Need to talk this through so I can process it and get opinions

[godsgirl]

Hey Ladies!
So I'm kind of at a loss for words as to what I want to do and kind of wanted to see what you guys would do if you were in my shoes. I will try to keep this short and to the point. I just need to talk this through so I can process it and see what you guys would do. Here goes:

I have one family who at the time we interviewed I did not have much of a spot to offer them but I REALLY liked them. They had a 2yog and an infant but wanted to start care for the 2yo so that mom could get a break and then wanted FT care for both when mom ended mat leave in Sept. I contacted mom and offered 1 day a week bc that was all I had available at the time and said that I would love to offer them a break and if anything comes available then the girl could just move into that spot and we can hope that another space comes available for the infant when mom comes off of mat leave in Sept. Well one of my boys I was caring for left bc I terminated so the mom said that she wanted the 2yo to pick up some extra days so she could have the spot. So that worked out well. However, last week I got a notice that my family of 2 were leaving (one was full time and the other was before/after school and were with me for 2 yrs) and I was sort of banking on them leaving at the end of the summer (as we had discussed previously) and therefore opening up a space for the other daughter in Sept.

Well, now that this family has left earlier than planned would you try to fill the full time spot now or would you wait? Or would you fill it and then when the time came decide which one you would have to let go more closer to the end of summer? I'm licensed so I'm limited to the age/ratio thing as well which makes it a bit difficult and I can only take a 3+ yo. My other thing that I'm thinking is that I could always take another full time child on now and hope that this Bill 143 thing gets revised and they throw the darn 3 under 3 rule out & 5 under the age of 6 out the window (but who even knows when that could happen). I really don't want to do another school run as it is sooooo much work so I'm kind of thinking about just leaving that space open for now. The other thing that I was thinking that if I don't get anybody to fill the spot in the next 2 months then I could just advertise for 2 summer spots for school age kids (do people even look for that?) and then when the summer is over I can still take the infant who is hoping to start in September.

Financially, with the kids I have left my bills are covered but leaves not much room for movement if an emergency came up between then and now. And I really don't want to put all my hopes in one family because anything can happen from now until then.

UGH!!! I hate how this job is like a game of chess and there really is no security in it. Now that this family has left so suddenly I feel like I have no real security in any of the families because they really could up and leave at a moments notice (I'm a bit hurt too that this family left after 2 years the way that they did too but I understand - it had nothing to do with me btw).

Maybe I'm just over thinking it and should let things pan out how they pan out and deal with it when the summer is almost over.

Thanks for letting me process this lol!!

[mickyc]

I would tell the mom who wants a spot in sept that there is a spot available now if she wants it. She can pay to hold it to guarantee her spot. If she doesn't want to then go ahead and fill the spot and hope for the best in sept. Explain to the mom that if she doesn't take the spot that you cannot guarantee something when she needs it.

You need to look after yourself and not worry about the families. They come and go and if they want it bad enough they will take it now. I had 1 mom last year who continued sending her older daughter while on mat leave. A spot opened up in Sept and she took it for the baby (didn't want it until the end of October). I have also had a mom not hold her spot and then was kicking herself when she wanted to come back because there was no spots available.

[torontokids]

Personally I would fill the spot as Sept is a ways a way or advertise now for a summer spot. I have had luck finding older kids (preschoolers) who just need short term care for the summer. I wouldn't take school aged but even my own kids aren't in school yet.

Another thing you could do is mention it to the mom. Let her know that you would love to have her kids both full time in Sept but you need to fill the spot now (not wait until Sept). Mention that you will be looking for a full timer or see if she knows anyone that needs care for the summer. My one parent did this for me as she was motivated to have the spot for herself after so I got a great referral out of the deal and the bonus was I could keep her long term as I had another client leave.

[cfred]

Mickeyc is absolutely right. You need to look after yourself. I have client on mat leave using a part time spot for her daughter. The client holding the other half of that part time spot is leaving for mat leave in May. Mum #1 wanted a full time spot for her new baby starting in December, with her older child moving on to something else. She'll be paying full time for that space as soon as Mum#2 leaves. She's ok with this because she knows another space is unlikely to come up. If your woman wants it, she won't mind paying.

[Fun&care]

I would offer the spot to the infant first but she would have to start paying it at full rate and everything. If she turns it down, which is most likely, then just make it clear that you cannot promise that a spot will open up. You have to look out for yourself first and foremost. Don't leave a spot open and lose a ton of money for the sake of being nice. It WILL backfire. Fill as many spots as you can now and if a spot opens up in September, lucky for her. I am in a similar situation too and I have to keep reminding myself that this is a BUSINESS, I am not these peoples friend and i do NOT owe them any favors.

[5 Little Monkeys]

I agree, I would let the mom know that a spot has opened up and if she wants it she needs to take it now.

Another thing I would consider is posting the spot for now until Sept and see if anyone wants it. I have a mom leaving on mat leave this Fall and I will either fill it with a term position or the mom will have to pay my holiday fee to secure the spot.

