First a big Hug for you
we go into this field because we love children and then we find that there are some parents who we have a hard time LIKING but the 2 go hand in hand
We can't give our all to the children -we have to keep some love for ourselves
it is up to us to CARE FOR THE CARE-GIVER
no one else will do it for us , we have to do something for ourselves everyday

for me right now I have a new child starting and she is crying and screaming while here
I like to go on a walk to de-stress myself and look at everything and I come back refreshed
I also have to remind myself why I do this job and it is to pay the bills not to be best friends with any of my Clients, and they are just paying Clients - if they did not pay I would not have them in my home
I have also stopped going to the Birthday Parties even when asked because after 12 years I like my time to do my own favourite things in my own time
for our own Birthdays we are usually not the type to print on the notice board -it is my Birthday next week but maybe we should and see what happens - see if we get a free coffee or something, this year one of the parents told me her birthday was the same day as mine I was so surprised that I did tell her it was mine too and she brought in a flower in a pot while I had the child make a card for her so some times it is worth shouting it out to the world( but the others did not know so nothing from them )
no more free stuff for the parents -now they will take notice of your change in attitude and not take you for granted , it is a business after all just to pay your bills
Today and everyday, take the time to do something for YOURSELF