…the more I say “not for my family”.
I started child care today (Wednesday). This was a trial run. L didn’t actually go to work, she just stayed local. The official start day is the 19th. And then it’s full on, except for major holidays that I observe. So she dropped the kids (W – almost 3, J – almost 5mo) off at 9am and picked them up about 430pm. The day went fine. Turns out I forgot what it was like to have a 5mo in my house. I relearned – quickly. I couldn’t find my favorite sling, though. I will have to search for it, because I want to use it with her. And I never knew what it was like to have a child who naps at almost three years old. My boys were done with that by the time they turned two. Other than that, it was just another day in the neighborhood.
Obviously, that is not what I am talking about when I say “not for my family”.
As I was thinking about the money issues that we are having (shocked?) and figuring out my budget (that is fucked up this month, and next), I decided on a dollar amount that I needed to bring in to make this whole work-at-home-thing work. And it’s a reasonable amount. And I could easily get it if I got certified as a licensed day care.
Do you know how much work that is going to take to get ready for just the inspection?
- All adults living in the home and assistants and substitute care providers have submitted fingerprints and child abuse index check forms to the DOJ and received a CA clearance or exemption. (Understandable.)
- Home is neat and clean. (Understandable.)
- All fireplaces, woodstoves, and/or heaters are screened to prevent access by children. (Umm, ok. But not an issue for my house.)
- Home has a fully charged fire extinguisher which is at last a 2A:10BC. (Not an issue, T works for an extinguisher company.)
- Home has a working smoke alarm. (Understandable.)
- Home has a working telephone. (I would have to get one.)
- All poisons are locked. (I would have to move them from my kitchen to the garage.)
- Hazardous materials are kept out of reach of children. [1] Kitchen: sharps, cleaning supplies, medicines, liquor, plastic bags, etc. (Umm, I don’t have enough cabinets as it is, and now I have to put things higher than I can reach?) [2] Bathroom: shampoo, mouthwash, toothpaste, medicines, perfumes/lotions/cosmetics, solvents, etc. (My bedroom has a lock on it, but the kids items are going to be an issue.) [3] Garage and outdoors: solvents, gasoline, oil, turpentine, paint, tools, lawn mower, gardening tools, poisonous plants, abandoned machinery, old fridge/freezer/vehicles, etc. (Garage would have to get a double dead bolt lock and we would have to gate off the side of the house.)
- All firearms and other weapons are not loaded and are locked up. Ammunition is stored and locked away separately from firearms. (Really? If they are all in a safe, which happens to be behind a locked door, why do they have to be separate? What if I need to protect my family? We have already figured a way to make this work, but I don’t like it.)
- Outdoor play area is free from defects or dangerous conditions. Play equipment is securely anchored according to manufacturers directions. (Understandable.)
- Outdoor play area is fenced, or there is a plan for supervision while outside. (Understandable.)
- If caring for children under 5, home has gates blocking the stairs. (Not an issue for my house.)
- Home does not have a swimming pool, spa, hot tub, fishpond or other bodies of water. If it does, then there is a 5ft fence with a self latching gate surrounding it. (Not an issue for my house.)
- Toys and playthings are safe, clean and appropriate for ages of children. (Understandable.)
- Babywalkers, bouncers, jumpers, and similar items will not be used for children in care and are kept inaccessible. (Really? I understand about the jumper (from the doorway), but the walkers and bouncers with the cool activity tray things? Not allowed?)
- A copy of the deed or property tax statement, or if renting a copy of the lease, is available at the home. (Understandable.)
All of this is only for the pre-licensing inspection. Some of it makes sense, some of it doesn’t. And I’m sure it’s this way because some dumbass tried something, and the people in charge felt another rule needed to be created because people without common sense were allowed to watch children. But really? And all of this is just be able to watch children from two families (not including my own.)
Along with this, there are a few lifestyle changes I and my family would have to make.
- I would no longer be able to do park day on Tuesdays or group on Fridays.
- I would be house bound until the children went home. This means T would have to take Pman to his swim lessons, as I would need to stay home until kids were picked up. This means that Godzilla wouldn’t be able to go swimming. This means no grocery shopping, quick trips to the store, etc until the evenings or weekends.
- My house would have to stay inspection ready at all times. I couldn’t leave windex on the counter to put away the next morning. The big kids toiletries would have to be kept up before and after use.
- We would have to purchase a double dead bolt for the garage door, a locking door knob for the big kids door, supplies for a gate for the side yard.
- I would actually have to make a menu – for breakfast, lunch and dinner. And stick to it. (This wouldn’t actually be bad for me, but still.)
- I would have to curb my tv time.
- I wouldn’t be able to make quick trips to my dad’s shop to see my dad and siblings, and so the boys can play. I wouldn’t be able to make trips to my mom’s house to hang out and so the boys can play.
- So the more I think about this, the more I wanna say “nope, not worth it”. But the reality is, it has the potential to only be for a short time. And it would be really good for us financially, we would be able to pay off some debt and *gasp* save up some money for some things we wanna do. And then it seems worth it. I can do that for a year or two, right? And it keeps me home full time, instead of trying to work part time outside the home on an opposite shift as T. He does not want me doing that at all. So it would be ok, right?
