Do I Charge or Not?

[QualiTcare]

if you don't think it's a big deal for an "older" child to stay confined to a room all day when they're sick, i just wonder if you offer that same option to parents of "older" children?

can their child come if you put them in a room with the TV? if they can't, why not?

i think the same rules you apply to your DC kids should apply to your own. you should have back up care for your own sick child if you require back up care for theirs. if you allow your sick child to stay home, they should be able to let their sick child come.

if you don't agree with that - then NO WAY should a parent have to pay because your kid is sick and they didn't come. the only way that would be fair is if you reimbursed parents who didn't bring their children when they were sick. do you do that? if you get paid because your child is sick, why do they not get paid (by discount) when theirs is?

what's good for the goose is good for the gander. you either allow sick children to be in your daycare or you don't - all children included.

[Janet]

Pretty much my approach, too.

if you don't think it's a big deal for an "older" child to stay confined to a room all day when they're sick, i just wonder if you offer that same option to parents of "older" children?

can their child come if you put them in a room with the TV? if they can't, why not?

i think the same rules you apply to your DC kids should apply to your own. you should have back up care for your own sick child if you require back up care for theirs. if you allow your sick child to stay home, they should be able to let their sick child come.

if you don't agree with that - then NO WAY should a parent have to pay because your kid is sick and they didn't come. the only way that would be fair is if you reimbursed parents who didn't bring their children when they were sick. do you do that? if you get paid because your child is sick, why do they not get paid (by discount) when theirs is?

what's good for the goose is good for the gander. you either allow sick children to be in your daycare or you don't - all children included.

If my daughter gets sick, it's usually pretty easy to keep her away from the dcks. Also, my daughter is 14 and self sufficient. The only time that I've closed due to her illness is when she got really sick last September. I didn't charge anyone for the days that I was closed.

It would be different, however, if my daughter were younger or if I couldn't keep her away from the other kids to prevent them from gettting sick. I am lucky enough to live in a bi-level house that has bathrooms on each floor. I only have the dcks upstairs so that would help, too. The bottom line for me would be that if my own child was sick and I had no way of keeping her away from the other kids, then I would have a back-up person to have her go to if the parents of my dcks didn't have a back up provider of their own.

[jen]

I would still charge.

Me too.................

[misol]

if you don't think it's a big deal for an "older" child to stay confined to a room all day when they're sick, i just wonder if you offer that same option to parents of "older" children?

can their child come if you put them in a room with the TV? if they can't, why not?

i think the same rules you apply to your DC kids should apply to your own. you should have back up care for your own sick child if you require back up care for theirs. if you allow your sick child to stay home, they should be able to let their sick child come.

if you don't agree with that - then NO WAY should a parent have to pay because your kid is sick and they didn't come. the only way that would be fair is if you reimbursed parents who didn't bring their children when they were sick. do you do that? if you get paid because your child is sick, why do they not get paid (by discount) when theirs is?

what's good for the goose is good for the gander. you either allow sick children to be in your daycare or you don't - all children included.

I respectfully disagree. Daycare is a place for WELL children. Sick children belong at home with their parents and that includes my own. So if my children are sick they will be at home with me. There is no way that I would send my sick child out of the comfort of his/her own home to a back-up provider. Thats nuts. Even having a spouse or grandparent come over to tend to my sick child while I work would defeat the purpose because my sick child would still be in the house.

My children are too young to stay in their own rooms right now so if they were sick enough to require my full attention then I would close for the day. I have 5 paid sick days built into my contract. If my children were old enough to remain in their OWN bedrooms which are on a separate level from my daycare then I would reamin open for business (unless I knew for certain that they had something highly contagious). There is absolutely no way that I would keep a sick dc kid in my child's private bedroom. Taking all those germs upstairs would be asking for my entire family to get sick. I don't have anywhere in my daycare area to confine a sick child to. Even if I did, I still would not care for sick kids. Sick kids belong at home.

