Have you had to deal with the working mom daycare guilt? As moms there comes a time when we have to take our littles to someone else for childcare. Whether it be for work, doctors appointments, time out with hubby or just time to ourselves.
We’ve all been there and the daycare guilt is real.
Working Mom Letting Go of Daycare Guilt
As a working mom, the first time I dropped my baby off at daycare was heart-wrenching! Knowing someone else would be taking care of my kiddos and seeing the cute things they would be doing. The guilt and the anguish of missing out is something we face from time to time.
It’s no wonder the working mom guilt crept in and made me wonder if I was doing the right thing by sending my kids to daycare. But there was no reason for me to feel guilty, and you shouldn’t either! Put that working mom daycare guilt aside, because there are plenty of positives to sending your kids to daycare.
They’ll develop socialization skills
Even though they come from a large family with plenty of siblings around, my kids love getting to be around other kids their age. It’s fun and exciting for them to meet new people. They learn how to interact with others, how to share, and how to be part of a group that’s not family. These are all skills they’ll need for the rest of their lives, but especially to prepare them for pre-school or kindergarten.
Learning opportunities are everywhere
Daycare provides an environment that is stimulating and exciting with lots of opportunities to learn. Many childcare centers have planned crafts and activities each day. As a busy working mom with a large family, no matter how good my intentions are to come up with fun new educational activities for my kids, there’s only so much time in the day. It’s nice to know that I have a backup in this department!
It’s good for your mental health
We all know that a stressed and burned out mama isn’t the kind of mama anyone wants to be. Daycare can benefit you even if you’re not a working mom. Some time to yourself to do adult things can work wonders when you’re feeling fried. There’s no reason to feel the daycare guilt when it provides you with the time you need to recharge so you can pick your child up from daycare feeling energized and not drained.
Daycare is not raising your child
It may seem like your child spends more time at daycare than they do at home with you. Sometimes it feels like my childcare provider is raising my kids more than I am. This simply isn’t true. It’s me who tucks them in at night and makes them breakfast in the morning. I am who they run to when they are hurt or sad. And I’m the one that reads them the same story over and over again because they asked for it.
Being a working mom, you’re showing your child what it means to work hard. You’re putting food on the table and making sure their laundry is done. You’re asking their childcare providers about the details of their day and making sure you are always making the best decisions for
your family.
So let go of the daycare guilt, mom. Your babies love you and you are doing what is best for them and you!
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