Help me decide whether I'm being a lazy cow(ard)

Gosh no! My ds still goes to nursery two mornings a week and I wish it was more, because a/I need it for my sanity and b/it's good for him and he enjoys it.
Everyone I know keeps their kids in some childcare when they have another baby, for continuity, parental sanity and because they kids like the social life.
Will you be taking dd out of nursery?

aslong as you can afford it i think its a brilliant idea. dd gets to see childminder so it wont be as hard for her to return when your mat leave finishes and you get a bit of time to play or sleep with baby. cant see any reason not to.

I currently work 7 days a fortnight and DS goes to nursery. When I start my maternity leave (DS2/DD due in September), he will keep going two days a week. This will give me some me time before small one comes and some mummy and baby time when small one comes.

You are not at all being a wuss (or if you are then so am I )

It gives HER some baby-free space too, which at four she is well-placed developmentally to appreciate, Moomin.
A lot of things will be changing in her life so keeping one positive constant will be helpful to you all.
Dd was born when ds turned four and in many ways it is a great age gap to have.
And doing the drop-offs and pick-ups from a very young age will mean that the baby will have some familiarity with your childminder's house too when the settling-in visits need to happen

I'm a CM, and one of my mindees has been coming for two mornings a week, 4 hours a morning. Her mum is 5 months pregnant, and doesn't work, but wanted a little bit of breathing space at home whilst pg. She's having a bit of a hard time now with it too, so she's probably counting her blessings!!

The idea was that once the baby was born, I'd have the elder child for an extra morning, so 12 hours a week, so the mum had three mornings just to spend with the baby. However sadly they are moving away so I'll miss this

If you can afford it, why not? My mindee gets time with my ds who is her age, which she wasn'tgetting before, and the mum will probably love the time to get to know the new baby.

I agree.

I think it's good for your dd that you spend quality time with the new baby so that when dd is at home, she can have her time without feeling pushed out (as a lot of siblings feel like this when no. 2 etc. comes along).

I say go for it (if you can afford to)!

Message withdrawn

I work 4 days a week and ds1 goes to pre-school in the mornings and childminder in the afternoon, while ds2 is at the CM all say. When I'm on maternity leave from September both ds1 and ds2 will still be going to pre-school and childminder as usual. Never gave it a thought really (apart from finances) as it gives me the time with the new baby that I had with the other 2, and keeps ds1 and ds2 in their usual routine.

I'd definatly say go for it. It gives your daughter some continuity and also gives you time with the baby alone, [email protected] also at that age where she will benefit herself from babyfree time.

Slightly alternative view: I took DS1 out of nursery when I started mat leave. He did one morning a week out with my PIL, which was my only baby-only time for 4 months. He now does 2 mornings at pre-school as well.

If you daughter is at pre-school 5 mornings you'll get plenty of baby-only time, just not a whole day. It doesn't seem a huge amount to me for a 3-4 yr old. I do see the points about continuity with the CM, which I'd rate highly, and that you want a whole day without her.

Does she have to do the 5 mornings at pre-school or could she have, say, fridays off for some time at home with you?

I see you want a whole day with the baby, but you'll be missing your whole day with DD. I've really enjoyed taking my 2 out on day outings, even with a tough 2 yr age gap.

However, this isn't supposed to be controversial - do what you want!

As a childminder, I agree with all the above advice. As for the cost involved, presumably you will have to pay your cm a retainer anyway, so why not use the hours you are paying for?Definately better for the continuity of care reason, to name just one. I also say to parents that when no. 2 (or 3 or 4 or 5!) comes along, I am quite happy to have either child... not just time for mum and new baby to be alone, but for mum and firstborn too. This also helps the cm form a relationship with baby no. 2.
So no, you are not being lazy, just sensible!

i'm on maternity leave, about to have my second baby. ds is 3.4. he goes to nursery 2 days a week when i'm working and this will continue whilst i'm on leave. he loves nursery & i think it'll do him good to have baby free time. when i'm working he also spends one day a fortnight with my mil, which has stopped for now, so i'm actually having more time with him too. mil is going to take him swimming occasionally instead which they both enjoy.

basically, assuming you can afford it, i say go for it!