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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>Closures Due to Cold
Kabob 03:35 PM 01-03-2014
So dcm picked up today and paid me in full for next week and then added that her kids wouldn't be here Monday due to the fact that the governor closed all schools and such due to the extreme cold (-30 to -60 below around here is expected with wind chill). Apparently her workplace was part of the closures. It was nice though that she wasn't going to try to venture out with her little ones (3 month old and 2 yr old) even though she was still paying for the day and she only is about 5 minutes away and works 15 minutes away.

However, this got me thinking...would you close daycare for extreme cold, especially since all schools in the state apparently are closed due to the cold?

I just would feel silly telling the only other family attending on Monday not to come since they live 3 minutes away, however they work 20 to 40 minutes away so if they have car trouble...it would be a long day.

I know if I don't close, these parents will bring their kids (illness, surgery, and other issues have never stopped them).

Do you think I would be compromising the safety of their children by staying open Monday? It's such a weird thought. I didn't consider closing until the other dcm expressed surprise that I was still going to be open Monday...

It's just weird because...I never thought about this scenario...never thought I'd see local businesses and school closing from cold...they rarely even close for snow! Snow just makes more sense since I can see the physical danger of it for traveling...cold...not so much...
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e.j. 04:50 PM 01-03-2014
Unless the weather threatens my ability to care for the kids safely, I stay open for business. To me, it's up to the parents to decide if it's worth the potential risk to them and their kids to drive here. I remind them that my closing time remains the same and that they need to have a back-up plan in case they can't get here in time. I've never experienced wind chill temperatures as low as -30 to -60 though! Holy cow! Why would anyone want to go out in that?!!!
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Unregistered 05:02 PM 01-03-2014
Originally Posted by Kabob:
So dcm picked up today and paid me in full for next week and then added that her kids wouldn't be here Monday due to the fact that the governor closed all schools and such due to the extreme cold (-30 to -60 below around here is expected with wind chill). Apparently her workplace was part of the closures. It was nice though that she wasn't going to try to venture out with her little ones (3 month old and 2 yr old) even though she was still paying for the day and she only is about 5 minutes away and works 15 minutes away.

However, this got me thinking...would you close daycare for extreme cold, especially since all schools in the state apparently are closed due to the cold?

I just would feel silly telling the only other family attending on Monday not to come since they live 3 minutes away, however they work 20 to 40 minutes away so if they have car trouble...it would be a long day.

I know if I don't close, these parents will bring their kids (illness, surgery, and other issues have never stopped them).

Do you think I would be compromising the safety of their children by staying open Monday? It's such a weird thought. I didn't consider closing until the other dcm expressed surprise that I was still going to be open Monday...

It's just weird because...I never thought about this scenario...never thought I'd see local businesses and school closing from cold...they rarely even close for snow! Snow just makes more sense since I can see the physical danger of it for traveling...cold...not so much...
IDK because I'm in a state where we have had days on end with temps in the negatives where schools do not close. Usually, it's just an "indoor" day. We've only closed in very extreme circumstances and most of us here KNOW how to layer up and dress for the weather, so it's a non-issue. Now, that said, just because WE have figured out how to stay warm does not mean my little old van likes to start up nicely in negative temps! lol
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GKJNIGMN 05:10 PM 01-03-2014
I'm originally from the area where they have the school closures going on (North Dakota on the Minnesota border) so I understand the cold you are talking about to some degree.

With that being said, I don't think you are personally risking the child's safety because when I was working up there, my job closed for nothing which meant that if my daycare provider were to close I would have just ended up taking my kids to a family member somewhere. Either way they would have to be outside at some point. For me it would have potentially meant driving my kids half an hour to my mother's house in another city which would have been more dangerous.
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Kabob 05:37 PM 01-03-2014
Yeah I never even considered closing until dcm brought it up. I just figured we would be inside.

However I just felt bad because the only reason those kids will be going outside in the cold is because I'm open. Their mom or babysitter will be home with their school aged siblings because the schools will be closed. These parents have sent their kids here even when their school aged kids were home puking with mom and the younger kids (unbeknownst to me until everyone got sick) were just getting over the same illness from the weekend. Fun.

