Wish me luck...finally got an interview

[Other Mummy]

What a drought us Daycare Providers in Southern Ontario have been experiencing :(

Finally got another interview set up for tomorrow. My last 2 interviews (7 or so weeks apart) where NO SHOWS! :mad:

I've been trying to fill this spot for 3 months as I'm down to only 3 full time DCK's and one part time, well actually more like a drop in :(

We sounded like a great fit on the phone. Let's hope she makes it to my interview at the very least. The best part. She never asked about my prices. Just wanted to know about my program. To me that says she is serious and not just shopping around looking for bargain basement prices.

Getting so discouraged over here. Give me good interview vibes :yes:

[Spixie33]

Good luck. I hope it works out for you

[jodaycare]

Good luck! Let us know how it goes!

[Lou]

Move to London!! I have a waitlist a mile long here!!!
Good luck with your interview, I hope she signs on with you on the spot!

[bright sparks]

A drought??? I think it varies a lot depending on your location versus the whole of southern ontario being the same. I live in Southern Ontario, but my area has less then 6 or 7 providers that I can find adverts/websites/listings for. (I keep researching this monthly to be sure of my competition) I'm sure theres word of mouth providers though. I get on average 4-10 enquiries a month, unfortunatly for me recently they tend to either be part time or late finish which isn't something I can accomodate. Last week I did sign a little boy up for September start when one of my current kiddies moves on to kindergarten so only 1 more Sept start to find and 1 January full time to fill.

Sending((((( Good Interview Vibes your way))))) I'm sure you will do terrific and I agree that when money or sickness policy aren't the first questions asked, it is more promising. Let us know how you get on :thumbsup:

[Inspired by Reggio]

Knock em dead in the interview vibes coming your way!

[Inspired by Reggio]

I agree feast of famine can been varied in the same 'city' depending .... in my city right now one side is famine and the other side is having to turn people away ... now if people were just willing to DRIVE more than 10 minutes for quality childcare than everyone would be doing good but people seem to want close to home or directly en route to work sometimes and will not drive the 5-10 minutes out of the way to get an awesome option ... one of the things that drives me nuts when I hear parents saying 'I cannot find quality childcare' ... it is not that they cannot 'find it' it is that they are not willing to INVEST in it ;)

[bright sparks]

I agree Reggio. I had a family commute 30 minutes to me for 2 years before their kids went to school, just because they were happy with me and it was worth it to them. I always laugh to myself when people say how I'm at the opposite end of town to them...my town is a 10 minute drive from end to end lolol with 3 points to get on the highway which means whichever direction they are going in/coming from for drop off and pick up they have a quick option to get on the highway.

[mimi]

Other Mummy, wishing you a great interview. Before the interview go over why your daycare is so great, then with the confidence of knowing they would be lucky if you accept them, enjoy your interview. :thumbsup:

[Momof4]

Move to London!! I have a waitlist a mile long here!!!
Good luck with your interview, I hope she signs on with you on the spot!

Ditto, I know others in London, who had a really hard time filling spaces this year but I've been very lucky this year.

Good luck Other Mummy, you can do it!!!:yes:

[BrightEyes]

Good Luck!!!! :)

[Monday 2 Friday Mama]

Knock 'em dead ! You know you're an awesome caregiver, now just tell them why ! =)

[Other Mummy]

Thanks for all the Good Vibes folks :D. I've got everything ready...just hope she shows up. Feeling kinda gun shy since my last two interviews were no shows. :rolleyes:

I'll let you know how it goes this evening.

[Other Mummy]

Well...the inteview went ahead as scheduled. She even called to confirm 45min prior. Went really well. She loved my program, my set up and felt that we were a good fit. Said that she interviewed 3 other daycares and is very happy to put her daughter in my care. She is signing my contract and papers and bringing them on Thursday when her daughter starts.

But.... I still need to keep looking as she only needs 3 days a week and is waiting for subsidy down the road. Sigh. Was hoping to have a little one long term until they started JK.

So at least with her and my other drop in once a week client I have technically 4 spots full. And I'm charging her a slightly higher rate per day as she is part time.

