Should I Continue with This Private Home Daycare?

I would look for a new daycare asap. This place sounds dirty, and I would never allow my child to be in a dirty enviornment. I know its convenient, but just because somethings convenient doesn't mean its the right choice. Good luck.

Sorry, I've not been in this situation....

but ..... eewww!!!

Frankly, I'd try to find a different place. You see that it isn't very clean..... and he still gets sick all the time!

At ANY childcare situtation, kids will get sick. Especially babies and young toddlers. BUT, yes, she should have clean carpets and clean toys all the time. When I was watching super little ones, I would lysol toys every day and then bleach/dishwash others once a week.
I wouldn't yank him out, but I would address the cleanliness issue if you feel it needs to be brought up.

honest, honest answer here: time to find a new provider!

I've had an inhome daycare for 10+ years now.....& I vacuum daily, sometimes more! I shampoo the carpets 2 x year....sometimes more, depending on our level of activity. & as a heads-up, my carpets are 25+ years old.....& you would never know it!

As for those diaper changes, I know a lot moms change wherever at home....BUT for a provider to do this on the carpet, OMG! NO, NO, NO! You are required to sanitize between every single diaper change! Even if I'm assembly-line changing diapers, I have to wipe down in between children!

On to the toys: they are supposed to be cleaned DAILY. I wipe down everything....& all toys (put into mouths) are washed in the sink each night. As I see a toy go in the mouth, I hover until the toy/teething is over & then toss the toy into the sink. It's the only way to keep up with the germs!

& as for illness: yes, your child is going to be sick for the 1st 2 years. It will seem like a never-ending cycle of illness. This is pretty much normal for a lot of kids.....but I truly do believe that your provider is dropping the ball when it comes to cleanliness! Time to move on.....because you cannot force her to do anything! It's her home, her business....unless you're ready to call DFS/health dept.

It's places like this that give home daycares a bad name. Get your son out of there asap. The place sounds like and unsanitary pit to me... vacuums once a WEEK???? I vacuum once a day, sometimes more. If she isn't even vacuuming the carpet you can bet she's not shampooing it or cleaning toys. And your baby is crawling around on this filthy carpet that leaves his socks dirty? Please look for another daycare.

Having said all of that... yes, you can expect your son to be sick at least once a month with a common cold during cold and flu season and you can expect him to get 2-3 other viruses during cold/flu season as well during the first year or so of care. This is what any pediatrician will tell you and what the CDC says about any child in a care situation where they are exposed to other kids. The good news is that he is building his immune system and he will either be sick now or if you pull him out and keep him home where there's no exposure he'll get sick later in preschool or kindergarten. If he builds his immune system now, he'll be sick a lot less later, and when he does get sick it will be less severe. My two kids get a couple of colds during the sick season, but it lasts a few days vs others who have it for more than a week.

For me germs are ok... and even dirt is ok to a degree... filth is not ok.

Hi X. Z.,

During the school year, my four year old son attends a private in-home preschool. While he does get sick from time to time, the place is cleaned daily by the teachers; the carpeted areas are vacuumed, the other floors swept and cleaned and all common surfaces (sinks, counters, tables, toilets) wiped down.

You cannot *make* your provider clean her house to your standards. I'm sorry about this, truly. I have worked in child development centers and had my own home-based preschools twice and know that while the onus is on me (and my co-teachers) to keep the areas clean, there's very little you, the parent, can do other than pull your child out of care. With child development centers and licensed/registered home care providers/preschools, you can report a grievance/complaint through the state agencies. (check out your local child care resource and referral program for more information if you want to make a complaint.) The fact that your child's socks are filthy, though, and that she doesn't have a changing table would be concerning to me. That she only vacuuums once a week with the wee ones on the floor also speaks to her level of concern about this matter--not much. I'm guessing also that there isn't a "dirty toy" bin (a container where we place toys when they have been in a child's mouth or otherwise exposed to germs) and that toys aren't being sanitized frequently, which is a must for youngsters of this age. It's not fun to have to do this work, but it's integral to running a healthier program.

