I had always found myself avoiding children with special needs. However, one sort of 'snuck up on me'. I have a little girl (now 18 mos) old, who started with me at 3 months. Her oxygen supply was cut at birth so there is some brain damage and weakness on the right side. At 3 mos, it was hard to say where she really was or would end up. As it turns out, she is in fact special needs.....and my most prized little sweetheart. I absolutely love her. She has significant delays in motor skills, muscle function, hearing loss and we're trying to ascertain where she is cognitively. There does seem to be some delay with her processing time. She has several food sensitivities (wheat, dairy, eggs, most meats, almonds). Part of my schtick is specialized diets catering to sensitivities and vegan/vegetarian options, so it's not a problem for me. Like you, I do not cater to peanut allergies. I don't allow any life threatening allergies. So far as food goes, if they're happy to send food, then have them do that. If you want to broaden your professional horizons and add a desirable component to your business offerings, then you can, as I did, research the dietary needs and come up with variations to your typical menus to support them.

All I can tell you is that while it's a bit more inconvenient, but you might be surprised how easily you fall into the groove of the different care style. One thing I do is allow for therapists (she has physio and hearing therapists) to do appointments here at daycare. This way I can speak with them personally and have them teach me different strategies for working with the child. It's a great learning tool and offers a chance to pick someone's brain who deals with this stuff for a living.

I do not charge more. As I said, it's part of my schtick...what I use to set myself apart. That said, I do charge more than other providers in this area. I think charging more would be completely acceptable, depending of the level of extra care they require. I think I'd be inclined to meet with the family and the children to see how you mesh and how demanding their needs are. You want to be sure you can manage the other children as well as the new children. One really good thing is that odds are, this family gets turned away a lot from other providers. Don't be surprised if they are dream clients who truly value you and your willingness to give them a chance