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I am currently 12 weeks pregnant (due in Feb) and needing some encouragement. I'm still not sure what to do about my maternity leave. and don't want to tell families until I have a plan. Is four weeks an ok amount of time to take? Or should I try and find a helper? Should I tell families my maternity leave plan right away or just let them know I;m still trying to work out those details. I am super nervous to tell families any suggestions on how to break it to them?
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First off, congrats!! This is baby number 3 (second that I've had while doing daycare) and both times I've taken 2 weeks after the birth. Anything more would be really hard for my families. Not saying it can't be done by any means, its just here I know 2 weeks is the most I'm going to get. With the first I didn't have a helper/sub but mostly because it just wasn't cost effective. And being that it was only two weeks...just wasn't worth it. This time I now know another provider who's about 10 minutes from me and she acts as a back up/drop in care place for my families (wonderful blessing!) That's helped a lot, esp with the every 2 week and every week appointments. I've told families pretty early on, just something like "we have some exciting news! We're expecting in such and such a month! " and then give them an idea of what that means for appointments, how much maternity leave I will take ertc. All families have been really supportive. Considering that the babies are only 18m apart and we really just went through this, I was really thankful they were still excited! Having a plan ahead of time helped. Parents don't pay when I take maternity leave which kind of stinks but I know that's really helpful to them and helps soften the blow of finding alternative care for a short amount of time. -
Congratulations! I took two weeks, but I also have a small group, so getting that one on one time with my baby was not as hard. I say you need to take whatever time you want or need. I had vaginal births, so I know that sometimes recovering from a c section can take a little longer too...just something to consider. If you can find a helper, that would be great, so you can take as much time as you want and not have to worry about your dc families, but if not, then I would just figure out what you want and tell them asap. Some may make a fuss, but they will figure it out. Good luck in your pregnancy! :hug:Comment
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Congrats! I'm 8 weeks and haven't told any of my incoming families yet (I have ALL new families starting in August!). I'm due in March and plan to take 2 weeks off. After that my sub will cover for me full time for a couple more weeks at least, then she may go down to part time. It's stressful figuring this out. I don't want to let these families down, especially since they are all going to be new to me, but it is what it is.
I know that there have been providers here who have taken 4 weeks or longer, maybe they'll chime in. I'd be worried that I'd lose families. Do you have someone that can come in and fill in for you for a few weeks?Comment
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I don't currently have anyone that fills in for me. How did you go about finding your sub?? I think it'd be wonderful to have someone else helping me out for a while after. Being that I am due in February highschoolers and college students are probably out. Is there a way most advertise for subs? I want to make it easy for the family but also need to make sure I'm getting the time I need too.Comment
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I started child care after having my second. I had 6 weeks off (I was still on short term disability with my prior employer).
I got pregnant with our 3rd child 4 years into doing child care. I ended up taking 2 weeks of maternity leave with her. I allot myself 2 weeks of vacation time per year and used all of it during that time frame. I usually recover very quickly after child birth so 2 weeks was more than sufficient. Plus, my dh was still on paid "paternity leave" so he helped when I reopened.
EDITED TO ADD: I did tell the families my general plans right away (at 10 weeks) and the details at around 20 weeks.
Is this your first or subsequent child? If you've had a child before, did you have a speedy recovery or did it take you awhile? Do you have any complications? Can you afford to not get paid for 4 weeks and/or possibly lose some or all of your families? If you can afford more time off, I would take that time with your family. If you can't, a quicker return to daycare is definitely doable
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I'm incredibly fortunate that I have a stay-at-home mom friend of mine, who is also an early ed person that will sub for me this year and fill in when I have the baby. She subbed a few times for me last year, but now that her youngest is in preschool, she can help me more (and fortunately she wants to help me more!).
If I had to advertise, my town has a couple of local facebook groups - one is for moms specifically and one is just for townies so I personally would start there. Otherwise I would put an ad on craigslist, newspaper or even put ads up around. Ask your parents, also, maybe they know someone who can help out for a while.
You can also just start talking to people, let them know you're looking, certainly your parents, but if you're out and about with the kids at the park and people start up a conversastion about your daycare, let them know you're looking. Sometimes word of mouth is the best advertiser. Best of luck!Comment
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