I'm really starting to regret that I didn't take some time off before my baby is born. My due date is Friday and I'm starting to not feel great. I only have 2 families coming right now and after this week, if I don't have the baby, I'll be down to one family for the summer.

We verbally agreed that I would take 2 weeks unpaid after the baby is born if all goes well. I'm thinking of telling the one family left that if I don't have the baby by Friday that I'm going to take time off unpaid until 2 weeks after the baby is born. This could potentially be 3-4 weeks off depending on how late the baby is that I never talked about or wrote into a contract.

I'm not really worried about the dcf being upset or leaving over this, but I'm just wondering if this makes me look like a bad business person for not planning better and not giving very much notice for taking extra time off. Would you tough it out or take the extra time off if it only affected one family? Or is there a better way you would handle this?

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It's a medical issue that affects care. Present it that way.

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I think one of the perks in this business is flexibility and being able to do what works for YOU.

I always tell parents that there are a few things that will always be "tweaked" on an as needed basis and personal time is one of those things.

Just because you planned for x days off doesn't mean you cant change the schedule to fit the circumstances. If you planned for so many days, that's fine but when something comes up that is important and you need to add or subtract to those scheduled days, it is well within your rights as a self-employed business owner to do what YOU need to do and NOT feel badly about it.

Life happens.

You are growing a tiny human.... it's a tough job and not one we can always plan out. Take the additional time off and don't look back.

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