My biggest concern, though, would be that she isn't being honest with you. You sound like you know it. Right now, this dishonesty-- or, let's be kind and call it 'lack of follow-through'-- has been limited in its consequence to your son's being sick. What is worrisome is that she knows this is a concern for you and still chooses not to remedy the situation. IIn short, she does not value your trust and isn't self-motivated to provide a quality care environment. This would be a big red flag for me.

If it were me, I would find a new provider. Someone you can trust. Go and observe the teacher/provider in the space without your child present. See for yourself how the space 'feels'. Does it feel relatively orderly and tidy? Do you get a sense that the toys are cleaned regularly and are in good order? Is there a bin handy for toys that have been in a child's mouth or handled by kids with colds? This is important for limiting exposure.

Kids get sick at daycare. That's a given. This will happen at the cleanest center or daycare. But what you described was pretty terrible. I'd look elsewhere.

While it's good to be around germs to develop immunity to them, if you're unhappy i would move him. And tell the provider why you are taking him from her home.

Experience, personality, and convenience are all good reasons to keep him there, but if it's not cleaned to your specifications move him to one that is.

1. If you send your kid to a private home daycare, does she/he get sick all the time too?

Yes at previous daycare. Hasn't been sick once at new daycare.

2. Is the daycare you send your kid clean? Yes!!

3. how can I make her to clean up for real (not just saying so)? Other than hiring a housekeeper/cleaning service I don't see how you can. Seems to think her home is clean enough otherwise she would clean more.

4. the provider has lots of experience and she seems nice. and the location is right in my community, super convenient. I know changing daycare is not good for my son. what should I do? check out other private home daycares? Your child is in an extremely unsanitary environment that is impacting his health, move him. Don't listen to people blabbing about let the boy's immune system develop. What baby needs multiple experiences with RSV? And yes I do believe some kids can be sick all the time because I witnessed this myself at old daycare. Check around and give another daycare a try.

If it is dirty I would recommend finding somewhere else. You have already brought it up and it's still dirty. If she can't clean her house, what else can she not do? My daughter is in an in-home daycare and has been sick once this past year and a half because someone had a cold. She is never sick. My babysitter's house is immaculate besides the occasional board game or something in the living room. Her house is cleaner than mine lol. It can be unhealthy to change daycares, BUT his safety should never be compromised. He is sick because he puts things in his mouth and everything is dirty. I wouldn't pay someone to watch my child if they can't even clean up their house. If she lies to you about cleaning, is that really a good system to have with a babysitter? If my babysitter lied to me that would be the end of it. I have to be able to trust my sitter. I would check out other daycares and work on his mouth habit at the same time. If he doesn't put his hands in his mouth, he still shouldn't be there... from your post, she sounds kinda lazy if she can't keep up a clean environment and lies to you it seems.

Even when my child was 3 months-9 months at an inhome daycare in Arizona, she did not get sick but once. Changing daycares shouldn't affect him too much. Let him meet the daycare provider and play over there for a little bit. My daughter changed daycare providers twice (this one is her 3rd sitter) b/c we moved and then her 1st sitter here was lazy and my mom said her mom smoked in the house.

***Just to add: Guess what will happen when he starts crawling and he's there?... You will have to start buying new clothes after one wear because his knees are going to get filthy. Yuck, and when he wears shorts his bare knees. Eww. When my daughter was crawling in my old arizona apt it is hard to keep immaculate b/c it's desert and sandy and gets in the apt but I got a swiffer and kept that place immaculate. If her socks got even a tiny bit dirty I'd pull out the swiffer again. Someone who can't keep up a proper daycare, I seriously doubt is taking proper care of the kids. Laziness in cleaning usually seeps into other areas.

I've ran an in-home daycare for 25 years. I do change diapers on the floor. But I don't have carpet one. Two I wipe the floor area after the change. Also, I put the clean diaper under the one I'm changing and I have plastic bags, hand sanitizer etc nearby. I am a complete germophobe. I do change on the floor though because my wrists can not take picking kids up repeatedly to place on a changing table.

