Hi I recently came across your website and am impressed with the various articles on parenting with appropriate content. mmy concern is my daughter who is 23 mo old. She goes to home daycare with middle aged Indian Telugu women since she is 9 mo old. Ini

Hi ! Welcome Deerag to Parentune family! What I have gathered from yr description is u r concerned that the baby is not having meals with you. There could be many ways to check on that : 1. U could ask yr kid what she had there in a polite way without arousing guilt ? 2. U could give a surprise visit to her daycare during lunchtime and check for yourself what they are feeding the baby. 3. If a visit is not feasible U could give a phonecall and enquire about the same. 4. U could notice is the child having meals properly on weekends when the child is at home. 5. Do u notice any other change in child's behavior other than eating habits such as misbehaving with u, not listening to u, etc. ? 6. While feeding u could try and make mealtimes fun by telling a story, singing a rhyme, making it interactive etc. Hope this works out!

Hi Deerag, You may also want to check if she requires deworming in case if she is not eating well in the daycare too. Get the complete meal schedule from the caretaker so you would know when she had her last meal. if possible send food from home. I also sense from what you have written that you have a feeling that your child is ignoring you. I have gone through this phase when my son was 1 yr old. There were times when he used to turn away from me and also had refused to come to me when I went to pick him up from daycare. I read through many articles trying to figure out the psychological reason behind it. What I found was any prolonged separation from the primary caretaker is not taken very well by some children of age 18 months to 3 yrs. Though they may appear fine and happily playing in the daycare in the absence of primary caretaker (in most cases the mother), some children hurt inside and feel lonely and irritable. And one way to show the irritation is by ignoring that parent during reunion. So you may also want to check how many hours you are away from your child and try to reduce the no of hours and try spending more time with him to reduce the fear and anxiety. Hope this helps.