But anyway I thought it was a weird scenario worth discussing. I mean...you hear of snow closures all the time but this is ridiculous! I will never again complain about the cold if it is above zero. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to follow suit since generally the daycares in this area close if the schools are closed (except me apparently...).
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GKJNIGMN 06:21 AM 01-04-2014
I didn't realize someone would be at home to watch the child anyway. In that case, I would see nothing wrong with closing if that's what you would like to do. It wouldn't be unreasonable at all.

Schools where I am at closed yesterday because it was only 13 degrees out lol All my parents except one thought it was dangerous to take their kids out and kept them home. Inside I was laughing because I remember real cold and my own kids were out playing in the snow.

Be safe and stay warm next week.
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melilley 07:48 AM 01-04-2014
Originally Posted by e.j.:
Unless the weather threatens my ability to care for the kids safely, I stay open for business. To me, it's up to the parents to decide if it's worth the potential risk to them and their kids to drive here. I remind them that my closing time remains the same and that they need to have a back-up plan in case they can't get here in time. I've never experienced wind chill temperatures as low as -30 to -60 though! Holy cow! Why would anyone want to go out in that?!!!
Same here.
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Naptime yet? 07:59 AM 01-04-2014
I think that would be a personal decision on your part, also. I received a wind chill advisory from my licensing person reminding everyone that kids need to be really bundled up because of the extreme cold, but this was more for the kids waiting for the school bus. I wouldn't close due to cold, unless my power was out.

But as Blackcat had reminded me in another post, sometimes you have to make the decision for the parents because they don't always use their best judgement when it comes to weather.
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Blackcat31 08:00 AM 01-04-2014
Originally Posted by Kabob:
So dcm picked up today and paid me in full for next week and then added that her kids wouldn't be here Monday due to the fact that the governor closed all schools and such due to the extreme cold (-30 to -60 below around here is expected with wind chill). Apparently her workplace was part of the closures. It was nice though that she wasn't going to try to venture out with her little ones (3 month old and 2 yr old) even though she was still paying for the day and she only is about 5 minutes away and works 15 minutes away.

However, this got me thinking...would you close daycare for extreme cold, especially since all schools in the state apparently are closed due to the cold?

I just would feel silly telling the only other family attending on Monday not to come since they live 3 minutes away, however they work 20 to 40 minutes away so if they have car trouble...it would be a long day.

I know if I don't close, these parents will bring their kids (illness, surgery, and other issues have never stopped them).

Do you think I would be compromising the safety of their children by staying open Monday? It's such a weird thought. I didn't consider closing until the other dcm expressed surprise that I was still going to be open Monday...

It's just weird because...I never thought about this scenario...never thought I'd see local businesses and school closing from cold...they rarely even close for snow! Snow just makes more sense since I can see the physical danger of it for traveling...cold...not so much...
I am in the waaaay northern part of the same state you are in and since the Governor closed ALL public schools in the state, I closed too.

NOT because I am personally worried about the cold because living here, we all know it is simply part of life, HOWEVER, since experience tells me that a majority of parents these days do NOT put the safety of their child ahead of their need to travel, work etc.... I KNOW that many would still risk traveling and bring their child so I decided to make that call for them and simply closed.

My licensor "strongly" suggested we be the educated decision maker and close so that no parent unnecessarily brings their little ones out in such extreme cold.

Since the cold has been going on for days now, it is even more dangerous than just being cold for a day...kwim?

I serve children under age 5 only and no one that little needs to be put at risk.
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Blackcat31 08:03 AM 01-04-2014
Originally Posted by Naptime yet?:

But as Blackcat had reminded me in another post, sometimes you have to make the decision for the parents because they don't always use their best judgement when it comes to weather.
LOL! I was typing this same thought as you posted.

Most my parents are pretty good about it but how many times have you shaken your head at the way a kid is dressed (improperly) for the weather, forgotten their hats or gloves etc?

I have so many parents that just think :the car is warm, so it's all good" ...kwim?

So, I just made the executive decision and closed. I want NO part of a parent's choice to expose their child to such extreme temps.
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Kabob 08:57 AM 01-04-2014
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
LOL! I was typing this same thought as you posted.

Most my parents are pretty good about it but how many times have you shaken your head at the way a kid is dressed (improperly) for the weather, forgotten their hats or gloves etc?

I have so many parents that just think :the car is warm, so it's all good" ...kwim?

So, I just made the executive decision and closed. I want NO part of a parent's choice to expose their child to such extreme temps.
Makes good sense. I just felt bad since this family lives so close to me...so I know they will be angry even though they will be home anyway. But on the other hand, they have never made good decisions for their children...this is the family that I posted about sending their son here the day after he had surgery and didn't tell me he had surgery. I sent him home.

