Is Childcare A Piece Of Cake?

I was never told that childcare was easy, In fact, I was told the opposite, I guess it is because I was discouraged from getting married and having children. So when we adopted our boys, it was so easy. Even with the hard work, and waking up at night to see if my younger one who had breathing problems was still alive, and having to watch Flintstones when I wanted to watch Soap Operas, diapers, keeping them from jumping off the top of the basement stairs, etc. taking care of them was easy. I guess it depends on your perspective and what people tell you.

Caring for a child or children is in no way a piece of cake! I only have one child and she is a handful to say the least. She made up for her not having siblings lol in her younger year. She had me fit to be tied when she took a red permanent marker and drew all over her bedroom walls, her book shelf which of course was white, and so on. I had to deal with paying bills, deal with getting the room cleaned up, get dinner started before I picked up my husband at the time from work in the next town which was over 12 miles away, making sure she was cleaned up before we got in the car for the trip and so on. I was a mess that day! But I got it all taken care of. My duaghter cleaned up most of that mess on her own, her step-dad ended up helping her and scolding her at the same time lol. he worked at a trailer plant on a hot tarmac for 10 to 12 hours a day so the last thing he wanted to do was come home and help clean up red marker off the walls hahahah! But we all had a good laugh over it.

I used to run a day-care when i lived in Singapore. The number of kids was 16 in total but not all of them always turned up...and that's counting my little one and maybe one or two other babies who just came for the heck of it. It was only for 3 hours a day Monday to Friday and it was pretty straight forward but certainly no piece of cake. You had to be so alert and so aware of EVERY child, what they were doing and where they were and if there was anything they needed. It was great.

Besides working in the nursery at church, and things like that, I've never taken care of more than three kids at once. But even just one child, takes a lot of work. I'm a work at home mom, and I am busy all day long. I don't think a lot of working moms realize just how much there is to do when you are home with your kids all day. When my sister and I were talking about it, after I first stopping working outside my home, she said that she would like it at first, but she would get bored after the first week or two, because she wouldn't have anything to do. I don't know what she thinks her kids would be doing, though! At the time, one of her daughters was being potty trained, and the other one was finishing up kindergarten. She would be plenty busy picking up after them and working with them on various things! She even went so far as to say that all she would do for those two weeks (before she got SOOO bored) was clean her house. I was pretty mad. I laughed, and told her that if she had her kids all day, she would be doing a whole lot more cleaning, and she just looked at me like I was crazy. She says the kids wear her out on weekends sometimes. I wonder what she thinks they do when she is at work??

Anyone that thinks taking care of children is a piece of cake has Never spent the whole day in a daycare center.I use to work in one and it is no picnic.It is very hard work,you have to constantly keep your eyes,and ears and attention always alert..Those children have to be dressed ,diapered and read too and intertained all day long.Its really a hard job.I personally would not ever want to work that hard ever again.The children are cute, and they are sweet but a lot of hard work goes into caring for them..I can assure you the working mothers that leave their children at a day care does not work as hard as the one keeping their child...

childcare is a difficult task. But, when you come to enjoy it . It will be a lot of fun. I love taking care of my only nephew and he loves me too. I always help him with his assignments and so many other school work. There is a reward after the care you gave to a child and it is love in return.

My husband is one of those people that think caring for kids is a piece of cake. We have 3 kids ages 1, 2 1/2, and 4 1/2. It is very difficult to care for all of them because they are all on different learning levels. Each one is also trying to push the limits in different ways. I think the only reason I can somewhat deal every day is because I have been doing this for a while. There was a point in time in my past when I watched 2 other children. I only had 2 kids of my own at that time, equalling 4 kids altogether. I think I was much less stressed then, but I am not sure why. I think it could have been because 2 of the children went home every day and didn't come over on weekends. I was much more organized and sane. Now I have 3 kids of my own, attend school full time, and am starting a business in which I do the accounting. One never knows how hard it is to care for kids until that person has been thrown into doing it.

I am an older male watching 2 young kids 5 and 9 yrs old and when all their friends come over for most of the day in the summer or on weekends, it is like a day care center here. No easy task to keep them all happy.

Unless you have been in that situation and have had to care for your own children, no one really knows what it is really like until they have done it themselves. That's why many say its a peice of cake because if you send them off to daycare, then you are left with nothing much to do. Some don't consider household chores part of it either. I never knew what it was like to take care of children and how much work was involved until I had my son five years ago (and I just have the one child). Imagine those with more than one, I don't envy them at all. It was tough when he was young and it still is today (even though he goes to school now). I had a really hard time when I injured my lower back (herniated disc) AND still had to take care of my son while he was home with me as he had not started school yet. That was the hardest time of all for me and my husband wasnt much help as he was away overseas. Trying to cope with the pain was the hardest as I was bedridden most of the time and had to force myself out of bed just to tend to my sons needs. Sorry went of subject here - just wanted to say that childcare is NOT a peice of cake for stay at home moms/dads, especially for working moms/dads and or single moms/dads.