[bright sparks]

First of all I wanted to clear up the bill 143. It is not 3 under 3 it is 2 under 2 so you can offer your spot to any child aged 2 plus, but that's once the bill is passed, and I think there is a good chance they will grandfather other children in who are placed with a provider already otherwise there will be an unbelievable amount of families left without childcare. I also wouldn't take a child on based on these ratios until it was a legal requirement. Who knows how soon or long till it is passed and enforced. Just stick to the ratios your agency have put on you rather than trying to run things as a licensed provider which is not in effect yet.

Put your business hat on and make the decision based on what's best for your business, not based on how nice the parent is. Fill the spot asap and don't give notice in September for the other family as this is just bad practice IMO and experience. I did it very early on as a provider where I gave notice to a part timer to replace with a full timer and 2 weeks later I had someone leave. I know this isn't the same but similar. Karma got me and I learnt my lesson.

Offer the spot to the family who want it in the fall if they are great clients and you really want them and their children full time. Explain that you can not hold the spot for such a long time and explain that it just wouldn't be beneficial to you from a business perspective to take the financial loss. Maybe offer some kind of middle ground if you'd prefer by offering to hold the spot for 8 weeks and then have the siblings come 3 days a week from end of May/beginning of June increasing to 5 days in September. I urge you to be cautious though, even the nicest people are looking out for themselves. Let me give you an example.

I had a woman bring me her 1 year old 5 days a week in the November and she had her second in the January at which point she would reduce to 2 days a week for the first and then she wanted 2 full time spots for the following January when she returned to work and I told her that I new I would have a spot in the September opening up due to kids going to kindergarten but I couldn't guarantee the spot until January. We agreed while she was on Mat leave that from Sept to January she could just pay for 1 full time spot and share it between the 2 girls, allowing her to send the eldest for 3 days and the youngest for 2 days, spending 1 day at home with mum alone. So the Fall comes and I do this for 4 months and a couple of weeks before Xmas mum tells me she will be taking extended mat leave and she has only just had it confirmed as she needed to get permission through a gruelling process through her school board as she is a teacher. I was pretty annoyed at this point but had no one to replace them with so what could I do. She took the rest of the school year off on extended leave and went back to work in the September and the girls were both here full time. 12 weeks later she gave me notice saying she didn't like paying for 2 full time spots for daycare when her mum could take them a day or two and how I wouldn't accept less than full time, and really why would I after doing so much for them and being used and taken advantage of. See where I'm going with this? I did not do what was best for me or my business and reading your post really reminded me of this. I honestly don't care how nice the mum is, my dcparent was lovely, and still is but was doing what was best for her family and looking after her best interests which is exactly what I should have done and exactly what you should do.

Our business is exactly that. To generate money, not do favours or cut people a break at our financial expense. This is not a volunteer service or an opportunity for others to take advantage of us. Fill the spot/s with the people who want to start the soonest and if they want to start any longer than 8 weeks away then don't let them have the spot unless they are going to pay for it. Once bill 143 is passed, under 2 spots will be high demand and they will realize how worth it it was to pay for the spot sooner, or bring the child to daycare earlier. I understand this isn't an option for many and forgive me for sounding callus, but as business owners, that's not our problem.

[Sassygirl]

I agree with the others.
You must look out for yourself and YOUR business.
Parents would and do the same for themselves.
Don't worry too much about Bill 143. That being said, I would fill the spots NOW and not wait until Sept just in case it does go through.

[godsgirl]

Thanks everyone! I think I just needed to hear it from somebody else's mouth :)

[Secondtimearound]

Yup !!! Wisdom from experience !! I know it's hard !! It is at first ! The longer you deal with people , the jaded you get lol !! Dcp will do what's best for them and you have to look out for yourself . I would do exactly what the others have said , offer to your mom needing two spots , then fill it .

[godsgirl]

The other thing I just thought of was that I could offer the mom the other full time spot on the basis that they send their current girl full time now to make up for some of the lost income that I would be missing out on if I did have the chance to fill it.

This current family has already moved from one day a week to 3 days/wk so that they can hold a FT spot for the 2.5 year old (she can't start those extra days until the middle of April because of the 3 under 3 rule - and that's when one of my 2yob turns 3 but that's besides the point).

I'm kind of worried that I might be pushing my luck though as who would want to send their child full time if they are at home anyways.

What would you guys say?

[mickyc]

I know you like the family and want to make it work for them. I really think that you just need to let her know what you have available right now and if she wants it then great, if not then advertise for it. The thing is you could make all these exceptions for this family and then they might end up leaving for some reason.

Everything works out as it was meant to be. Don't make exceptions for families. Look after yourself and your family first and foremost.

[5 Little Monkeys]

After dealing with a few families that drove me crazy, I can see why you would want to make it work for a family that you really like. If you can find a compromise that works for both you and her than go for it. If you think they will screw you over just fill the spot now.

I totally understand that we need to look our for ourselves first but....what kind of world would we live in if we all just looked out for ourselves. I like to find a happy medium....looking after myself but also taking others into consideration. In the long run, it might be better to have this family than some other family who you won't like as much. It's a risk only you can decide if you want to take! Good luck with whatever decision you make :)

[playfelt]

How many of your children are through the agency - could you reconsider that part in the sense that if you are having to fill your own spaces why be bound by their age rules.