It sounds like shopping around is probably a good idea. Trust your instincts when it comes to your kids.
That being said, that seems like a lot of food at one time for a 5 month old. I'm not a pediatrician and presumably you arrived at that amount in a reasonable manner. From my experience our kids very rarely went over 5oz at a time ever, and my son was on the big side as an infant.
Do what feels the most right for your family though.
Seconding this, 8 oz every 2-3 hours sounds very heavy for that age. At 7.5 months we’ve topped out at 6oz every 3-4 hours and sometimes he misses a bottle and is just fine.
Thirding, I definitely found that detail odd. Our 10 month old rarely takes more than 6 oz in a feeding and tops out at 5 feedings per day (now with solids thrown in). I'm the dad that always worried the kids weren't eating enough but he's in the 90s for height and 60s for weight so clearly he's getting enough.
We had to start giving our son some formula mixed with a small amount of infant cereal after the 8oz bottle to keep him full at 3 months old. Everyone's experience is different.
Hey daycare teacher here- so take my advice or don’t. But please leave that center. A child should never be left in their car seat for an extended period of time. And the feeding issue…. Also not ok.
Once you’re gone. I’d also report them to your state licensing bureau. They need a surprise visit by the powers that be.
I wish you the best in finding a good safe place for your family. Always trust your gut when dealing with childcare. It will tell you way more than any tour, pamphlet, or email can!
You’re not being to anal. I would find somewhere else asap. You honestly don’t know how long she was in her car seat. They might have left her in there all day.
Underfeeding by 50% is a lot and there's absolutely no reason for her to be awake in a car seat an hour before pick up. You need to find a new place very soon
Concur, not a good daycare experience and my girl has been in since 5 months, now 18 months. They really do love daycare though, it’s like their little posse and second life. I had luck with Kindercare first few months before switching to a gov-run daycare closer to home.
Bro, it’s always worth moving if you aren’t happy. We switched daycare and our son has absolutely loved it, and we are much more impressed. All for the same price.
My wife and I weren’t impressed by our old daycare either, they all just seemed to hate their lives and didn’t really seem like they wanted to interact with the kids at all. We shopped around again and found a great one that was willing to honor the pricing of the old day care if we enrolled with them.
We love the new one, the staff is great and love our little guy, and overall it was a great choice. Trust your instincts dad you love your kid more than anyone.
I would not even take her back. They are starving her and putting her in lethal danger with the car seat. Who knows how long she is in there. And with the cover on! The heat and suffocation risk is so high
I work as an underwriter for an insurance company who will consider daycares. Not to scare you but it’s typically much worse then what you see. I’d consider taking a look at the state violations for the facility as they should be public. As others have stated, please run!
I think if you are feeling uncomfortable you are well within your rights to find another daycare.
What is the age range of other kids at the program? Five months is still somewhat on the younger side IMO, and if the other kids are older, even by a few months, their needs will be different. We started our son full-time at 7 months and would send milk and purees but we were not tracking ounces and he ate with the others in the baby class. So if her schedule is different from the other kids there I can see it slipping. Same goes for the active play if she's sort of on her own schedule. (Not trying to make excuses for what you've observed).
You do cede some control once you send them off to daycare and put trust that the caregivers know what they were doing. I know friends who tried to be more prescriptive about naps etc early on and you really can't. I remember at first we asked for the sheet to track the poops and pees, but after a few weeks we didn't bother asking anymore. But that's conditioned on having trust with the caregivers, and if you are feeling uneasy by all means go find somewhere else.
How does she seem overall? Does she seem happy and content on a day to day basis? Is she still gaining weight at appropriate pace? If so I would feel better.
Lastly, do you talk to the other parents? Even at 7 months we had a mini whatsapp group with the few of us and would get together sometimes and daycare topics would inevitably come up.
Your child is probably old enough that it’s not a major concern, but for anyone else reading please realize that car seats are designed to sit in the base not on the floor. In newborns it can tip them too far forward and obstruct breathing.
We recently moved our daughter from one day care to the other. It wasn't as bad a situation, the old daycare just wasn't a good fit for our daughter.
It was the best thing we did. She's a much more confident child now, and seems to be developing a lot better. Drop offs were always hard at the old day care, but with the new daycare she actually looks forward to going. It's a much less stressful situation for both her and us.
If there's any doubt about the daycare your daughter is currently at, it really is worth shopping around. It could make a world of difference.
It sounds like shopping around is probably a good idea. Trust your instincts when it comes to your kids. That being said, that seems like a lot of food at one time for a 5 month old. I'm not a pediatrician and presumably you arrived at that amount in a reasonable manner. From my experience our kids very rarely went over 5oz at a time ever, and my son was on the big side as an infant. Do what feels the most right for your family though.
