New daycare, new beginning

As I mentioned in my previous post, sending him to daycare has only caused us sadness. Seeing how detrimental it is for his health, mental and social development, we quit sending him to daycare. We took care of him and slowly helped him to gain back his confidence, healthy weight and of course his cheerfulness!

Previously we had found a daycare that we liked, but the minimal age acceptance of the child is one year old. So at the end of May, we started sending our  boy to the new daycare which is much nearer to my lab. On the first two days, we insist on staying with him to encourage him to get acquainted with the teachers confidently. This Montessori based daycare/play school is for toddlers and being the the youngest in the group, he gets to socialize with elder toddlers. In the mornings, the have playtime, songs, dancing and reading. Then, they tend to their modest fruits and vegetable farm, followed by playing in the mud and sandpit. After lunch and nap time they have playtime and some fun activities.

Gunden took some time adapting but he was not unhappy. He adapted to this new place quite quickly and tend to like the school. On weekdays, after ensuring that he is well fed and rested, I carry him on baby sling, walk to the train station, take a train, get down at the next stop, walk uphill to the daycare and drop him off, walk to the lab and work. After work, I walk back to the daycare, pick him up and we happily go back home. As soon as we arrive, I feed him milk and let him take a short nap, while I do some chores (dinner, cleaning, laundry, etc). I feed him dinner, once he is awaken, wash him up, play for a while and put him to bed.

In Japanese daycare, every child is assigned a notebook which is to be filled by the parents and teachers. I will note down his activities, mealtime, potty time and also my concerns about him. Similarly, the teacher will update on his activities, progress and so on. They will also upload pictures of the kids at the daycare to the parents. So, it is quite comfortable and trustworthy place. The teachers are especially very kind and accommodating. As much as I want gunden to be taken care solely by me, I am glad that he is exposed to such healthy environment and friendly people.

With this new assuring daycare, I hope to finish up my research work during my work hours and complete my PhD successfully and look forward to our next venture with my precious gundu paiya.