How late do mindees stay..

[angeldelight]

Those of you who do have late leavers (babies) how do you cope with the 'witching hour' any suggestions? Yes of course I'm paid for time but I feel they struggle after 5.30.. Which us hard for me and my family..

I've worked later and yes they do get tired

I guess it depends on parents ..they obviously need those hours due to work ?

I would try and change their routine very slightly each week ....keep them occupied longer before they sleep ready to go home ?

I would also be asking parents what their routine is at weekends so you can do the same

Angel xxx

[Mickey Mouse Clubhouse]

I am really lucky at the moment as I work 8.30 until 4.30 which is great gives me time with my own children x

[maisiemog]

At the moment I'm lucky that they are usually gone by 6pm but one mum occasionally has to go to London and on those days they can be picked up anytime up to 10pm. A long day for me and them!

[kellib]

All mine are gone by 4:30-5:00pm thankfully! I am open till 6 but wouldn't work later than that.

[funemnx]

I used to work 7a.m. to 6.30p.m. and found that yes the lo's were tired but so was I. Now I will work up to 5.30 but dont take on contracts any later...

[KatieFS]

Yes I think 6pm is best finish time for little ones... Thanks all

[loocyloo]

I currently finish around 5.30/6.00 but have worked till later (8/9) mainly with schoolies when mine were little, but only once or twice a week. Schoolies used to help put mine to bed!

I have had a babe who stayed late and I just used to put pjs on and snuggle babe in pushchair or car seat. Not ideal but worked.

[PixiePetal]

My latest currently is a 2 yr old till 6.30pm. She gets a power nap in the afternoon. This will finish at Christmas when mum cuts her hours and mindee will go to nursery.

I did in the 'olden days' when I first registered have a child regularly overnight when mum had evening meetings in London - over an hour away by train. Rather than go home at 10.30 and back at 8am she just stayed in with DD. Family had split up during my care of her and it was stability for her and DD loved it too, wasn't every week

[Ali56]

It's hard on everyone, that last little bit! But as nurseries finish at 6 and parents often can't, our roles are important for families. How old are your own children? When mine were younger they would have struggled too. I finished at 5pm for about 3 yrs as my youngest needed to be in bed by 6 and I wanted that last hour for her routine! It did mean that I had to turn down some families as I couldn't accomodate the times they needed.
Can mum put pyjamas in the bag for you? How would you feel about starting the bedtime routine at yours? It may help pass that last hour and help mum too if she can just go home and be that bit closer to popping them into bed. I know this sounds really sad from a parent/child relationship point of view, but sometimes its in the best interest of the baby/ies and lasts only a short time till they can manage longer evenings. Or could you maybe shuffle nap times so they can have a little nap later in the afternoon and be more awake for the early evening? It may just be trial and error to work out what works best for all of you. If you can't manage the times then you need to be honest, it musn't impact badly on your family or the babies needs. Chat to mum and see if you can come up with a solution together x