My 2 children are 14 months apart also. What I get tired of hearing is people saying that I've made a mistake. I don't think children are a mistake at all whether they're close together, planned or unplanned, or far apart. Raising kids is hard but very rewarding. Although, during hard days, the rewards don't seem in sight but they are there. And like you said, there are people who think child raising is as easy as snapping your fingers and getting them to listen. All I tell them is to talk to me when they have children of their own.

Oh my, easy???? I teach first grade and have 26 little ones everyday. A lot of people say what a piece of cake job, lol. I would like to see them handle so many different personalities, so many questions, so much training, lol. You get tired just putting on 26 coats, hats, gloves, boots, and then trying to keep everyone on the same level. I can relate to your daycare experience, people think we just sit and give directions, I can't remember when the last time I had a 15 minute break, lol.

well no its not a piece of cake at all,i have 3 little ones that are 36months old and twins that are 26 1/2 months old and they are all being potty trained at the same time and all i have to say is omg,my hair should be grey lol.its very hard but we manage what we can do because we have to and they are our little bundles of joy.but the most i have handled at once was my 3 plus my sisters 2 older ones and its tough.no matter how hard it is and how stressed i get i enjoy every moment with them,and they always put a smile on my face.take care.pattie

Most of the people like this that I have run into do not have children. It is always the ones who have no experience that think they know best. I just sit back and let reality hit them in the face when they start raising children. I comend anyone brave enough to brave having a daycare. If I had to my hair would fall out and my skin turn red with anxiety. Good job to child care workers comendations all around for without you children would be lost.

my husband thinks that i dont do a lot...i am in your friend's situation i had my second baby 3 months after my daughter turned one..its been a nice little roller coaster..were also trying to potty train her..though she tends to think that whatever is good for her brother is good for her too..including eating his food..i try to leave both kids alone with my husband to see if he can finally grasp the concept that i do a lot when im home alone with the kids. i dont think hes gotten the message yet because he still makes me do a lot of the work around the house. but someday soon hell know what its like.

I have known so many people like that. Some are even parents themselves. Well, I suppose you might expect men to be like that but I know plenty of women who think looking after kids means sitting around all day. I try not to get into those kinds of conversations! I have been a full time mum for the past 7 (almost 8) years and I've had 2 kids for a little over 2 years but there are people (including other mums) who actually seem to believe that I sit around doing nothing all day! It is very hard work looking after kids (assuming you're doing a good job of it of course!) I go to a play group with my youngest son where most the other people there do paid jobs or have until recently. Some of them are child minders. Most of them don't actually pay much attention to the kids they are supposed to be looking after so it's not really surprising that they think it's so easy when it is for them because they actually don't look after the kids. Even my partner thinks that me taking our toddler to a playgroup is a break for me. I don't know why because it's not like I'm leaving him there. I've still got to be there to look after him and to teach him things. I think it is very rude of anyone to assume that looking after kids is easy. I have 2 really well behaved children who are also intelligent and creative. People might assume that makes it easier but it is just as hard and sometimes maybe harder because they are the kind of children who will always need more and more stimulation. Not saying it's easy to look afer a naughty child because it isn't but the chances are, a better behaved and brighter child has probably had parent(s) who have put in a lot more hard work than a child who is not very bright or well behaved.

Child care can be a pain. Taking care of children at all can sometimes be a pain. Children are never easy to take care of.

Handles about 6 mine and my sister in laws as we stqayed with them from time to time between jobs . I did all the correcting she just let them go. Very hard I dont know where people come off thinking it isnt work!

I am a stay at home mom of two and have been doing childcare for 6 years out of my home. Its NOT as easy as some people think. Children are all diffrent and need diffrent things all at diffrent times. You have to make sure there all fed, watered,changed, happy. You have to watch them ALL the time, especially smaller ones. It takes a split second for something to happen to them. Daycare providers do alot of hard work and deserve every penny they make. People who think its easy have never stayed home with a couple children. If they did they would change there mind!!

Whether or not childcare is easy depends on the child and the provider, parent or not. I have raised two girls, and I run a daycare in my home. Some providers are not easy to get along with. They do not really like kids, or they are only providing care because it is their only option at the time. Some parents are too lenient, and they think that childcare providers should just deal with their child and cater to their child's needs. Unfortunately, the child is in the providers home or center, not their own, and the rules are different. As providers, we have to care for more than just that child, so we need some cooperation from the parent and the child. My children were taught to follow different rules at different places, so this was not too much of a problem for our family. Some children are just too used to getting their own way, and will make a providers life miserable until the provider gives in. I have never been a provider who would give in, I am one who will ask a parent to find alternative childcare though. As for my sister, I have called her home for work to deal with my older nephew more than once. No, it is not a Piece of cake caring for others children. It is exhausting, even though I love what I am doing. There is a lot more involved than just sitting around and watching the children play.

Not at all This is the worst job from ma point of view