[jen]

if you don't think it's a big deal for an "older" child to stay confined to a room all day when they're sick, i just wonder if you offer that same option to parents of "older" children?

can their child come if you put them in a room with the TV? if they can't, why not?

i think the same rules you apply to your DC kids should apply to your own. you should have back up care for your own sick child if you require back up care for theirs. if you allow your sick child to stay home, they should be able to let their sick child come.

if you don't agree with that - then NO WAY should a parent have to pay because your kid is sick and they didn't come. the only way that would be fair is if you reimbursed parents who didn't bring their children when they were sick. do you do that? if you get paid because your child is sick, why do they not get paid (by discount) when theirs is?

what's good for the goose is good for the gander. you either allow sick children to be in your daycare or you don't - all children included.

Seriously???

I wouldn't DREAM of sending my children away ill. I do daycare so that I can be there for my kids! In my opinion, shooing a sick child off to someone else to care for is the epitomy of bad parenting. I do not close when my children are ill and I do not allow sick kids to come to daycare.

Caring for a sick child is ALOT of extra work and I highly doubt most parents would want to pay for what that extra service would cost. However, if they were willing to pay and pay BIG I would consider it.

Shall I charge myself for the exta care I give to my kids when they are ill?????

[JenNJ]

if you don't think it's a big deal for an "older" child to stay confined to a room all day when they're sick, i just wonder if you offer that same option to parents of "older" children?

can their child come if you put them in a room with the TV? if they can't, why not?

i think the same rules you apply to your DC kids should apply to your own. you should have back up care for your own sick child if you require back up care for theirs. if you allow your sick child to stay home, they should be able to let their sick child come.

if you don't agree with that - then NO WAY should a parent have to pay because your kid is sick and they didn't come. the only way that would be fair is if you reimbursed parents who didn't bring their children when they were sick. do you do that? if you get paid because your child is sick, why do they not get paid (by discount) when theirs is?

what's good for the goose is good for the gander. you either allow sick children to be in your daycare or you don't - all children included.

I also disagree. If my child is ill, they have a right to be in THEIR HOME and in their own bed. The way my home is set up, anyone upstairs can stay upstairs ill and have no contact with anyone downstairs. Separate bathrooms as well. And my kids aren't in daycare, they are simply here while I work -- big difference. So they aren't sick and in daycare - they are sick and at home.

My children's bedrooms are private. I do not allow any dc kids in their rooms EVER. Would you invite an ill person to come spend a sick day in YOUR bedroom?

I "get paid" when my child is sick because I chose a job where I work from home and I am lucky enough to have help/back up if I need it. My daycare parents chose their careers as well. Every job has perks and this is one of the perks I have. I don't have to lose a day of work when someone is sick. My clients are all told when my children are sick and they bring their kids anyway bc they know I don't allow anyone ill to play in the "common areas."

[AmandasFCC]

if you don't think it's a big deal for an "older" child to stay confined to a room all day when they're sick, i just wonder if you offer that same option to parents of "older" children?

can their child come if you put them in a room with the TV? if they can't, why not?

i think the same rules you apply to your DC kids should apply to your own. you should have back up care for your own sick child if you require back up care for theirs. if you allow your sick child to stay home, they should be able to let their sick child come.

if you don't agree with that - then NO WAY should a parent have to pay because your kid is sick and they didn't come. the only way that would be fair is if you reimbursed parents who didn't bring their children when they were sick. do you do that? if you get paid because your child is sick, why do they not get paid (by discount) when theirs is?

what's good for the goose is good for the gander. you either allow sick children to be in your daycare or you don't - all children included.

I see where you're going with this, but I have to disagree too. A sick kid needs to be home with their parents. I would not put a sick child other than my own in my own room or my child's room to rest, and while my nap cots work great for nap time I would NOT want a kid sleeping on one all day - that CAN'T be comfortable ...

To me this is like suggesting that a sick parent set up a cot in their office and go to work anyway. Sounds ludicrous, doesn't it? When you're sick you need your own bed, away from noise and other distractions, to rest and just get better.

