Day Care

I never gave a thought about a day care before my divorce. Never really needed to. But there we were, Wyatt and I on our own. When his mother left I had full custody for over a year while she and I battled the divorce process. My parents live three hours away and I had no other relatives to turn to. So I visited about every day care in the area. From the chain day care facilities that cost way too much to the stay at home Mom’s trying to make a few bucks watching other people’s kids. My neighbor helped out for the first week. That gave me time to find a place I could be comfortable leaving Wyatt at.
The first place, a nice lady with a day care in her basement seemed OK. Until I asked where the kids ate. “ Up stairs “ she said. Seven little kids climb 14 steps twice a day? I don’t think so.

On to another in-home day care. She had three kids of her own one about 4. The kids took Wyatt to their room to show him their toys while I talked with their mother. Just a few minutes go by and the 4 year old comes running down the hall through the kitchen and back towards the hall. I turned and saw Wyatt coming the opposite direction. When her 4 year old got to Wyatt he opened the coat closet and shoved Wyatt in and closed the door. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.
We left, quickly!

After several more bizarre encounters we finally ended up at a Church Day Care. A place I could drop Wyatt off and know he was being taken care of. It wouldn’t be a center located in a basement with no windows, no dogs, and no steps to climb. Good caring people with a nice playground and lots of toys.

If you ever have to look for a day care look for one you wouldn’t mind staying at for 8-10 hours a day because that’s about how long your kid will be there. A basement with no windows probably won’t be your first choice.

“ You want to hear God laugh? Tell Him your plans.”