This family also had a bad habit of allowing their 2 (now 3) yr old son bolt out the front door without any supervision, boots, jacket, etc. They only stopped him after I stopped him and then told them absolutely never to let that happen again. They also only started making him wear a jacket because I said he needed it even though he had a short walk to the car...they didn't "forget" his winter gear...they just chose not to fight with him and carried him inside every morning even though he never put up a fight with me when we gear up for outside. So he comes in the morning in tears because he also has to go across his apartment complex parking lot with no winter gear so by the time he gets here his hands and body are freezing. I mean...it has been below zero for a while...no reason why I should have to tell them to bring a jacket for him let alone tell them to make him wear it...their car is a pile of junk (no offense) that has caused them to be late before. Soooo...I thought I was just being selfish in not wanting to deal with that mess.

Anyway. I digress.

I definitely got some good insight into this. Seriously, thanks you guys!
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Crazy8 10:31 AM 01-04-2014
Originally Posted by e.j.:
Unless the weather threatens my ability to care for the kids safely, I stay open for business. To me, it's up to the parents to decide if it's worth the potential risk to them and their kids to drive here. I remind them that my closing time remains the same and that they need to have a back-up plan in case they can't get here in time. I've never experienced wind chill temperatures as low as -30 to -60 though! Holy cow! Why would anyone want to go out in that?!!!
same here. Just went over this with parents with our snow storm this week - my commute is not an issue, I live here but they are the ones who have to decide if they want to risk it.
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Maria2013 10:47 AM 01-04-2014
I have it in my contract that I follow the school closing, however I will take the kids if parents assume All responsibility in getting the kids to and from my home, and are ok with driveway and steps not being shoveled
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Heidi 10:49 AM 01-04-2014
I will let my dcp's use their judgment as well. One of my kiddos lives in an older trailer. The water was already frozen once this week. I think he's safer and more comfortable here than at home, quite frankly. If I closed, mom would still have to work, but find someone to come to the house and watch him.

I am a little concerned about her driving around at all in her old klunker, though. My other dcp's all have new vehicles, so I would be less worried about them.
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mema 07:38 PM 01-04-2014
I'll still be open. I know one of my parents can work from home (and probably will), but has also been with them for the last 2 weeks so I am sure they will be here . The other family I have now will be a toss up. Dcm is very protective, but has also missed a lot of work in the last month or so. I will be telling them tomorrow when they let me know if they will be here or not, that if they are coming, to just keep them in some nice warm jammies! It's going to be a movie (super rare!), book, and cuddling day. Stay warm-next weekend we'll all be wearing shorts when it's 25*!
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Play Care 05:31 AM 01-05-2014
Originally Posted by Crazy8:
same here. Just went over this with parents with our snow storm this week - my commute is not an issue, I live here but they are the ones who have to decide if they want to risk it.
I used to feel this way also. Until the Valentine's Day Blizzard of 2007, when one parent decided to try to get to work in two feet of snow. Which would have been fine had her child not started vomiting about a half hour after she had left. Of course, mom was stuck on horrid roads and no one could come get her Mom got all the way to work to find they had closed the office, and on her way back to get her sick child (hours later) she got stuck in a snow bank on my road, and one of my older neighbors dug her out. Every time someone says "well you don't have to leave your house so why do you care?!" I tell them this story.
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Kabob 06:58 AM 01-05-2014
Originally Posted by Play Care:
I used to feel this way also. Until the Valentine's Day Blizzard of 2007, when one parent decided to try to get to work in two feet of snow. Which would have been fine had her child not started vomiting about a half hour after she had left. Of course, mom was stuck on horrid roads and no one could come get her Mom got all the way to work to find they had closed the office, and on her way back to get her sick child (hours later) she got stuck in a snow bank on my road, and one of my older neighbors dug her out. Every time someone says "well you don't have to leave your house so why do you care?!" I tell them this story.
Yep, I ended up closing because this thought occurred to me too. The last time we had a decent chunk of snow, the family in question ended up an hour late because of car trouble. In fact they've been late because of car trouble even without weather issues. I do charge a late fee, but a late fee won't make me feel better if there's an emergency (i.e, power outage, illness, etc) and they can't get here because their car won't start.