[momma2girls]

I also disagree. If my child is ill, they have a right to be in THEIR HOME and in their own bed. The way my home is set up, anyone upstairs can stay upstairs ill and have no contact with anyone downstairs. Separate bathrooms as well. And my kids aren't in daycare, they are simply here while I work -- big difference. So they aren't sick and in daycare - they are sick and at home.

My children's bedrooms are private. I do not allow any dc kids in their rooms EVER. Would you invite an ill person to come spend a sick day in YOUR bedroom?

I "get paid" when my child is sick because I chose a job where I work from home and I am lucky enough to have help/back up if I need it. My daycare parents chose their careers as well. Every job has perks and this is one of the perks I have. I don't have to lose a day of work when someone is sick. My clients are all told when my children are sick and they bring their kids anyway bc they know I don't allow anyone ill to play in the "common areas."

I totally agree with this and other posts on here!!!!

[bgmeyers]

if you don't think it's a big deal for an "older" child to stay confined to a room all day when they're sick, i just wonder if you offer that same option to parents of "older" children?

can their child come if you put them in a room with the TV? if they can't, why not?

i think the same rules you apply to your DC kids should apply to your own. you should have back up care for your own sick child if you require back up care for theirs. if you allow your sick child to stay home, they should be able to let their sick child come.

if you don't agree with that - then NO WAY should a parent have to pay because your kid is sick and they didn't come. the only way that would be fair is if you reimbursed parents who didn't bring their children when they were sick. do you do that? if you get paid because your child is sick, why do they not get paid (by discount) when theirs is?

what's good for the goose is good for the gander. you either allow sick children to be in your daycare or you don't - all children included.

The same rules do not apply to DC kids and my own. I am not a parent to the dc children.
There is a huge difference between my own sick children and having someone else's sick child here. No way would I ever knowingly allow a sick child to come even if they could be isolated. I would then have to disinfect everything they came in contact with, including bedding. Do I do this for my own children, of course. I am their PARENT. A sick child should be home and with a parent or someone who can devote more one on one with them, even if it just a cold.
My own are getting alot older, but when they were little and really sick, I closed. They deserved that. They have had to share me and their home all the time, but not when they are really sick. But sometimes it's a judgement call, and if it's a cold or just feeling crummy, they stayed away from the kids. This is not an option that I can or will do for daycare children.
I do get paid sick days, and I use them. I still close if they are really sick. Did it about a month ago just to give 17 yo daughter a quiet house, and me time to take care of her and clean. I figure at the least, I am setting an example to my dc parents that this is what should be done. Stay home and be a parent.
Pay? You bet they do. Every day, open or closed. The one and only exception is after they have been with me for a year, they can take one week's worth of vacation unpaid if they give two weeks's notice. It's in my policy book and in my contract.

[Daycare Mommy]

if you don't think it's a big deal for an "older" child to stay confined to a room all day when they're sick, i just wonder if you offer that same option to parents of "older" children?

can their child come if you put them in a room with the TV? if they can't, why not?

Because I don't have a single daycare kid who has his own personal bedroom and private bathroom in my home.

[sahm2three]

if you don't think it's a big deal for an "older" child to stay confined to a room all day when they're sick, i just wonder if you offer that same option to parents of "older" children?

can their child come if you put them in a room with the TV? if they can't, why not?

i think the same rules you apply to your DC kids should apply to your own. you should have back up care for your own sick child if you require back up care for theirs. if you allow your sick child to stay home, they should be able to let their sick child come.

if you don't agree with that - then NO WAY should a parent have to pay because your kid is sick and they didn't come. the only way that would be fair is if you reimbursed parents who didn't bring their children when they were sick. do you do that? if you get paid because your child is sick, why do they not get paid (by discount) when theirs is?

what's good for the goose is good for the gander. you either allow sick children to be in your daycare or you don't - all children included.

Man, I am SO glad so many disagreed to what was said here. I agree with all of you that did disagree. This is MY childrens house and *I* am their parent. If my child had been very sick, then I would have closed.