Like Sue I also put mouthed toys in the sink. I do mop floors all the time with a weak solution of bleach, put bleach in my dishes, push hand washing, but I do NOT wash all the toys daily. I do have hundreds of toys and my kids like to build with building sets. We have hundreds of building blocks in each set and 3 different types of sets. We also have the 50 or more cars. The kids are taught to never put their hands in their mouths and if I catch them they are taught to wash the toys they have just been playing with.

Beyond the everyday things I do to keep my house SPOTLESS, you have to realize that we can't wash the pages in books. I wipe the keyboards down often. But the kids use the computers too often to wipe them down between every use. We wash doorknobs as well. But once again, they can't be washed every time. If you only knew the thousands of places we all touch in a weeks time you would know how utterly futile it really is.

Why do I clean a LOT? I do it because I've been in business long enough to be rather grossed out by watching the kids and knowing the terrible things they do. They hand toys back and forth to each other before a person could ever hope to stop them. They trade spoons during lunch. They even kiss each other if we aren't right there every second to stop them. But let's get real there too. Husbands and wives kiss all the time and that's after they each go to separate jobs all day long getting exposed to all kinds of sick germs.

I would leave this provider because I can't stand dirty carpet. Carpet is GROSS! BUT, even with the cleaning I do my kids get sick too often.

The number 1 thing we can do to limit sickness is to concentrate our efforts on teaching the children to stop putting their fingers and toys in their mouths. Be strict with them about it and make them learn as soon as possible. My kids that are good about it get sick less and the older they get the less they get sick. I know that some of it is because their immune system is getting better at fighting off illness. But MOST of that is because they are learning to be less dirty themselves.

Think about this.. I do allow my kids to attend daycare when they have the yucky diaper viruses. If they don't have a fever, but their stools are loose, we keep them. We wash hands like crazy, put plastic under them when changing them, etc. etc.. But even after changing as many as 4-6 yucky diapers per day, major blowouts for 3-4 days in a row that 1-3 kids have gotten, I NEVER get these illnesses. Why? Because I know how to wash my hands!

sounds like he has allergies - if he's not running a fever - he has allergies...
Not to be rude but are you a germaphobe? What are you expectations of clean?

I didn't send my kids to private homes when i worked, they went to Kindercare...

1. Your child is acclimating his immune system to the things around him.
2. If he doesn't have a fever, it's not a cold - if the mucus coming from his nose is clear, it's allergies - and yes, sometimes allergies can give green and yellow mucus as well as it's pollen....

I don't own a day care but I vacuum my carpets daily...that's bad if she doesn't do it more than once a week.

changing kids on the floor - NOT ONLY NO BUT HECK NO!!!

So to answer your questions.
1. Kids will get sick. It's a fact of life. Doesn't matter if you send him to a home day care or a facility...his body and immune system are adjusting to new things that are being introduced.
2. Not sure what your level of clean is...if you are looking for wiped down floors and walls - you will be hard pressed to find that.
3. You can tell her that if her home isn't clean - that you will remove your child.
4. Convenient is nice - however, if you have concerns then you need to look around...you need to make your expectations clear from the get go...

Kids do get sick more often when in daycare and/or school just because they are exposed to more. However,if you are truly concerned with the cleanliness of the daycare and have voiced your concerns without results,then I would definitely be looking for another daycare.

Sorry to tell you, but that daycare sounds really dirty and gross. My son has gone to 2 very clean at-home daycares since 4 months old and gets sick once every few months- he's almost 2 now. Maximum- a little sniffle once a month but nothing serious more than twice a year. The daycares have both been spotless, and I know at the current one they clean the toys with a disinfectant every other day. I also nursed him for 18 months- which I think also helped because I noticed since I stopped he's had a few more bugs than he used to. You might want to consider going to a cleaner daycare, or telling the lady it really bothers you and if she doesn't fix it you'll leave.