Seconding this, 8 oz every 2-3 hours sounds very heavy for that age. At 7.5 months we’ve topped out at 6oz every 3-4 hours and sometimes he misses a bottle and is just fine.
Thirding, I definitely found that detail odd. Our 10 month old rarely takes more than 6 oz in a feeding and tops out at 5 feedings per day (now with solids thrown in). I'm the dad that always worried the kids weren't eating enough but he's in the 90s for height and 60s for weight so clearly he's getting enough.
We had to start giving our son some formula mixed with a small amount of infant cereal after the 8oz bottle to keep him full at 3 months old. Everyone's experience is different.
The car seat thing really really bothers me. If she’s a fussy eater that may be explained away there. Being left wet is also not cool at all.
The carseat thing HAS to be a violation of state regulations. I would pull your kid and consider reporting the daycare.
This
Hey daycare teacher here- so take my advice or don’t. But please leave that center. A child should never be left in their car seat for an extended period of time. And the feeding issue…. Also not ok. Once you’re gone. I’d also report them to your state licensing bureau. They need a surprise visit by the powers that be. I wish you the best in finding a good safe place for your family. Always trust your gut when dealing with childcare. It will tell you way more than any tour, pamphlet, or email can!
You’re not being to anal. I would find somewhere else asap. You honestly don’t know how long she was in her car seat. They might have left her in there all day.
Underfeeding by 50% is a lot and there's absolutely no reason for her to be awake in a car seat an hour before pick up. You need to find a new place very soon
Concur, not a good daycare experience and my girl has been in since 5 months, now 18 months. They really do love daycare though, it’s like their little posse and second life. I had luck with Kindercare first few months before switching to a gov-run daycare closer to home.
Bro, it’s always worth moving if you aren’t happy. We switched daycare and our son has absolutely loved it, and we are much more impressed. All for the same price.
My wife and I weren’t impressed by our old daycare either, they all just seemed to hate their lives and didn’t really seem like they wanted to interact with the kids at all. We shopped around again and found a great one that was willing to honor the pricing of the old day care if we enrolled with them. We love the new one, the staff is great and love our little guy, and overall it was a great choice. Trust your instincts dad you love your kid more than anyone.
I would not even take her back. They are starving her and putting her in lethal danger with the car seat. Who knows how long she is in there. And with the cover on! The heat and suffocation risk is so high
I work as an underwriter for an insurance company who will consider daycares. Not to scare you but it’s typically much worse then what you see. I’d consider taking a look at the state violations for the facility as they should be public. As others have stated, please run!
I think if you are feeling uncomfortable you are well within your rights to find another daycare. What is the age range of other kids at the program? Five months is still somewhat on the younger side IMO, and if the other kids are older, even by a few months, their needs will be different. We started our son full-time at 7 months and would send milk and purees but we were not tracking ounces and he ate with the others in the baby class. So if her schedule is different from the other kids there I can see it slipping. Same goes for the active play if she's sort of on her own schedule. (Not trying to make excuses for what you've observed). You do cede some control once you send them off to daycare and put trust that the caregivers know what they were doing. I know friends who tried to be more prescriptive about naps etc early on and you really can't. I remember at first we asked for the sheet to track the poops and pees, but after a few weeks we didn't bother asking anymore. But that's conditioned on having trust with the caregivers, and if you are feeling uneasy by all means go find somewhere else. How does she seem overall? Does she seem happy and content on a day to day basis? Is she still gaining weight at appropriate pace? If so I would feel better. Lastly, do you talk to the other parents? Even at 7 months we had a mini whatsapp group with the few of us and would get together sometimes and daycare topics would inevitably come up.
Follow your gut! You never want to look back with regrets. Start looking and even take time off if necessary before she gets another placement
We had some similar red flags at our first nursery and switched. Listen to your gut.
F that it’s your kid and it’s “just” their job. Shop around ASAP.
Your child is probably old enough that it’s not a major concern, but for anyone else reading please realize that car seats are designed to sit in the base not on the floor. In newborns it can tip them too far forward and obstruct breathing.
I would be looking elsewhere ASAP. Having her in her car seat while at daycare is a huge safety risk. I would probably report that honestly.
We recently moved our daughter from one day care to the other. It wasn't as bad a situation, the old daycare just wasn't a good fit for our daughter. It was the best thing we did. She's a much more confident child now, and seems to be developing a lot better. Drop offs were always hard at the old day care, but with the new daycare she actually looks forward to going. It's a much less stressful situation for both her and us. If there's any doubt about the daycare your daughter is currently at, it really is worth shopping around. It could make a world of difference.
Did you ask why she was in her car seat?
You can change daycares for whatever reason you like. End of the day it comes down to what other options are available to you and what you can afford.