sure even at 1 ½  has developed friendships and routines and I feel badly taking that away from her. I'm unsure if my feelings are valid or if these are just the first time parent worries that don't really matter. To combat Sierra losing the interaction with her friends at daycare Lauren and I have been looking into parent meet-ups for stay at home mom's in our area and believe it or not there are plenty. When I found this out I felt a bit better about the whole situation but still having separation anxiety at the moment.


I'm curious if any one reading this has gone through this same situation. What did you do? Do you feel you made the right decision? Would love your opinions and feedback!

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