Its not always easy sharing mummy!

[MUM2BLESS]

As a childminder our own kids have to make adjustments whilst we are childminding. They do not always understand that we are doing this so they can benefit from us being at home.

What do you like to do with your kids when you are not childminding, any treats or trips etc.

HOw do you ensure that you give them some quality time.

Just in the asking questions mode

Got four of my own.

I'm so glad that this has been posted!
I've just started minding and have had my first mindee for 3 weeks. My DD (2.8) is having quite a bit of trouble settling into the new routine and I really feel for her. She seems pretty anxious about having to share me with someone new (other than her little brother who she's got used to now!)
She manages well with sharing her toys mainly (we have put really treasured ones in her room) but I'm feeling really guilty that she seems to be worrying about everything and is definitely more clingy and prone to tears.

Any suggestions as to how I can help her adjust?

I have three of my own 12/10/5 yrs old.
Its true, that they don't always get you are a) working b) doing this to have extra pennies etc. it can be really hard and what I have had to promise my kids is this is my final year of study (just done 4 yrs non-stop).

What we do, our recreation is quad biking so we take the kids out practising or to race meetings. If we aren't doing that we go for walks together with the dogs or ice-skating or even just hire/watch a movie - have a cinema evening, play board games or just have a late one (weekends).

I make sure I have at least 5 minutes for each of my kids when they come in from school to chat about the day and then when mindees have gone home, I snuggle up with my 5yr old and do some reading or learning his words and then read him a story of choice. 10yr old gets some homework help or a snuggle.

12yr old is mr big lad and lets me know when HE wants some QT. He actually doesn't mind a bit of retail therapy though - but on his terms.
12 and 10yr old are often out of an evening playing with their mates.

Thanks for that.

My kids are use to me childminding now. At first one of my children was not keen on some of the children.

I choose carefully when I am thinking of taking children into my home. I have had some challenges with beahviour within my home in the past.

Things have settled down nicely now. One little girl is leaving next month and I am thinking whether to take another child in. The age of the child is very important.

Mrs young I will have a think about the question you are asking. Got to kinna move now as I am getting ready fo the school run

my daughter was born into to childminding. i set up while i was pregnant so she has never known any different but now that shes 3 and a half shes gets fed up with the other children. and cant be bothered staying in the playroom when she has a bedroom full of toys or a living room she can lie on the couch and watch tv in. im also finding she is starting to copy a not very well behaved mindees behaviour so have decided to try and send her to her friends the 2 afternoons he comes after school so that i have more time to deal with him without my daughter distracting me and this will hopefully stop my daughter copying him as she will not really see him any more.

Thanks for that xoxcherylxox

I guesss we all have a different story to tell.

One of my mindees is in my youngest's class. Its has its advantages and I have also had my challenges. I have to ensure that if am fair when dealing with both of them.

Do you do long hours?

I now choose my hours and who I take on VERY CAREFULLY.

I work three days a week. My dd is fond of the mindees and my ds (10) has quite a sibling relationship with them but they really value the two days a week when they can come home, watch want they like, go on the X box and talk to me.

I try hard to give them undivided attention on my days off and they are very aware that all treats and holidays come out of my earnings.

In the holidays we save treats for my days off and I try to find them playdates for some of the other days as ten hours with two toddlers can get a bit wearing for ds.

Mrs Young sorry for the delay in replying.

How old is the child you are childminding?

I am not sure how much your dd understands about having to share mummy. "Mummy is working from home so that she can spend more time with you and have more money to buy what we need for the family".

What hours do you work? Do you get a day off during the week to take your DD out for a treat.

It may take time but eventually things will settle down.

My DD was reasonably fine when she was little (minded since she was a baby). She just used to scurry off with toys occasionally, to hide them in her bedroom. She seemed to struggle with it more when she started school. She said I never talked to her after school. She didn't seem to grasp that if she wanted to give me a cuddle and talk to me, she had to be in the playroom and not in her bedroom. She's 11 now and just accepts it as a fact of life. She gets upset if she can't do something after school though, because I can't collect her and her bus doesn't run at the relevent time. I used to work 4 days a week, but now I work full time.