Something sounded a little off though. I asked her why she is leaving her current daycare provider (whom she referred to as the dreaded "B" word...Yup. Babysitter) I corrected her quickly on the MAST differences. She said that one of the children passed away at the daycare. They don't know the cause but that she just pulled her daughter as they were'nt a "good fit". Ummm.. at that point I don't think being a good "fit" is the serious real issue KWIM?

Anyway...hopefully the next 2 weeks will go well and we can continue our business arrangement. Otherwise, it's in my contract that within 2 weeks either one of us can walk away if it's not working.

[Inspired by Reggio]

.... She said that one of the children passed away at the daycare. They don't know the cause but that she just pulled her daughter as they were'nt a "good fit". Ummm.. at that point I don't think being a good "fit" is the serious real issue KWIM?
....

:eek::eek::eek:

OMG providers worst nightmare if that is a true story?

Usually stuff like that is ALL OVER THE NEWS so you'd have to wonder if it is TRUE kwim?

We had a poor daycare provider in our home town a few years back the child died of some freak virus while in daycare but there was all that SPECULATION in the media before the autopsy confirmed it was not true ~ they printed her full name and address in the news and honestly even though she did nothing wrong what parent is going to send their child there again cause all we remember as human beings is the DRAMA that was around that name :(

[playfelt]

The inquest into that little boy that drowned in a back yard pool at a home daycare here in Ottawa has started and there is info in the paper everyday and what is really bothering me is that they keep using the word "illegal" daycare - afterall the lady was charged $2000 for it by minisitry of community and social services - not the police who laid no criminal charges. The only illegal part was that like the rest of us didn't know that caregivers getting together on private property was a crime. But daily they are tainting all of us with that "illegal" moniker.

[Crayola kiddies]

I've been following it too ..... Today it says the homeowners 8 yr old found the boy and jumped in to try and save him.
What a heavy burden for that little girl to have to live with ..... Hopefully they get her some Counciling so she knows it wasn't her fault.

[Inspired by Reggio]

The inquest into that little boy that drowned in a back yard pool at a home daycare here in Ottawa has started and there is info in the paper everyday and what is really bothering me is that they keep using the word "illegal" daycare - afterall the lady was charged $2000 for it by minisitry of community and social services - not the police who laid no criminal charges. The only illegal part was that like the rest of us didn't know that caregivers getting together on private property was a crime. But daily they are tainting all of us with that "illegal" moniker.

Yes this bothers me too ~ at the time that occurred the agency I worked with PROMOTED the organization of provider play dates at each others house as a way to avoid isolation so even those who are responsible for REGULATION of LICENSED PROGRAMS were promoting ILLEGAL CARE as they too were not aware that this was suppose to be the 'interpretation' of the act of 'any premise receiving more than 5 children is required to be licensed and if not is therefore 'illegal'.

I still maintain it was not ILLEGAL at the time they were doing this they just made an EXAMPLE of that poor provider due to the fact that the lack of supervision and action plan for dealing with that pool on the premise resulted in the death of a child ... cause imo THAT could have happened had she been ALONE as well since the pool was obviously not properly BLOCKED allowing the child such quick and easy access and IMO had little to do with the fact play dates were going on!

The fact is they were just VISITING for a short period of time it was not like they did not all have their own PREMISE to return to for the bulk of their day. I still do not see what the difference is between meeting in this backyard or the public park or library or other 'public' destination and it is another prime example of how LOGIC does not often guide government policy but just made to appease the public and often ends up just making it even more confusing on how to follow the rules that are suppose to govern us :rolleyes:

To me a more 'logical' approach would have been instead of banning play dates on private property would be to BAN POOLS on premises that are planning on caring for multiple children for the purpose of business .... aka you want to have a family pool than you do not open up a childcare program it is one or the other ... many insurance agencies will not insure a provider with a pool OR they charge an additional premium just for having the pool cause it is the POOLED WATER that is the liability because even with fencing bylaws and other regulations children still drowned everyday in them ... children do not die everyday as a result of normal provider play dates!