I still feel silly closing but I consoled myself by deciding to do daycare paperwork and cleaning for the day so that I'm still working.

Normally, cold and snow don't bother me...I've lived way up North by Lake Superior most of my life until I had to move for better financial prospects. Lake effect snow is terrible...combined with wind off of the lake and you have recipe for miserable weather. One time, during a cold spell, my workplace caught on fire because it was so cold that morning that (to the best of my memory) some fan belts operating the venting system froze up and then that created stress in the system that started a fire. Long story short, we were stuck outside in that cold for a couple of hours before we could go back inside. The cold can do funny things to machinery.

Besides, since Blackcat lives in the same area (generally speaking) as me, I figured if even she is closing, then perhaps I should take a note.
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Maria2013 07:16 AM 01-05-2014
Originally Posted by e.j.:
I've never experienced wind chill temperatures as low as -30 to -60 though! Holy cow! Why would anyone want to go out in that?!!!
I'm asking myself the very same thing
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Blackcat31 07:54 AM 01-05-2014
Originally Posted by Kabob:
Yep, I ended up closing because this thought occurred to me too. The last time we had a decent chunk of snow, the family in question ended up an hour late because of car trouble. In fact they've been late because of car trouble even without weather issues. I do charge a late fee, but a late fee won't make me feel better if there's an emergency (i.e, power outage, illness, etc) and they can't get here because their car won't start.

I still feel silly closing but I consoled myself by deciding to do daycare paperwork and cleaning for the day so that I'm still working.

Normally, cold and snow don't bother me...I've lived way up North by Lake Superior most of my life until I had to move for better financial prospects. Lake effect snow is terrible...combined with wind off of the lake and you have recipe for miserable weather. One time, during a cold spell, my workplace caught on fire because it was so cold that morning that (to the best of my memory) some fan belts operating the venting system froze up and then that created stress in the system that started a fire. Long story short, we were stuck outside in that cold for a couple of hours before we could go back inside. The cold can do funny things to machinery.

Besides, since Blackcat lives in the same area (generally speaking) as me, I figured if even she is closing, then perhaps I should take a note.
Yeah, this is getting old...... but atleast there are other places that are going through the same thing... LOL!



It's funny how many issues there are that are indirectly related to the cold (in reference to your fire at work story). We are always hearing about someone burning down their garage while trying to warm their cars or even stuff as tragic as dying because of space heaters and such.

But life goes on here I guess.... cold is just part of the deal when living here. The ice fishing is crazy and SUPER busy..... there are probably more cars/trucks and people parked on the lakes than their are on the roads right now.

I'm getting ready to eat lunch and then hop on the snowmobile for an afternoon ride with friends since I have the day off tomorrow.

Speaking of living near Lake Superior, I LOVE that area! I live about an hour away... a little farther north-northwest.

My son is moving to Duluth in June. I am excited because the hubs and I spend ALOT of time there and up along the north shore. Beautiful there!

As far as closing daycare, I probably wouldn't have normally closed but since the governor closed schools and several of my families are teachers, I just decided to go ahead and close. As you know, we don't often have school closings for temp/snow so I figured, why not.

I wanted NO part in parents choosing to bring their kids out in this weather.

The parents all get it....even if they aren't always wisest in their decisions to stay home or not, we aren't being overly cautious or impractical about it when the governor kind of feels the same way, ya know?
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TaylorTots 05:37 AM 01-06-2014
I remained open today and we are in the same area getting -40 windchill. However, I will only have one child - my other two are teacher DCMs and the schools are closed today. Then again, that child was suppose to show up 10-15 minutes ago and nothing yet, so we will see... I am worried about it being a late late night because DCM/DCD could easily have issues with cars starting...
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coolconfidentme 05:55 AM 01-06-2014
My county is on a Level 1; roads are emergency use only. No parent questioned my decision to closed today when I contacted them last night. They just wanted to know where you go to find out emergency information. I have good families who value the safety of their children!!!
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Heidi 06:35 AM 01-06-2014
Well, I didn't close, but all my families called in. One's job closed, 2's boyfriend is staying with kiddo so she doesn't have to drive him in her klunker, 3's gma wanted to spend the day with him, and 4's daddy drives an old truck and mom made him call in to work.

