Am I being an ass?

[treeholm]

It never dawned on me to have any kind of party and invite the parents. They are not my friends, although I like them very much. They are my clients, and I don't want to mix business with personal life. Of course, it also didn't occur to me to get Christmas presents for my daycare children... is that something that a lot of you do?

Bright sparks, it seems that you have been a very caring, giving person to this family and I can understand that it hurts to realize they see you simply as a service provider when you thought you were friends. I just see a theme in this forum that keeps coming up, situations where the caregiver has gone above and beyond out of sheer goodness and love for the children, but where parents do not appreciate it and look after themselves. I want to make sure that I am fair and business-like, but I need to look after myself first, or I will burn out. If a parent cannot pay my fees, that is sad, but not my problem. I don't run a charity. I do give money to the charities I support, lest anyone think I am not generous, but I can't go to my hairdresser and ask to get my hair done for a reduced fee because of my own financial woes. If I can't afford a service, I forego it. If a parent can't afford daycare, they need to cut back elsewhere or seek help from family, but not expect a business to cut them slack. I know this sounds cold, but these are not my children. I am responsible for being fiscally wise and being able to pay my own bills. Reggio, your story about giving free daycare to someone who turned around and renovated their kitchen is a classic example of someone who gives out of kindness and generosity of spirit and is not appreciated for your sacrifice. I know I'm a newbie, but one thing I have really learned from those of you who are more experienced is that this is a business, not an extended family. I am adamant that I will not give my families any emotional weight in my life that my feelings should be hurt when they make a business decision to pull their children to put them somewhere that meets their time and/or financial needs better. Just as I would hope my dentist wouldn't be offended if I went somewhere else because they had better hours or charged less.
I just hate to see some of you invest yourselves in these children to the point where you feel like family, and then be disappointed when you realize that the family will go elsewhere as soon as it is more convenient. No wonder I don't want to get to know my families beyond our business arrangements.