Originally Posted by Solandia:
Does the provider have lots of tile/hardwood/vinyl?
When we took out all our carpets (due to dd's asthma triggered by her allergies)...we have dirty socks/dirty feet all the time. The socks pick up all the dust and dirt tracked in my our outside shoes, even if we take them off right away 90% of the time. Our home is much cleaner overall, dd no longer needs meds at all, but the trade-off is dirty socks. I can live with that.
No to mention the kitchen vinyl, all the little spills and drips & clean up right away...but there are always a few stray crumbs here and there after meals & snacks. I am NOT doing a full sweep & mop 5 times a day. Dirty socks it is.
We only had carpet in our house for 3 years...and it was disgusting underneath...and we have NO pets. *shudder*. Basically, now our socks are picking up the stuff that our carpet was holding until the end of time.
Same in our home daycare...no carpet but the play room. The kids take their shoes off at the door and walk up the stairs into the daycare area. They start out with socks and then they end up throwing them down to where their shoes are.
I don't mind and I don't think I've ever gotten a complaint about dirty feet or socks. Although I only take in 4 children at a time...if I see some black feet...you can bet I'd be washing them lol!! And, I have had the opposite happen where a child comes into daycare with black feet no socks or shoes on. After the parents leave...I take them into the rest room and give them feet a good scrubbing.
The kids think it's funny and we have fun sticking our feet in the water and playing. It's gets kind of messy but they have fun with it. Playing at daycare is about messes and getting messy...kids that come home happy and a bit messy tell me they had fun all day.
Don't be afraid of a little dirt. Just send your little in socks that are cheap and can get dirty. I am willing to bet your daycare provider doesn't really think about the socks getting dirty. You shouldn't either. As long as you are happy and you feel your child is safe that should be all that matters.