I've started laundry and have a list of projects to work on.
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Maria2013 06:41 AM 01-06-2014
only the youngest baby made it so far
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KDC 06:46 AM 01-06-2014
I was curious about this because most of my parents brought their kids today, even though ALL schools in the surrounding area are closed. This is the coldest its been in this area in 20 yrs. or something like that. There are spin outs and dangerous roads (snowed 6 inches this weekend) -- but most of my clients are in my neighborhood, where they are dropping off and going back home to 'work from home'.

Many of the commercial daycare's in my area are also closed, my kids are home from school and I could have really used a 'day off' -- but I just couldn't see closing for cold weather. With the holiday's and sickness time off lately, I could see parents being a little miffed. I as a parent might feel a little miffed, especially if I didn't have an understanding boss. I do feel that some parents are taking advantage though -- basically they're teachers with the day off, still bringing their child so they can 'clean'. Good times!!
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Familycare71 07:11 AM 01-06-2014
This is the first year I am closed if the school district is... Paid. I get so frustrated when people take their kids out in dangerous weather! So I decided I would take the option away!
The story of a parent not being able to get back to their vomiting child makes me even happier I did it!!!
Tomorrow I am pretty sure we will have a wind chill closing-
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caregiver 08:14 AM 01-06-2014
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
LOL! I was typing this same thought as you posted.

Most my parents are pretty good about it but how many times have you shaken your head at the way a kid is dressed (improperly) for the weather, forgotten their hats or gloves etc?

I have so many parents that just think :the car is warm, so it's all good" ...kwim?

So, I just made the executive decision and closed. I want NO part of a parent's choice to expose their child to such extreme temps.



I live in the same state as Blackcat and I was seriously thinking about closing today as it was -23 this morning. I only have 2 families at the moment and decided to see if they would use their common sense and not bring their kids, but lo and behold, here they both come and on time. I do know that one family the Mom can and has worked from home before for the day, so was hoping she would do that, but she didn't. Her daughter was out 2 days last week with a really bad cold, so I thought maybe she would not want to take her out in this cold, but as people have said, parents don't seem to care if they have to take their child out in the extreme cold. The other DCM says she can not take anymore time off as she has no more PTO left, so brings her child.
So I have the kids today and am trying to keep the house nice and warm.
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Blackcat31 08:18 AM 01-06-2014
Originally Posted by Familycare71:
This is the first year I am closed if the school district is... Paid. I get so frustrated when people take their kids out in dangerous weather! So I decided I would take the option away!
The story of a parent not being able to get back to their vomiting child makes me even happier I did it!!!
Tomorrow I am pretty sure we will have a wind chill closing-
I felt the same way and decided that allowing parents to make the choice worked before but now it seems the majority of parents don't care.

Like the poster who said a lot of her clients were teachers who just want the day to clean. I get that, but why can't that happen when their child is home?

Seems ridiculous to risk your child's life just so you can clean without interruption.

Here is what my temp reading was this morning.... I am GLAD I closed.
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SilverSabre25 08:21 AM 01-06-2014
When the University closed last night I seriously considered closing too. Or at least....wished that I had a policy about closing if the University closes!

But I'm still getting paid, it's not THAT cold here, the roads aren't bad, and my kids are all mostly easy right now.

Of course, we got missed by the snow. Do you have any idea how peeved I am at the Weather Sprites for gifting us with unreasonably cold weather and not giving us SNOW to enjoy, too?! I would have accepted ice, too. But no. Just ridiculously cold air and wind.
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mema 08:59 AM 01-06-2014
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
I felt the same way and decided that allowing parents to make the choice worked before but now it seems the majority of parents don't care.

Like the poster who said a lot of her clients were teachers who just want the day to clean. I get that, but why can't that happen when their child is home?

Seems ridiculous to risk your child's life just so you can clean without interruption.

Here is what my temp reading was this morning.... I am GLAD I closed.
I think for once we are colder than you. When I took dh to work this morning, the wind chill was -65*. Altho, really at this point, it's all the same.
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Blackcat31 09:09 AM 01-06-2014
Originally Posted by mema:
I think for once we are colder than you. When I took dh to work this morning, the wind chill was -65*. Altho, really at this point, it's all the same.
I think you guys are getting strong winds (making the wind chill colder).

It's not as windy here today as it has been.

The forecast for the week is funny because today the temps are suppose to be -20F and by Friday it's suppose to be +20F (above) so within the next 5 days the swing is HUGE!