It is a great idea of Cheryl's below about allergies. Your son is old enough now to have allergy tests run (blood test, not skin prick). This will test for environmental as well as food allergens. There are comprehensive regional profiles based on where you live. I heard stories and was afraid my daughter would be sick but she wasn't. I would talk with your ped about it.

Her place sounds filthy! I wouldn't keep him there another day! There is NO excuse for not vaccumming daily, cleaning and sanitizing ALL the toys DAILY and making sure the home is clean for kids. Find someone who will listen to you and do a much better job of taking care of your son. This care sounds sub-standard. GL!

M

I used to work in a preschool, and I remember the first year that I worked there (I was there for 5 years) was the worst. It takes time to get used to the germs and to build up an immunity to them. Your son just needs time to build up his immunity. One thing that can help with that would be to give him probiotics. When I became a mom and my daughter started preschool when she was 3, her first year, she was sick all the time. Now that she is going into 1st grade, she is hardly ever sick. My son is the same way.
But, I wouldn't send my kids to a place where they didn't vacume everyday or clean either. It's good to be exposed to germs, but too much isn't good either. I would look around for another place to take him to that is cleaner. I just can't imagine watching 3+ kids everyday and only vacume once a week. I vacume our rug (we have laminate floor) at least once a day and I only have my own 2 kids here.

When we started our son in a day care center at a Church, he was sick all the time too. I was always told that this helps build up their immune system. I personally would not keep my son at the private day care if they did not clean every day.

I understand being busy with so many children (as I feel my house could be cleaner) however 1. you are being paid to watch kids and 2. you have 3 kids of your own - goodness sakes lady clean your floor if nothing else!!! I have had my kids in both in home and daycare settings and I have to say I prefer daycare. Yes, they get sick a lot however my son, now 4.5, gets sick much less often than the first two winters he was in a center - my daughter, 1.5, did much better than I thought for her first winter in a center.
My kids go to a Kindercare in our area and I haven't been happier with the care and the cleanliness.
I know how you feel about not wanting to switch your son (I once changed due to a move) and it broke my heart knowing he wouldn't see his friends.
I am not sure if/how you can make her clean more if you've already asked her and it's not happening..

Updated

I understand being busy with so many children (as I feel my house could be cleaner) however 1. you are being paid to watch kids and 2. you have 3 kids of your own - goodness sakes lady clean your floor if nothing else!!! I have had my kids in both in home and daycare settings and I have to say I prefer daycare. Yes, they get sick a lot however my son, now 4.5, gets sick much less often than the first two winters he was in a center - my daughter, 1.5, did much better than I thought for her first winter in a center.
My kids go to a Kindercare in our area and I haven't been happier with the care and the cleanliness.
I know how you feel about not wanting to switch your son (I once changed due to a move) and it broke my heart knowing he wouldn't see his friends.
I am not sure if/how you can make her clean more if you've already asked her and it's not happening..

Pull him out. Just because a provider is "nice" and "convenient" doesn't make it a good one.

Honestly, though, I've been there, done that, and babies WILL get continually sick while in daycare, until their immunity builds up, usually around age 2 or so. It's completely normal. Whether or not you have your child a home care or center environment, it doesn't really matter.

Having sent my two sons to a private home daycare since they were three months old, I strongly suggest that you find another daycare provider. There are some others out there who are very clean and vacuum everyday! I know because I had a great one. My boys were rarely sick and she had 5 other children in her care. My boys were never dirty unless they played in dirt. Because you are paying a lot more for a private day care than a center, interview some other providers and talk to people in your neighborhood. All the best to you and your children.

Yes, kids get just as sick in home daycare as they do in centers. the reason is that the women that put their kids in daycare cannot afford to stay home from work for 2 weeks while their kids recover from colds and other bugs. The good news is that your little one will build up an immunity and when he reaches elementary school and his peers are ill, he will fight it off very quickly. That being said, I think your home day care could make it easier for you by cleaning. I'm not sure how the health department would feel about her changing dirty diapers on the same carpet that the kids play on. That is pretty disgusting. At the day care center my daughter went to, the kids and any adult entering the room had to remove their shoes to prevent the spread of dirt and germs in the infant and toddler rooms and I am pretty sure the cleaning crew came in every couple of days at least. toys got bleached often too. I have used a private day care and a center and their are advantages and disadvantages to both. I don't think your current situation meets your needs though so you may want to get a different provider.

