Daycare/Preschool/Mother's Day Out

My son is almost 3 and has been in the same situation. That being said, I don't dare take him out of school because he LOVES it! If he is home we deal with a bored child. I also work in a school and one of the major topics of discussion from the younger teachers is how children who have not been in daycare/learning center/pre-k situations are out much more often than students that were because their immunity systems have been built up, so that is something to consider.
It has been a particularily rough winter, so keep in mind that spring is just around the corner! :-)

you might want to send in a huge bottle of hand sanitzer or some boxes of soft tissues.

It is important that kids get exposed to all sorts of germs to build their immune systems.

There was a study a few years a go that "proved" that people who have MS were kept too secluded and clean as children and didn't get exposed to the right germs and therefore don't have their strong immune systems as adults. Kids systems are made to fight off the diseases and that's why a kid with chicken pox is not so bad but an adult with it can be seriously ill.

If your child is not exposed to the variety of germs and illnesses now they will start all over in Kindergarten and miss days out of school with these same sicknesses.

It's normal for kids to pass everything around.

I would personally just keep him home and schedule a play date every week or so with another mom. No need dealing with this yet if you don't have to! He'll have plenty of time to pick up germs when he starts school.

I have a SIL who homeschools her kids and they still end up sick every winter! I'd attribute it to the fact that it's winter and everyone is cooped up. My SIL goes to homeschool groups every once in awhile, but there are times when she has been home with the kids for two+ weeks and someone ends up getting sick.

And...like everyone else said...they'll be exposed to other germs in school so you are bound to get sick! Just go with the flow....at least it's been your common cold stuff and no need for the dr. office.

I'm a substitute teacher and my little one is now 7 months old. I was doing a maternity leave subbing and we have been in once a month to the dr for pink eye and double ear infection-- I just chalk it up to exposure.

Any school, preschool included is a bombardment of germs that you can't really avoid. It is kind of like build his immune system now or build it later... I have 2 in school and a 2 year old at home and they bring home double the germs now! My son (oldest) has the best immune system out of the bunch and usually gets a tinge of something while the girls get full on sick. I would say just make sure they are doing purrell before snack at preschool, wash his hands as soon as he gets home and boost his immunity up with vit d and omegas.

It may seem like there are all sorts of nasties flying around, but the fact of the matter is, you just won't know when he's in regular school. :) Ignorance IS bliss sometimes, but with smaller kids, it's sometimes nice to know what's flying around if your kid gets really sick. Our first two years with preschool/kindergarten were really rough. First grade is going a little better...and I trust that it will continue to get better the older my oldest gets (because of course he brings it all home and shares it with the four of us...I'm hoping my younger kids will bring a ton of immunity to school!).

In my opinion, it's part of the first year in school. He's just exposed to so many more germs and building up his immune system right now. It'll either be now or when he starts Kindergarten. The year my oldest started preschool was the worst for our family for illnesses. Since then, with 4 kids, we've certainly continued to have our share of illnesses, but none as bad as that. We made it through and we're all the better for it. Personally, I'd rather my child miss a few days of preschool than Kindergarten/1st grade.

My kids had to enter daycare at 8 weeks old when I returned to work. They were sick October-March for TWO years each! It was horrible!!! They are 3 and 5 now and (knock on wood) they have not had one symptom of an illness since last January!!! I always heard that kids are going to get sick from the germs they are exposed to, but they WILL build up their immunity to them. Those people were right!

You are going to go through it....now or when he starts school. IF he loves going, leave him there. It's good for him to have the socialization and direction from adults other than you. Preschool will help him transition into Kindergarten easier.

He'll either have it now or when he's in kindergarten.

He's building up his immune system. It's actually a good thing, if you look at it that way.

Everyone says this has been a really really bad year for sickness, so I think it may be the same anywhere in terms of exposure to germs.

But yes. Sick kid = no fun!!!!!!

Didn't you know? The secret purpose of daycare is to expose your kids to germs!

That way, they build up their immune systems (which you're allowing them to do since you're not using antibiotics--bravo!). If they don't get exposed to illness now, they'll get it when they're in kindergarten or first grade. Since you don't want them to miss actual class, it's good that they're sick now!

Just make sure everyone (including you and dad) eats healthy, plays OUTSIDE on a regular basis, and watches TV less than 2 hours/day. I found that doing that keeps the whole family healthy and happy. (And if Mama ain't happy, ain't no one happy.)

I was told that the same number of sicknesses seem to hit each kid whether they go to preschool or not. They just get sick more often when they start Kindergarten if they have not been exposed to those germs at a preschool. That said, it seems like there is a lot more going around this year than last year! My son's 1st grade class has had a flurry of illnesses. yuck.