Friday will feel like a heat wave!
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Unregistered 09:21 AM 01-06-2014
My one non teacher dcf did come but was late. It's a lazy day here without any little ones... and a little wild. My 6yo and the 4yo dcg need to get outside. They have so much energy lately! Wondering what tomorrow's weather will bring... and thinking I may only take on teacher families after the 4yo hits kindergarten in a year and a half..
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mema 10:17 AM 01-06-2014
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
I think you guys are getting strong winds (making the wind chill colder).

It's not as windy here today as it has been.

The forecast for the week is funny because today the temps are suppose to be -20F and by Friday it's suppose to be +20F (above) so within the next 5 days the swing is HUGE!

Friday will feel like a heat wave!
It is windy. I can tell it's dying down now tho since my curtains aren't moving as much and I don't hear any whistling.

I think our Saturday forecast is 33-ds asked if he could break out the shorts. I told him he could probably use his heavy sweatshirt instead of his winter coat, but not shorts!

Our schools are 2 hours late tomorrow too. Hopefully by the time lunch rolls around, it will be a bit more tolerable.
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Cat Herder 10:54 AM 01-06-2014
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
My licensor "strongly" suggested we be the educated decision maker and close so that no parent unnecessarily brings their little ones out in such extreme cold.
Mine said something similar but they have no provisions for those of us who lose income if we close. I just lost two weeks of income over the holidays because of planned vacation and the flu. I can't do it and feed my own this month....

Funny... I had one family roll up on a 4-wheeler this morning because my bridge was "out" (under 2 inches of ice/swollen river). So, that happened....

I don't even close for county wide power outages and the kids tend to arrive EARLY and stay until closing on those days....
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TaylorTots 12:01 PM 01-06-2014
Originally Posted by Unregistered:
My one non teacher dcf did come but was late. It's a lazy day here without any little ones... and a little wild. My 6yo and the 4yo dcg need to get outside. They have so much energy lately! Wondering what tomorrow's weather will bring... and thinking I may only take on teacher families after the 4yo hits kindergarten in a year and a half..
Whoops this was my post lol got logged out and didn't realize
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Stepping 12:57 PM 01-06-2014
Originally Posted by TaylorTots:
I remained open today and we are in the same area getting -40 windchill. However, I will only have one child - my other two are teacher DCMs and the schools are closed today. Then again, that child was suppose to show up 10-15 minutes ago and nothing yet, so we will see... I am worried about it being a late late night because DCM/DCD could easily have issues with cars starting...
We have similar wind/temps here. I stayed open but explained that I had given my assistant the day off (she has to catch two buses to get here and public transit is experiencing major delays) so anyone who could take the day off or work from home should do so.

All but one took the day off. The little guy that's here is the same dck who's mom brought him back to dc the day after he had surgery and flipped out when I sent him home because his surgical wound reopened (he's 15 months old). I understand that she values her career and works for a firm that frowns on parents taking days off but they took a weeks vacation in August and are taking another week off in January.

Maybe save some of those days for emergencies and sickness next time
Vent over!
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lflick 01:21 PM 01-06-2014
I live in Northern WI and it is extremely cold! We actually had a massive power outage early this morning due to a high energy line down as a result of the extreme cold..... My home has energy star windows, new insulation, siding, and shingles and the temps inside dropped over 20 degrees in 2 hours! I was honestly beginning to look up hotels in the area because I have 5 littles of my own.

I did not close my doors, BUT if the power would've remained off past 530am I would have..... late last week my only family scheduled for today relayed they would likely be moving their variable days to the end of the week with hopes of not going outside today or tomorrow.
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Bookworm 03:00 PM 01-06-2014
Here in SC, this is not the norm. Some districts in the state are closed tomorrow and others are on a two hour delay. When I got off this afternoon, the grocery store was packed. People were acting scared and wondering how they were getting to work in the morning. It was borderline panic. Mind you that there will be no snow and the day should be clear and sunny. It's just colder than usual. Tonight's low will be 11* with wind chill at -5 and tomorrow's high will be 31* with wind chill 20*. Now if we react like this with just extra cold weather, can you imagine us with just the POSSIBILITY of snow. Ladies, you are some strong women to be able to live through all this bad weather. Not to rub it in though, it's supposed to be 70* this weekend.
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craftymissbeth 06:07 PM 01-06-2014
I closed today.... I feel REALLY bad, but there is someone setting houses on fire in my area and my husband had my van because he wrecked his car over the weekend. If I needed to evacuate for any reason the babies would freeze. And our wind chill was -14... nothing compared to any of you guys, but I'm a worrier.
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Heidi 06:23 PM 01-06-2014
Originally Posted by mema:
It is windy. I can tell it's dying down now tho since my curtains aren't moving as much and I don't hear any whistling.

