Christmas vacation time

It's my Saturday today ...I'm on vacation and it's so awesome to have woken up without an alarm!! :woot:

OK so really ...on vacation but working on a note to send to my daycare parents. I'm wondering about vacation in December and wanted to see if anyone was taking time off. I have 4 families that could and might book time off and I want to see if I can be a little more proactive. I also need to book in Santa's helper to come to the playroom too ;)I was going to send out this memo...what do you think....

With Christmas around the corner, our family has already started planning get together’s Many of you might be taking time off around Christmas for family holidays. I wanted to inquire if anyone knows now if they are taking vacation time in December. This doesn’t mean that you have to hand in your holiday days now. I’m asking as I can plan our Christmas party and ensure nobody is away from daycare. Also, I can then better plan for more than one family taking time off around the holidays.

I'll be off this year, but usually I take 2 full weeks off unpaid, except for paid Stats.

I wait for my clients to dictate Christmas. All I really want is christmas eve - boxing day off. Anything else I'm good with. I used to take a week off at christmas, but I think this year we're going to try to take a week of in Jan to go to Florida... so I'm going to for go my week off at Christmas for the Jan vacay.

I'm pretty sure the majority of my clients will pull their kids out all week anyhow.

I always wait for them to tell me their vacation time too ~ I give my schedule in January for the year and then parents can take an additional 2 weeks of their own choice unpaid as long as they give me 2 weeks written notice ( so I can make arrangements for less pay)

Do you think it's cheeky to ask if they know of time being taken off. Just so i can plan some personal things?

I would NEVER have parents dictate when I should take MY holidays. Remember, this is YOUR business!

Ya ~ I choose my closures based on time that works with my spouses work schedule ~ clients have to work around that.

One of the things I do at the beginning of summer and in November / December newsletter is put something in the my newsletter along the lines of ....

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"I realize that this is the season for spending time with family and traveling to visit relatives ~ if your family plans on taking time off this season in addition to my normal closures of XYZ if you could give the program as much notice as possible to help with planning meals, program activities and field trips that would be greatly appreciated'."

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However my clients do not get a 'payment credit' for taking additional time off so there is no 'time frame' they have to let me know by ~ they still have to pay me full fees regardless ..... so they are basically doing me a favor in letting me know ahead of time if they will be gone otherwise they have until 9am of the morning 'of care' to let me know of an absence that day.

I personally do not like to 'share' what i might have planned specially with low ratios because I find than some clients read or hear about it prior and end up choosing to send their kids anyway cause they do not want them to miss the 'trip to the farm' or whatever special thing you might try if you thought you only had 3 kids instead of a full house and so forth :rolleyes:

I will take the entire week of Christmas off. My contract states I am off, and paid for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing day. Therefore, I will take the entire week off and get paid for the Mon, Tues and Wed. And, because I also get paid for New Years Eve and New Years Day I will be off the following Mon and Tues paid as well.

I will be closed the Christmas week and Christmas Eve and New years Day so that means I am not open again until Wed Jan 2.
I tell parents in my contract that I close and also in interviews. I will also soon be sending out a reminder notice to parents so they can book off accordingly.
I get paid the Christmas day, Boxing Day and New Years Day so at least 3 of those days will be paid.
I am already looking forward to the time off. I need it ! :laugh:

Ya this year Xmas is awesome ... I am closed Friday December 21 at closing time through to Wednesday January 2nd ... sweet!

I get paid for the the Stats and will use up any used paid personal days for the non stat closures of December 23, 24, 27, 28 and 31 :)

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Originally Posted by Play and Learn

I would NEVER have parents dictate when I should take MY holidays. Remember, this is YOUR business!

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Sorry I should have been more clear. I take my holidays when ever I want- I took 2.5 weeks this year and picked the days/weeks that my family and I wanted. I just inform my daycare families so they can be aware to get family or make other arrangements to get their little one looked after if they choose.
My daycare families also can take an additional 2 weeks of their own, unpaid as long as they give me 2 weeks notice. I'm just trying to be proactive to see if any are taking time off around the holidays.

When I read your note that said Christmas is around the corner I went - eeeeeek! LOL. I have Christmas Eve day, Christmas day & Boxing day in my contract as holidays, so since those days fall on Mon, Tues, & Wed this year I will be working Thursday and Friday officially, but I know a couple of families will have the entire week off. I plan on putting out gentle hints to the other families that a nice Christmas bonus for their childcare provider would be NOT to have to work those days, but nothing official because I want to get paid for the whole week.

December 21 is my last working day of the year. Open again on January 2. I usually take Christmas off because most people work a reduced schedule around this time.

I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!!!

And Halloween :laugh: I was at Michaels today and they had all theie decorations out AND Carters has their costumes & jammies, tshirts etc out now too (well the website has it). I'm so excited!! LOL

I ALWAYS take Christmas and through NewYears off every year. can sometimes be only a week or be as long as almost two. All my longtime parents know this and I try and inform new parents at sign on, also post a reminder starting about 2 monthes before. Alot of my parents also take that time just to make it convenient. It is ALWAYS unpd for me. I guess its like a little gift to them, no pay. :) Usually works out just fine though, parents have pitched in on gift cards and given little bonuses that help me get through. I dont care about the money that time of year is ALL ABOUT FAMILY for me!!! :) :)

I take off the 24th to the 2nd every year. Works out beautifully this year!!! :D

I am the same as Lou. I heart Christmas week this year!

Vacation time off ..........woooooo... ..thats so much fun, I hope working parents would get more time off in case their company has good time off policies or in case their organization has good time off software. Like the one we had been using Replicon's simple Time Off Software which is easy to use and quick to implement, has made all time off tracking related issues simpler.

I don't think its rude at all. I would absolutly ask them and tell them to inform you by the end of November. You are trying to plan your schedule at a typically busier time of year so you need to know what their plans are.

I am off for 17 days WOO HOO!! :) last day is Dec 20th and back to work January 7th

I closer xmas eve and boxing day but I usually end up with no kids here through that week. If I stay open they pay whether they attend or not so ifif they choosing to come I still get paid, as opposed to closing and not getting paid.

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Originally Posted by Play and Learn

I would NEVER have parents dictate when I should take MY holidays. Remember, this is YOUR business!

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I used to take a survey of the time off each family needed, and then stay open the days with the highest attendance. I did it not for them, but for ME, as I wanted to work the days that I would receive the highest income, didn't want to work a day just for one kid.