Planning For The Summer - Do I Take Only School Agers?

[TaylorTots]

I see so many providers here have 6-10 kids besides their own.

I am legally unregistered in my state and I am allowed 4 in addition to my preschool aged child. So most days I have 5 kids in my care.

I have:
ds 6
dcg 4
dd 3
dcb 11m (leaves for the summer - teacher family)
dcg 8m (leaves for the summer - teacher family)

I have an infant spot filled starting April with a 2m old but am thinking about calling the family and terminating the contract (there was no holding fee). Since I loose both my babies for the summer - and I gain a dcg 7 yo part time in the summer... doesn't it just make more sense to JUST do school agers in the summer? We could do some pretty cool field trips...

Infant spots are hard to come by around here, so if I want to make the change I need to do it soon to give the family a chance at finding another provider. I only hesitate because the infant is solid income over the summer - the other two children I care for in the summer are from the same family (so if something changed/terminated, I would be without income which is not cool).

Would you term the infant and grab up a school ager? I am fine till summer, no need to fill that spot unless I get an easy after school care. Or would you take the infant and the money she brings - even though it may limit field trips and such.

[butterfly]

One infant wouldn't limit my activities when you are only talking 4 or 5 kids. I could still fit everyone in my vehichle and go. Everyone else is old enough to walk and the baby could ride in the stroller. I'd like to make sure I had income or start putting away money right now incase the other family ends up pulling out unexpectedly.

[cheerfuldom]

I would let the last baby go. It will be a very young baby, on two naps, and years younger than the other kids so yeah, most likely that will slow you down a lot just judging from so many babies here being criers and high maintenance plus possibly the parents not waiting baby to be taken all over town.

[TaylorTots]

Gah, so torn!

[TaylorTots]

I interviewed a family tonight for an after school only care position. I think that if they want it I will give it to them and term the infant contract. 4 months holding that spot is a long time when I could be pulling in income with an easy after school care spot to save for the summer in case something happened with the family that has two of my summer spots.