I think our Saturday forecast is 33-ds asked if he could break out the shorts. I told him he could probably use his heavy sweatshirt instead of his winter coat, but not shorts!

Our schools are 2 hours late tomorrow too. Hopefully by the time lunch rolls around, it will be a bit more tolerable.
Gee, Mema....close your windows. It's cold out there!

JK
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Naptime yet? 07:39 PM 01-06-2014
Today, not so bad. Tomorrow (Tues), the POLAR VORTEX (I love this!) is coming on strong, high of maybe 6, not counting wind chill. I had a dcd call tonight, said he was off work tomorrow because of the cold, but was....yup, dropping the kids off because he had things to do around the house. As my hubby said, it's hard to lay on the couch & watch tv with kids around! I'm going to try my darnedest to refrain from snarkiness when he comes in the am & complains about how cold it is. Maybe Junior will catch a cold and...give it to my entire family! I'm not jaded!
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daycarediva 04:37 AM 01-07-2014
Originally Posted by SilverSabre25:
When the University closed last night I seriously considered closing too. Or at least....wished that I had a policy about closing if the University closes!

But I'm still getting paid, it's not THAT cold here, the roads aren't bad, and my kids are all mostly easy right now.

Of course, we got missed by the snow. Do you have any idea how peeved I am at the Weather Sprites for gifting us with unreasonably cold weather and not giving us SNOW to enjoy, too?! I would have accepted ice, too. But no. Just ridiculously cold air and wind
.
I just said the same thing to ds/8 about not having school. What kind of SNOW DAY is this?!

I am open, the roads are open and clear, I have a backup generator and parents know I WILL charge late fees. I only close if the roads are, and/or a state of emergency in my county. (and I am one of the few counties NOT in a SOE)
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NeedaVaca 05:09 AM 01-07-2014
I guess I have to add more to my policy book...we are under a travel warning-only emergency vehicles allowed to travel and yet most of my families want to bring their kids! I DO feel a little bad because I had the last 2 weeks off but I can't control the weather! WHY would these parents risk their child's safety??
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hope 05:46 AM 01-07-2014
The extreme cold has hit us here today. Nothing like the mid west so I shouldn't complain. Everyone is complaining bc the schools didn't close. Ummmm, as a parent I make the decisions for my children and I kept home for the day. I don't need the school system to give me permission to keep home. I decided to keep DD home today bc there are already a few water main breaks in town along with many power outages. If school is to let out early due to this I don't want to have to bring all the dcks out into this cold. I also rather not have DD out in this cold to drop off and pick up. Just not worth it!!!!!
I wish some of my dc families would put some thought into their day considering the extreme temperatures. Instead, they expect me to. Dcd dropped off this morning asking if they can pick up their sa kid first today so the baby didn't have to go in and out of the car after pick up here. I said "sure, just leave work early then and pick her up so you can make it here on time for pick up". Oh, they can't leave early!!!!!!! I explained that I have a doctors appointment tonight and I will not be able to watch any later. Their response...."well, roads are going to be bad so not sure I can make it here on time". Ughgg!!!!!
I plan on having a late payment slip in hand at pick up. Informing them that next late pick up results in termination. Parents always want me to fix their problems. They need to leave work early, work from home or find alternate pick up if weather conditions are bad. It's my fault for allowing this in the past. Changing the rules today!
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MCC 06:38 AM 01-07-2014
I'm on the East Coast and schools closed, but the federal government opened. I was so on the fence about it. I got a text from 4/5 families saying they were staying home, so I let the one family who didn't come. I let them know that I was going to be upstairs, in the non-licensed section of my house, and that I am CLOSED, but would "babysit" her DD today.

Her and my DD are 3 weeks a part, so they are just playing in DD's room and being sweet little girls. I'll be cleaning, drinking coffee, and relaxing today.
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mema 07:14 AM 01-07-2014
Originally Posted by Heidi:
Gee, Mema....close your windows. It's cold out there!

JK
Needed some fresh air! Can't wait until I save enough to replace it, but it is huge so may never happen.
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Tags:closed from bad weather, closures
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