Hi X.,

Some kids are just prone to illness like my own. I've sent my children to daycare and they seem neat but without watching them clean it is hard to tell how sanitary the toys, carpet etc. are. I don't think you can make your daycare center clean. If you feel this is not the right situation for your child I would go with your gut.

Have you ever considered a nanny or Au Pair in your home? You can avoid the other kids germ's and set your own rules on how the cleaning will be done. I work as a coordinator for an Au Pair service which is more affordable than you may think. It is only $345/week per Family (not per child) for 45 hours of childcare and light household duties. It offers a lot of other conveniences as well - you won't have to get your baby ready in the morning for daycare, no dropping them off or picking them up, you won't have to rush home for 6 PM daycare closing, you get to know your childcare provider like a member of your family, and you can set your schedule how you need it including evenings, and even some weekends. I'd love to talk with you more about hosting an Au Pair. ____@____.com

i'm a firm believer that not being steril is the best for us. if we don't let our bodies fight off little things they definetly can't fight off big germs. but if your kid gets sickthat often i'm thinking maybe he needs vitamins or something. most kids get sick a few times a year. mine might get sickonce and by that i mean a runny nose or a cough nothing more. and it lasts a day maybe two. every kid is different though but i suggest vitamin C.

I think some kids are just more prone to get sick. My son is in an in home daycare as well. The only person I really have to compare him to is a child at my church. Her mom is a SAHM and her house is spotless, but her child is constantly sick. It seems that every week, her child has had something new, foot and mouth disease, ear infections, always something.
The one time that I went into the bathroom at my sons daycare, I was really grossed out, but the rest of the home seems clean. She vacuums ever day while the kids are down for their afternoon naps. The kids are required to pick up all of their toys and put them away before they get their mats out and then she vacuums.
You can't make her clean.
Your son is still really young. I don't think changing daycares will effect him that much now. We had to change for a variety of reason twice before my son turned 12 months before we found this daycare. There is no harm in looking for another daycare.

I did not have to go through this situation. But your child is yours and if the provider does not care enough to clean up there is a problem. She may have experience and seem nice, but cleanliness is super important when it comes to little ones. I would suggest looking around. My niece did take her daughter to a private home daycare and the lady kept it spotless even with a dog. She cleaned toys every evening once kids were gone. So it is possible. I wish you the best in whatever you decide.

My son goes to an inhome sitter. She is wonderful and my son adores her! To answer your questions:

1. no, he does get sick a few times a year - they have shared hand, foot and mouth twice now but it's been almost 3 years (and they all have siblings in middle school)
2. YES, VERY and it needs to be!
3. you can't
4.personally, I would find another sitter and/or daycare center

Overall, remember that he is building immunities so that is good but, no, he should not be that sick all the time!

Change daycare!
The toys should be cleaned DAILY, especially since little ones will be putting everything in their mouth. They should be washed in soapy hot water and/or wiped down with a disinfectant cloth. If she is changing kids on the carpet and little ones are crawling around she should be vaccuuming every night after the kids get home.
I doubt you saying anything is going to help. I understand that you are hesitant to shift your son again, but cleanliness is very important so if I were you I would start looking around and ask questions about it.
My DD started pre-school when she was 2-1/2. One of the things I looked for was cleanliness and I visited A LOT of dirty pre-schools before I found a great one. They clean the toys daily, even cleaning while the kids are napping. And the place looks clean anytime of the day that I stop by. Even with that my DD still came home with lots of colds, pink eye, flu, etc. I think it is pretty normal for them to pick things up from other kids, but not to the extent that your son is getting sick.
Good luck and I am sure once you hit elementary your son will have a super immune system!