Frustrated - But Not Sure I Have A Right To Be

[DancingQueen]

I have a SA boy.
he comes at 7 and gets on the bus at 7:35
Gets off the bus at 3:45 and is gone by 4:30 (usually a 4 though)

He is not here during school vacations or any days off from school including summer.

We neglected to discuss 1/2 days ahead of time. My contract states that anyone here for more than 3 hours is charged a full time rate. So normally for a 1/2 day he would be charged $30.00 for that day.

But i wasn't sure if he was even going to be here for those days.

I asked Dad and he said that asked what time the bus will be dropping off around 1:45 so he said "that means I have to be here by... 2:30 right?

I want to scream NO! If you have that much flexibility in your schedule than can you please just get him so that he doesn't get off the bus and wake up all of my toddlers (3 will be napping - 1 will have "quiet time with books") right in the middle of nap time.
He has total flexibility with his job to avoid having to pay a full day's rate - but wants to use my care to it's fullest (til 2:30).

I want to say that he can't be here after school for 1/2 days - but I really don't have a leg to stand on.
so those are going to be three hellish days next week :sigh

[BentleysBands]

i dont see the big deal, if he's willing to pay for the time then so be it.

[DancingQueen]

he is willing to pay his regular before/after school rate. not the $30 per day. that is why he was trying to figure out exactly what time he had to be here to not go over the 3 hours.

I guess that irked me. But really i think I'm more annoyed that the interruption in my daily routine for those 3 days next week is going to be HUGE. You guys know what it is like when nap time is screwed with. It SUCKS!!!

[BentleysBands]

ohhh, sorry i mis-read....yeah that would irk me as well!

not sure what to say since i'm a sucker LOL.....wednesdays are my worse days! schools here get out early on wed. and its crazy here! thankfully so far, what i do on those days is make naptime an hour earlier so they are waking up as the others arrive. its worked for a while but still crazy LOL

[AfterSchoolMom]

If he's not there during school breaks....a half day is a school break. Tell Dad that it's right in the middle of nap, and that he can't come!

[Lilbutterflie]

Hmmm, I see both sides here. From his point of view, he's paying you for roughly 45 minutes after school, so he should be entitled to be able to pick him up at 2:30. Maybe in order to avoid paying full time he has to go in to work super early? Asking him to pick up at 1:45 when the bus gets there means going in even earlier. We all know how hard it is to get up that early!

And from your point of view, it just so happens to be right in the middle of naptime. I know how that can disrupt your day. Maybe you could try an 11:00 lunch and go to nap at 11:30? That way hopefully they will have about two hours to nap before he gets off the bus?

In my opinion, you are getting paid to watch him after school. Dad should be allowed to pickup at 2:30. I understand the frustration of naptime though. Good luck!

[DancingQueen]

Lilbutterflie
i really am in agreement with you - it just irks me. Especially because he doesn't go in early and he does have the incredible flexibility.
and I can't put them down at 11:30 because my dd is in preschool and has 1/2 days those days as well so I have to pick her up at 12 - which isn't that abnormal because I usually drop her off right at 12 - we go down at 12:15 for nap and wake up around 2 (on days I have to get my dd from preschool) on half days we would likely sleep til closer to 3 - but not with him getting here at 1:45

I think I'm going to require him to bring a reading book and sit on the couch and read until nap time is over - or sit quitly. It is what I'd do if he were here during a day off from school - so why not.

[laundryduchess@yahoo.com]

I see both sides,

here I dont do early release days,.. I have no room for SA kids until 330 pm. I see how he thought he had the hours to use, but is it contractred as 3 hours per day or exact times listed? if your contract states exact times,.. then thats exact times. Period. Tell him he can drop off at the reg school drop off time, go back and work, then pick up again? if its 3 hrs per day,... then your stuck

[missnikki]

I suppose I would tell dad about the naptime coinciding with his drop off time, and that in order to keep things in control, you are going to allow him to bring his (insert name of personal electronic device- MP3, GameBoy, PSP, etc..) or a book to read while the kids are napping.
That way, you have him aware of the situation, the boy is happy for the chance to use his gizmo (Most kids have one of those things) and the kids all sleep. Seems like a good chance for a win- win.

[kidkair]

I think your title says it all. I don't think you have the right to be frustrated. You stated that you usually get the kids up around 2, so what's the big deal if they start getting up 15 minutes earlier? Just have the SA come in as quietly as possible and read quietly. 15 minutes should not be so crazy of a difference to have all the kids wind up super tired.

[DancingQueen]

I figured out why this has me so irritated. LOL
Forgive me for using the board to analyze myself but this one was just getting to me.

So on a normal day the kids would nap from 12:15 - 2
they only nap til 2 because I HAVE to wake them up to go and get my dd from preschool.
On days that she does nto have preschool they will nap til 2:45
So on these half days I could get them to easily nap until 2:45 - and sometimes later.

But that wasn't why this has me so irked.

My normal before and after school rate is 75.00. This family was given a discount because the boy was going to be here for such a small amount of time. He was originally supposed to be picked up right when the bus arrived. So really he was only going to be here for about 1/2 hour in the morning and just get off the bus here and wait no more than 10 minute to be picked up.

But what has happened without me even realizing it is that pick up has gotten later and later. And today dad showed up at 4:20!!! And the kicker? he was OFF WORK TODAY!!!

so I think I just really figured out that this was bothering me because more was going on. I think I'm being taken advantage of without fully realizing it. Then you go back to the fact that he will get off the bus (with my own son) and the two of them WILL mess up nap and be disruptive and I'm already having a difficult time on regular days keeping them occupied and not running around my house out of control (again - my own son is not innocent in this). And the disruption it is causing is NOT worth the $10.00 I'm going to make that day.
If this was being handled like any other parent that has to work full days. The child would be here until his normal pick up time and I'd make my $30 for the day and it would all be a whole lot more worth the headache.

So I guess I just realized that I need to have a talk with him tomorrow morning about the pick up times - or possible rate increase.

[Abigail]

SBSChildCare, I agree you need to talk to him about pick up times. You never answered someone else about whether his hours were contracted from specific times or if you just have a general three hour limit for part time care. Can you clarify that?

I know it doesn't help that your own son and his may be buddies and be louder, but have you tried to split them up or have them play in the backyard for an hour (if you can see them)?

It's unfortunate that some days you must get the kids up early as that is YOUR TIME to relax, not work. It is the only break time in the day you get. Is it worth it to have someone else pick up your daughter for you, even if it's a cab or a friend and pay them $5 to do it? I was paid before to bring a 6 year old to and from school that was less than a mile away and got paid $5 each way....worth it to me! I was in college and it fit perfectly between my classes when I went and I just left a few minutes early to go get her.

The other question I have is about these new half days. Is this something that is new with your school system or is it just teacher conference week and will not happen too often?