I have until February to get my application in. I took their orientation class last February, and it’s good for a year. That’s $50 (I think) that I don’t have to spend. Which is better than nothing, since it’s going to cost to do some of the other things we know need to be done (fingerprinting, door knobs, gate, application fee).
Just a big next step. Now there are lists to write, papers to fill out, things to get in order. And then we see what happens after that.
Wow.
peace…
Blog Project 365-09 #296
Heya there! If you have a large enough vehicle and get parents permission you can take the kids out and about with you. Also, I don’t think any daycare/preschool sticks strongly to the menu. Just make one up.
As for the walker thing it has to do with the fact that they do not want A) child to be left unsupervised for long periods of time B) they say having their legs in the position is bad for their development and C) the walker part has to do with them tipping or falling. I just asked my dcp about this cause there was one someone was giving away.
You can also just go unlicencesed. It’s not “legal”, but they do it on CL all the time! Plus, how many more kids could you care for anyhow. I believe you can only have 6 including your own, no?
Oh and don’t forget about the insurance requirements. And getting the ok from the landlord.
And of course it’s that way because of some dumbass. As was the Bumbo recall. I had a dcp tell me once that she decided to do child care because she dropped out of med asst school and thought…what else can I do. Wrong answer!
You should do Passion Parties, that’s right up your alley!!
I only have a mini van, which seats seven. As it is right now, on Mondays and Tuesdays, if all three older kids are with us, then we do not have enough seatbelts for everyone to go somewhere. And I am not trading my van in for anything bigger. It’s just not reasonable. I already have permission from L for her kids to take them where I need to go. But if I get one more family, then I do not have the room.
I would prefer not to go against the law. I know that it happens all the time, but the consequences are not something I am interested in dealing with. And I can have eight children, including my own. And I am only looking to add one or two children.
Already on top of the insurance and landlord part. Thanks.
And yes, I could do Passion Parties. But because of what I know, I have become somewhat of a snob when it comes to toys. I would not be able to sell crappy toys, it just wouldn’t be right.
peace…
Ammo and weapons need to be stored separate at all times… not because of the adults but because of the kids. If they just happen to get into them… somehow… and somehow can always happen… then they can’t put the pieces together to create an aweful situation.
I can give you only some information you already probably know, but that I cannot emphasize enough: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/107/6/1247 which has as the bottom line: Results. Twenty-nine groups of boys (n = 64) took part in the study. The mean age of participants was 9.8 years. Twenty-one of the groups (72%) discovered the handgun (n = 48 boys); 16 groups (76%) handled it (n = 30 boys). One or more members in 10 of the groups (48%) pulled the trigger (n = 16 boys). Approximately half of the 48 boys who found the gun thought that it was a toy or were unsure whether it was real. Parental estimates of their child’s interest in guns did not predict actual behavior on finding the handgun. Boys who were believed to have a low interest in real guns were as likely to handle the handgun or pull the trigger as boys who were perceived to have a moderate or high interest in guns. More than 90% of the boys who handled the gun or pulled the trigger reported that they had previously received some sort of gun safety instruction.
I went to school with a boy who killed his best friend in junior high accidentally while playing with a gun. Both boys had been educated on gun safety. It didn’t do any good.
One other study that should be reviewed is http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/111/2/e109.
I grew up in a home where guns were present. They were not always locked up, but they should have been. I think sometimes it was dumb luck that something didn’t happen to me because of it.
One more thing, sorry if I’m going on, is that I feel especially passionate about guns in the home because 2 of my family members killed themselves in their homes with guns. I do not want guns in my home, or anywhere my kids could get access to them. I just don’t.
You’d be amazed at how quickly some of the stuff that seems annoying becomes second nature. I work part-time for a day care, and it was really jarring at first to remember to lock this cabinet or that cabinet, keep the cleaner up high unless I was touching it, etc. Now, I don’t even think about it. I think you would get used to keeping your home inspection-ready pretty quickly.
I do think having the guns and ammo separate is a good idea. Your kids def know to respect guns, but the kids you bring into your home might not. That, and when kids are together, they tend to cook up all sorts of crazy mischief. All it takes is one time for the door to accidentally be unlocked. When my cousins were little, they actually broke the lock on my uncle’s door because they wanted to “just look” at the “cool guns.” Luckily, they were smart enough not to pick it up, but it was a wake up call for my uncle!
As you know, I do not like guns. I have my own reasons, and you know why.
In my home there is my hunting husband. My hunting 17yo and the 18yo who shoots at the range. we haven’t purchased meat at a store in 10 years due to hunting… so the guns save me an assload on groceries lol I wouldn’t ever ask him to give up something he loves, and benefits my family.
Do I shoot, or hunt? No. Did I take hunter safety with my children? Yes. Are my guns locked up, yes I have a 3yo. Are they loaded? One is. Yes, well all know it is, we all have the combination to the safe.
I do not need my goats attacked by bobcats. I do not like the rabid opposums that run around here. They get shot. (Not by me lol)
Do I feel I am setting the example for how I want my grandchildren raised around guns? Yes. Because they will be…. I already know that. I feel totally safe with guns in my house, because we have raised our boys safety. Period.
I did daycare for 5 years. I loved it but couldn’t dtay home any longer lol Good luck with it! One thing is my daycare provider loves having her 2 kids having other kids to play with! She misses them on the weekends lol
It is hard to live your life with an inspection ready home.