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I've been reading Judy's blog (l.o.v.e. it) and came to the one about requests some dcparents make....and some are just plain old'silly & WEIRD! LOL You can't help it but laugh at their dumb-dumby-ness :p
So.....who wants to share personal head shaking requests parents have asked?
This can give us a good chuckle and if anything make us think we may not have it THAT bad with the dcp in our care :rolleyes:
Oh I love Judy too. She seems to have met all the crazy parents and she handles it with humour and wisdom.
I've been pretty lucky but I did interview one woman who wanted me to change everything plastic in my house to more 'green' fibres and she was even unhappy with my vinyl sleep cots. Then she emailed me a list of how to clean your whole home with vinegar. Uh yeah, she is not in my daycare!
One that still stands out in my mind is the lady who was afraid to have her child eat in my kitchen because there was a picture of the Lord's supper in there - would have been on the wall behind the child and the actualy picture was about 3x5" and mounted on a plaque. My husband is military and when we left Sydney, Cape Breton, the chapel presented us with this plaque thanking us for our services (choir, teaching sunday school). So when we settle in Calgary we hung it in the kitchen thinking that was sort of nice place to put it and never dreamed it would be an issue. Child coming into care was an infant not yet crawling.
I was new to daycare at the time and didn't know how to handle it. I just mumbled something about it makes us happy because it reminds us of where we moved from and went on with the tour. That was the only fault she mentioned the whole time about my home and refused to put her child with me because I wouldn't remove it. We are talking 26 years ago, one of my first interviews, and it still makes me mad. And yes we still have the plaque but it is packed away with other momentos as I don't need the crutch to that posting anymore - had many more postings since.
The eco-friendly is an issue that comes up as they ask about things like what kind of detergents I use, and the fact my swingset in the back yard is made with pressure treated wood really upsets some. One lady asked me how old my dishes were - checking to see if they were free of the chemicals that leech I am assuming. I just told her I replace them whenever they need replacing and that satisfied her even though I meant when they get broken or the lid starts to leak or the plastic bib gets ripped. I am not as fanatical about a lot of those things as I see many of them with while true a little overblown to the extent that I don't need to toss out the sectional dishes we use for snacks sometimes just because.
One lady expected me to bathe her baby since in the childcare book for schedule it said baby should have a bath at 10:00 am following their morning nap, then a bottle and then some playtime on their tummy and that is what she expected me to do - again we are talking 20 years ago when babies on schedules was a must for some woman.
Have had a couple familes going through divorce/separation where I had to change the clothes before releasing them to the other parent as there were mommy's house clothes and daddy's house clothes and I had two bags of clothes to store and use. Had already had the child for two years before the divorce so went along with it but I sure had other things to do besides remember which clothes to use.
Not understanding what it means to have a group of kids is where most of the impossible requests come from in that we can't devote unreasonable one on one time to any child.
Wow Playfelt - I cannot imagine anyone expecting a provider to change their 'decor' in their own HOME to appease a client's beliefs ... this is your HOME where you are raising your own children and if you are religious that is going to be part of your program and belief system too you cannot change that and should not be expected to change that ... I am guessing it was the 'theme' of the photo and not the actual fact you had a 3x5 photo in the kitchen that she felt posed some 'safety risk' to her kid falling on her or something?
I have had a few over the years...my FAVORITE
Infant elimination - aka thinking that their 10 month old was 'potty trained' because the parents new her schedule and cues so well that they were able to put her up on a potty to 'eliminate' so that she never needed a diaper change .... umm ya not happening with 4 other children under foot ... so until she can tell me she needs to go in a more 'concrete' manner and has some self help skills to get in there on her own, pull down her drawers and sit on the potty herself if my hands are too busy to help she needs to be in a DIAPER or we are not a match!
I had someone ask me about Elimation Communication as well when I was first starting out...I think it's a great thing for parents to do and I wanted to be supportive of it, so at the time (not having actually done daycare yet) I said I could try. Thank goodness I ended up choosing someone else for the spot because I wanted a full-timer rather than a part-timer as I now understand the impossibility of doing EC while caring for multiple other children! Potty training itself is hard enough even with a 2 year old! Phew...dodged a bullet there!
Wish I had one to add. I have had 2 parents ask what I do with the kids when I go to the bathroom...but I guess that's pretty normal?! How do I find Judy's Blog?Quote:
Originally Posted by Mamma_Mia
Judys blog is www.justthebabysitter.comQuote:
Originally Posted by Dreamalittledream
SUCH a good read!!
Wish I could chime in on the strange parent requests, but I havent really had any, besides the [arent who want their kid to brush before naptime, (okay, fine np) and the parent who doesnt want their kid to have juice, (fine with me, milk n water for that one!). Otherwise they are all pretty normal, knock on wood!
Nothing really "out there".... so far!
One family brought me their one year old who napped from 11 am to 1:30, and expected to have her do the same when here. Ummm, and lunch will be served when?? They also brought 2 blankies, a stuffy, a suckie and other sleep paraphernalia. I never used any of it, put her on the same schedule as us, and she slept just fine! Not 6 months later, they asked me to stop napping her at all. At 18 months? Are you kidding?
Luckily, I really haven't had any "crazies".... :D
It does amaze me how children just adapt to our routine. I had a 2 year old come me with the following nap particulars: Milk in bottle heated to exactly the right temp. (or she wouldn't drink it), a white noise machine, room darkened, special pillow, stuffy and blanket (& she still cried for about 15 min. before settling, pretty sure b/c Mom still rocks her at home). Within 2 weeks here...no bottle & she settles immediately & now naps perfectly!