Summer - Westerville,OH

He should do it! take them out and love, love his kids! Never get that opportunity again. They grow up so fast. They will find friends forever but will not get to be with Dad forever.

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No. When I was a stay at home my kids never went to preschool during the summer. They had their friends phone numbers so they still got together to play.

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No. They will be fine. It will actually be really GREAT opportunity for HIM to create family memories, however. The friends - new or old - will still be there in 2 months. No biggie at all.

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I'm a teacher, and my kids never went to daycare in the summer.

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He can still take them on play dates and out to places with other kids. I don't see any reason why he shouldn't do it, honestly. It will be a great way for them to bond.

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It won't matter much for the 2 year old since they tend to play next to each other instead of with each other.
It might matter for the 5 year old. It depends on Dad's personality. Is he the type to arrange lots of play dates and activities for this kids, or will he expect them to play in the backyard most of the day?

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No I don't think it will matter either, but the 5 year old will need to play with other kids. I agree that Dad will need to set up play dates and make sure he takes them on outings. The older one will need that more than the younger one, but even the younger child will need to get out of the house and explore. 2 y/os are really good at trying your patience if you're cooped up with them all day! ;)

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No they will be just fine, that is such a great opportunity to get to spend that time with his children. So many fun things they can do and so many great memories they can make!

I say go for it. Kids have only a few summers to relax and they grow out of wanting to be with their parents so quickly. I work 3 long days a week and have always kept the kids home the other days. I want time with them.
This summer we have a babysitter coming to our house just so the kids can stay home. She is taking them to activities and letting them relax. Their year is so structured that we want them to have unstructured time to play in the summer.
As far as friends, at this age, they pick back up with them quickly. My oldest is 6 and has several friends who have moved on from her daycare. She has no trouble picking right back up with them when they see each other every couple months.
I say go for it whole heartedly, or at least keep them home 2-3 days out of the week. Parent time is way too important and fleeting.

Absolutely not. Socializing at that age is overrated. Kids need time to play by themselves and just explore without structure and other playmates all the time. Besides, it'll be a great opportunity for some Daddy time.

I actually think it's very sad that our society seems to believe it's a crime for kids to be bored.

?? I'm not sure I understand this question fully.
Can you re-word it some?

No. He should seize the opprotunity to be with his kids. My kids are about that age and do not see their friends during the summer much. They all go back to school fine.

As long as he has a plan it will be great for the kids. Make sure he looks at fun free activities or low cost and schedules his days. I am not a sahm but always see stuff when I am planning weekend stuff that entertains my kids and am like wow I should take the day off to do that with the kids.

I think the kids will be used to child care and have a hard time staying home. It will be fun of course but this is why I would say maybe not...don't hate me, I just know how hard it is to transition back to child care.

This is why. They have been going since they were infants I suppose.

They are used to their schedules, eating at the same time 5 days per week, going down for naps with the same cot, blankets, music playing in the background, the same teacher voices talking, the whole thing is routine to them.

Everything about child care is routine, days with dad could be full of going and staying busy and their whole little world could be so disrupted. Dad's may not understand the need of a little one to eat lunch right at 10:45 or 11, to lay down right afterwards, to get up around 2:30 or 3, having a snack waiting when they get up, their little bodies are very used to the routine.

Another thought too is that there is NO guarantee the previous care giver will have any openings when dad has to go back to work. If he is taking the summer off due to being a teacher or some other job that is seasonal and he has a job already for fall then having child care that is going to be there is a must.

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That said, I cannot imagine what kind of messes the mom might come home to and have to clean up after a day with dad running the household...lol. She might want to run screaming the other way!

I think if dad is good about understanding these kids need to stay on a close schedule to what they are used to and that they need to eat on time, lay down on time, get up on time, have snacks on time, etc...then it could work very well.

It also will teach dad what mom goes through on a daily basis and he may gain an understanding of what a SAHM does. More empathy for sure.

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So, I think the draw of saving all that money on child care is a huge plus, having dad walk in the mom's shoes for a couple of months is a plus, having that time with his kids is a plus, lots of pluses for sure.

But, I think that keeping the kids in child care if it is do-able financially without hardship, then letting dad have liberal time to plan a special day each week is a good opportunity for the dad and kids to have some serious bonding time and good for them. But I would want to keep the kids in child care most of the week if nothing more than save their spot. A parent pays the same amount per week if the kids are there or not, let the kids stay home a day or two per week and go have some fun but let dad have some free time too.