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Wha??? By another kid??

My LO got bitten 6 times during her second week of daycare. They took drastic measures- talking with the offending child's family, rearraging the room to ensure that the kids were interested in something OTHER than my LO, and putting a staff on my daughter full time to make sure she wasn't bitten. Here we are in week 4 and no bites. I feel your pain, it's awful to think of some other kid biting your baby. I would talk to daycare if I were you.

Yikes!!! I would sleep on it then have a calm (or try to) talk with the director and daycare provider about how to avoid this.

@looch: me too! Biting is so developmental - it could be the sweetest kid ever doing the biting.

@Mrsbells: Is your daughter alright? Did it break the skin? I'm guessing the mixed emotions are because you know it's normal for kids to bite, but no one wants their child to be bitten! I'd ask how it happened and, if it happened again, talk to the director about making sure the teachers keep a closer eye on her.

Poor thing! I would be so upset if this happened to my LO, but I know this stuff happens with kids.

I hope that your daycare addresses the situation and provides a full explanation for what happened. I think I would be really bothered if they sort of brushed it off, but if they address it and don't try and cover it up and take precautions like what happened with @lulabee, I would feel better. One of my friends had their baby burned by a space heater at daycare and the daycare providers were like - "babies get into things!" Needless to say, they pulled their baby out of there ASAP.

@looch: Totally agree with you!

When my son was in homecare he was sometimes the victim of a biter and I was upset. But then we switched to a different homecare, and he went through a biting phase. I was always so humiliated and felt like his behavior was my fault, but I think a lot of young children go through this phase. I don't know how confrontational I'd be with the parent of the biter, especially if this was a one time thing.

However if the bite was serious and this happens often, I'd definitely talk the director.

As the parent of a biter, I can tell you it's the worst feeling, especially when you aren't there to control the situation. My LO shows NO signs of biting at home and around me. We have tried several things to stop the biting, it's inconsistent one bite every other week, so a total of 5 bites in two months. It really is developmental. I'm so sorry your daughter got bit, I just wanted to tell you what it's like from the other side.

@MungBean: Biting is developmental. It does not mean the biter was a "mean baby." Toddlers learn by mouthing things. They do not bite to be mean or viscious.

@littlek: I never said anyone was a "mean baby"

@looch: no matter the circumstances, I would be angry and upset that my child was bitten on the face. That's just how I would feel.

@MungBean: what would you be satisfied with the director doing? That's what I don't understand.

@Navy_Mommy: I would like to know what will be done to avoid this in the future.

@mewtill: I think other moms on here of LO's whom have gotten bitten said their daycare was able to at least confirm whether the biter was a repeat offender.

I think extreme(ish) reactions usually come from those who stay home with their LOs and/or who don't have to relinquish control . . . it is really difficult to understand having to deal with not only the guilt of leaving your LO, but also that you weren't able to do/not do something for them that may have helped prevent an incident.

@MsLipGloss: well put!

Not having seen the bite, I'd say being livid is an overreaction. I would rather talk to the teachers than the director personally, to find out their ideas on dealing with this because it is developmental and likely they have dealt with it before. If I was not satisfied with their answer, then I'd go to the director or maybe even think about finding another program for my child.

That said I do think there are opportunities lost when a teacher spends all their time avoiding any accidents and confrontations. Yes they can control the environment and yes they should watch the children as best they can but as long as they making an ongoing effort to address the situation, I would try to comfort my child extra and let it go.

@MsLipGloss: ok, why'd you have to go there? I'm a SAHM who knows that biting is normal (though not desirable) behavior in babies and toddlers. I think you'd get the full range of reactions from both SAHPs and WOHPs. Actually, poll any random 100 people on the street and I think some would be outraged and some would say, whatevs.

@mrsmate: Because not having control changes things. It doesn't diminish or lessen the anxiety and distress that any parent would feel(!) . . . but, the reality is, when you still have to hand your LO over to someone again tomorrow, with no more control than you had today, in order to make the best decisions possible and to be able to do it again (and again and again), you have to rationalize and try to limit the reactionary emotions because they will only make your anxiety worse, and because you have to try to instead re-direct that emotion into making the best decisions possible with regard to your LO's care. Not having to relinquish control changes that dynamic considerably.

@MsLipGloss: I wish you'd said this in the first place instead of generalizing negatively about SAHPs.

I think what you're actually talking about is WAHPs' need to suppress reactions to incidents for the sake of their own sanity. I totally get that. But you have the wrong idea if you think SAHPs don't have to check our emotions sometimes, too. Many of us feel very isolated in the early months, so when we are able to develop a social/support network of other SAHPs, we aren't going to give it up over nothing. We're not going to yell at a parent we've been seeing for months at a weekly playdate just bc their kid is doing something perfectly normal for their age. We're not going to stop going to a playground just bc some kid hit my kid.

You can change daycares. My DD goes 2x/wk, so I know it's not that easy. You know what else isn't easy? Making all new friends, which is what I'd have to do in my circle if I made a federal case out of biting.

My point is there is no reason to make it a WAH vs SAH thing bc we all have our challenges.

@mrsmate: I'm pretty positive this wasn't supposed to be a WOHM v SAHM contest. I think what @MsLipGloss: was saying is that it's hard when your child bites or bitten and there's nothing you can do about it. I feel HORRIBLE when my son bites a child and what makes it worst is that I'm not there to do something about it.

@Mrsbells: I'm so sorry for the thread jack. I really hope your little girl feels better! Hugs!