Daycare Woes

I was a nervous wreck when Dylan started daycare school this past January. I feared that he wouldn’t like being with a group of kids and adults he didn’t know after 8 months of being watched by my mom, and that he’d scream and cry for me every day. Fortunately, my concerns were quickly debunked as he proved to easily acclimate to the new environment. Unfortunately, I’m still not satisfied. 

Don’t get me wrong, I love what they’re doing over at Montessori. He is living the good life with finger painting, outdoor play, other children, and an attentive group of teachers. BUT- he’s also sick…all the time. The cycle is the same every week: he starts school on Wednesday only to wake up on Thursday with a cold, and is full-fledged sick with a fever by Friday night. My husband and I end up spending Saturday and Sunday trying to rehabilitate him and my mom babies him into a healthy state on Monday and Tuesday. Then, as soon as he’s finally on the mend, he goes back to school and collects a fresh set of germs that knock him out. It’s an extremely defeating pattern that I can’t seem to get a hold on. 

So what’s a mom to do? Anything. I’ve spent a great deal of time trying to come up with a solution to ward off these reoccurring illnesses and to determine whether this is common. All I’ve found is that diet and good habits are a great deterrent for viruses, that it’s universally agreed upon that daycares are a great way to get your kid sick build your child’s immune system, and that “most kids” go through an “always sick” phase. Basically, I’ve learned nothing- though I do have a sort of crazy idea: relactation. 

You see, Dylan was breastfed for 8 months until he woke up one day and decided he wanted nothing to do with me. The timing seemed to be perfect, as I had grown tired of 4:45 am pump sessions and lunch dates with the pump. So with a stash of frozen milk tucked away in my freezer I decided to quit. But now that my freezer is empty and the kid is constantly sick, I’m set on beginning the “relactation process,” otherwise known as “can I get that milk back?” I honestly don’t know if it’s even possible but I’m desperate enough to try anything.