[treeholm]

[QUOTE]To me a more 'logical' approach would have been instead of banning play dates on private property would be to BAN POOLS on premises that are planning on caring for multiple children for the purpose of business .... aka you want to have a family pool than you do not open up a childcare program it is one or the other /QUOTE]

Gosh, I hope this doesn't happen! I've had a pool since the early 70s, and I certainly can't just fill it in to run my daycare. I have done my bronze cross twice (once just before I turned 40) and I'm hyper-vigilant. I also do not allow my daycare children to use the pool in the summer. The gates are locked, and there are two heavy doors between the main floor and the walkout basement that even adults have a hard time opening. The one from the basement to the outside is locked as well. It's not pools that are the problem, it is inadequate safety measures. I had a friend whose 2 year old drowned in their indoor pool many years ago, and it was a tragedy that none of us has ever forgotten. A child who climbed out of a crib (which he had never done before) and got out of his room and into the pool room without being seen. So yes, I'm hyper-vigilant for sure.

[Inspired by Reggio]

Oh I agree Treeholm ... IMO it is not logical to ban EITHER cause it does not solve the problem of lack of supervision at all which was the point I was trying to make .... I was just using the banning pools instead more of an argument if governments feel they have to ban 'something' to appease the public of 'doing something' after a tragedy like this that banning the availability of pool in this childcare setting would have been better cause if supervision is the problem banning 'play groups' is not going to fix it anyway cause supervision can still suck if you have 1 person or 10 people there ;)

[angelina]

Glad it work out for you, well 3 days a week and it is occupying one of our 5 spots, that's it.

speaking of caregivers meeting up in a private place or public, it should be encourage. Children has lot more fun playing with more kids around. In fact in my are, there are 3 of us caregivers who meet up in a little hill by the corner and the kids have a blast rolling around the hill. i meet up with friend caregivers in the library and so as with playgroups hosted by ontario early years.
it has been a positive experience for me and the kids.
However, I also agree that we as caregivers and educators need to have pro-active approach to prevent accidents that may cause drama, regardless whose fault it is.

Angelina

[jazmic]

http://www.ottawasun.com/2012/11/29/emotional-alain-audette-weeps-while-telling-inquest-how-he-learned-of-son-jeremies-death

Here's the latest article. The father would like to see the 5 child cap on private daycares reduced.

[angelina]

http://www.ottawasun.com/2012/11/29/emotional-alain-audette-weeps-while-telling-inquest-how-he-learned-of-son-jeremies-death

Here's the latest article. The father would like to see the 5 child cap on private daycares reduced.


I think 5 full time toddlers of the same age is too much, but most of us have different ages.

This daycare is not a fit for them, that is biggest problem that I see in this situation. If it is not, then please call it off as fast as you can.

Personally, I cannot handle 30 people (adult and children) in my backyard during work time, too crowded for me to monitor my kids. Even in library visit, I keep counting my 3 little ones.

I enjoyed watching meet ups at the park with that many children, but I will still climb the slide to make sure none of the little ones get squeeze in between.

I did not follow much of this inquiry, thanks for posting. It is a very sad story.

Angie

[playfelt]

I think being able to have 5 toddlers is actually safer than mixed ages. If all of the kids had been little there would have been no need to let the "big" kids into the big pool. All would have been using the small wading pool. It is when our attention is split between groups of children and their activities that more accidents happen. When we are watching them all doing basically the same thing there are less issues.

[Inspired by Reggio]

Playfelt I am not from the area so only have the media articles to rely on as news ... but I thought from what I had read that the pool was 'closed' to everyone that day ... were they actually allowing access to that pool with 30 children in the yard??

Cause if so well :(

[playfelt]

Haven't actually heard about that part as it wasn't reported to my knowledge. I was assuming since there were older kids 8-10 that they were allowed in the big pool but presumably were to close the gate as they went up the stairs. The poor lock on the gate seems to be the big issue. Unless someone was opening the gate it would have been safe for the toddlers as in even though partly broken it wasn't reachable by the toddlers so likely hadn't been an issue before which leads me to believe the big kids were using the big pool.

My question is if you were taking the group to a large party why they weren't wearing their swimsuits before coming as in dressed at home or why they were allowed to go play before the rest were dressed. It indicated that the caregiver had been busy dressing another child when the accident happened.

I am also wondering even if the pool was closed if the access to the yard from the house for the home owners kids was through a patio door at deck level for pool and then down the stairs into the yard.

[kidlove]

I'm with ya there! Big time drought even in the US! :) I just filled a spot the other day and have been searching for about as long as you, there is light at the end of this dark tunnel! Good Luck!