Childminding with own baby, not coping

[AaaaaaarghhhWhereAreMyKeys]

Hi all 😀

I am returning to cm after giving it up a few years ago as I have had another DC.

I’ve been thinking about the dynamics etc and making it work for my own baby. Will I be better off looking for mindees a similar age to my own little one (obvs with just one under 1)? That way i’d put off school and preschool runs for a little while.

Also have two older DC do will be dealing with GCSEs and A-levels for the next 5 years so will prob need to avoid after schoolies anyway.

Really just need to make it work for my own DC. Know it can be a tough job if you get the combo wrong

Honestly, it doesn't sound as though you should be childminding with a baby. It's all about your own kids but the children you look after should come first too.

Rubbish! We all put the needs of our own families first when considering back to work arrangements, being a CM is no different. The OP isn’t saying she’ll neglect them, just weighing up the pros and cons of age groups mixing with her own Dc.

OP I have recently given up after schoolers and it’s wonderful. The house is much calmer and my own dc can come home and chill and do revision upstairs if needed. I also don’t have preschool runs as I offer the funding so they just spend the whole day with me. It’s a lovely mix at the moment. Good luck with your return to work.

Think there’s a bit of confusion here Nooob. I’ve childminded before so fully understand the sacrifice to my own kids which is why I want to get it right - for ALL the kids, not just the mindees 😀

I guess it depends how much money you need to earn from childminding and what the demand is for childminders in your area. Round here, there isn’t a great demand, so I would struggle to fill my spaces if I was too fussy about the ages of dc I took on.

I’ve know minders who have a baby and decide to only have before and after school dc as they can earn well from them with minimum hours. But if you need to earn a full wage and can choose the ages, I’ve found it to be easier when my own dc are the oldest, so maybe best to look for taking on other babies and young toddlers.

I think there are too many variables for me to know what is best in your situation though.

No afterschoolers sounds v appealing Georgie.

Wouldn’t need to work full-time or to max capacity but agree it’d prob be hard to find mindees if I’m too fussy about age. Although perhaps if I wait till my baby is 1, I’ll find a slightly younger baby who’s mummy is returning to work.

Sorry if I was harsh there op. But if a bad day I think

I'd be looking to get another young (under 2) mindee and aim to be finished by 5pm. It's very doable if you can afford to wait for the right fit and Wouk be very workable with older children IMO. I'm aiming to move this way when my youngest starts secondary school next year as I'm increasingly finding after school children tricky with my own to manage/help with homework etc and think it would be a nice balance.

I gave up school runs and it makes it so much easier. We can go out without having to be home by 3. I can leave the little ones sleeping and not have to wake them for a school run.

I still have the older children in the holidays, but it's nice not to have the extra 'energy' in the house all the time.