Your Misconceptions About Doing Daycare?

[Laurie]

My misconseption would definitely be how horriblely rude and difficult the parents could be. I learned very quickly to stay firm with all of my policies because these California families will take advantage any way they can. The ones I'm talking about are the business people who have high paying jobs and looked down on me for being a lowly babysitter!! Ugh!!!!!!
I stopped accepting this type into my daycare. My interviewing technic became a little different. I learned what kind of questions to ask, to weed out this type of family. Now for the most part I have amazing and lovely families. Most of them I'm still in touch with.

[Laurie]

I will always admit; Iwould have quit sometime in the first 3 years if I did this in my home.

Kudos to those of you that do! happyface
Double for those of you that do AND have your own kids still at home!! happyface happyface

I couldn't do it.

Kudos to me then!!! ::
I've been doing daycare in my home for 24yrs!
I did it with my two children in the daycare until they both went to kindergarten!

I've never had issue with my hubby, but my kids have complained many times!! ::

[Annalee]

I am baffled at how clients "fly by the seat of their pants and and have tunnel vision when it comes to their own kids".

I am a very precise/to the point person....I have faults but informing clients is my strong point so when a client pulls the "what, you meant what?" card, I am like :confused:

I never thought I would have to TELL human beings repeatedly where to park and how to get their kids to their vehicle safely.

I will end with....I consider myself to be trustworthy, so I have attempted to trust my clients...well, TRUSTWORTHINESS is not within all people.

So, said all of this to say this, after 25 years it is a BUSINESS! No room to develop relationships.

[Mike]

I am baffled at how clients "fly by the seat of their pants and and have tunnel vision when it comes to their own kids".

I am a very precise/to the point person....I have faults but informing clients is my strong point so when a client pulls the "what, you meant what?" card, I am like :confused:

I never thought I would have to TELL human beings repeatedly where to park and how to get their kids to their vehicle safely.

I will end with....I consider myself to be trustworthy, so I have attempted to trust my clients...well, TRUSTWORTHINESS is not within all people.

So, said all of this to say this, after 25 years it is a BUSINESS! No room to develop relationships.

That's my plans. Going to be much different than my babysitting years were.

[Max]

Like for me something I hadn't considered about running a daycare from home was that my family wouldn't be entirely on board.

Man that would be stressful! My family isn't really on board either but for different reasons. They think I'm making a mistake by leaving my big-girl corporate job some of my family understand it though. They know I'm not happy where I'm at (haven't been for years) and home daycare can be a really successful business.

I guess it's just an overall lack of respect that I didn't expect at all.

I can not thank this forum enough for giving me a wake up call on this area

I knew I'd need a contract but I hadn't considered just how many policies I'd have to include.

Yep again, thank you to this forum!

That was my first misconception; never had time to actually just be with them.

My young kids are one of my reasons too. Not just spending more time with them, but ensuring they are getting plenty of outdoor play, stimulating activities, and eating nutritious foods.

Do you think if you could go back and do it differently, you could've incorporated some one-on-one time with them? Like having an early breakfast before DCKs arrive? Or putting your kids down for nap last so you could read a book to them?

Not trying to make you feel bad AT ALL! Just wondering if it can be done.

I never thought I would have to TELL human beings repeatedly where to park and how to get their kids to their vehicle safely.

I will end with....I consider myself to be trustworthy, so I have attempted to trust my clients...well, TRUSTWORTHINESS is not within all people.

Yeah you would think that would be common sense (getting kids to car safely)

I know I'm too trusting of others as well.

[childcaremom]

I agree with many of above.

I thought that parents would only send their children only when at work.

I thought that parents would keep their sick children home..... and not complain about it.

I didn't think that parents would be untruthful about things that affect the care and well being of their child. This was so shocking to me.

I thought that the children would be the hard work of this equation. Nope, it's the parents.

I thought that all parents value the same things I do as a parent (good eating, fresh air, good sleep).

I thought that parents would value ME as they have chosen to leave their children with me each day. Most do but plenty do not.

I thought this job would be easier with my own children at home and in the same age group. NOPE! ::::

I didn't think this job would burn me out as much as it has.

I didn't think that this job would show me how much I value having been able to be home with my own bunch. Over and over and over.

[Josiegirl]

Max, I did do a lot of those things but it just felt like there were too many moments in each day when I had to keep telling them to wait, wait, wait.
Eventually, as they came to accept living in a dc household, I feel they dealt with it a whole lot better than I did. Mommy guilt and all.

One other thing I didn't realize at the beginning, it would affect my own kids' wanting to have their own children in the way that it has. My youngest is 24, then 26, and oldest is 35, no signs of grandkids for me yet. :confused: Oldest says never, the other 2 have moved from the never stage to if.

With all the ups and downs through the years, I'm still very glad I chose this path.

[bklsmum]

My biggest misconception was how much parent's valued their childcare and how much parents wanted to hang with their kids. I am still amazed at those things even after almost 5 years!

[Cat Herder]

I did not realize I would become an unpaid State employee.

[daycarediva]

I just agree with everything everyone has said.

I would have quit already if I hadn't been able to do a separate space. I WISH my state would allow me to run daycare out of a separate home (like BC) but they won't. I compromised and use my front entrance, front and side yard, and former living room/dining room for daycare.

My eat in kitchen with breakfast nook is NOT big enough for my family to have company, etc. and my family is DONE. Dh said recently he flat out LOATHES many of my clients. They are beyond rude and inconsiderate (blocking him in when he is trying to pull out for work, etc)

[Meeko]

i thought most parents would care more about their child than i do.

this ^^^

[e.j.]

Like for me something I hadn't considered about running a daycare from home was that my family wouldn't be entirely on board. It wasn't that they weren't supportive, just that they didn't realize how important it was to follow licensing regulations. My husband, mother & sister constantly left cleaning products out, knives on the counters, glass within reach, wouldn't latch baby gates, left the front door opened, left purses/wallet laying around. They didn't think it was a big deal. I used to do daycare upstairs too before but stopped because it was too hard for me to keep two floors baby proofed.

Even though I've been a provider for 21 years and my husband and kids know the regulations I have to follow, I still have to walk around the house every night, double checking to make sure nothing has been left out that shouldn't have been. I'm constantly saying, "You're going to get me written up! You have to try to think like a provider!"[/QUOTE]

One other thing I didn't realize at the beginning, it would affect my own kids' wanting to have their own children in the way that it has.

Same here! When my kids were in their teens, I used to joke about my day care being the best form of birth control ever. Now that my kids are getting older (23 and 26) and they are still saying they don't want to have kids, I wonder if I didn't blow my chances of being a grandparent some day.

When I first started out, I never anticipated the amount of work I'd be doing after hours. I also never considered the amount of wear and tear that would affect my home in general. I expected some wear and tear, especially in the day care room but for some reason, didn't expect so much wear and tear every where else - the porches, the driveway, the grass, the floors in my kitchen and bathroom and the furniture. I was just wondering last if I'm the only provider who has to replace her dining room set as often as I do. I buy a set and within a month, it's got fork marks in the table, scratches all over the seats, loose rungs, etc. At this point, my husband says there's no way we're going to replace our current set until after I stop doing day care.

[Magic]

the paper work, paper work oh the paper work.....did I mention ..the paper work ?

[e.j.]

Oops! A sentence in my reply should have read:

I was just wondering last night if I'm the only provider who has to replace her dining room set as often as I do.

[nannyde]

I didn't forsee child CARE turning into education.