Our mother of two preschoolers lives in Cavan and works full time outside the home.
She studied Early Childhood Education at Fleming College and at the beginning of her career she combined her love of travel with her training, providing children’s programming on cruise ships and filling in on a supply basis at local day care centres between trips. Thirteen years ago, a highly desirable, full time job became available in a public day care centre, so she made the “sensible” decision to take the job, which offers regular hours, good pay and better benefits, including a pension.
The irony of dropping off her own children at day care in order to provide those same services to other parents is not lost on her. Being an expert in the field, she has high expectations for those looking after her children. She believes children need to spend a good deal of time outdoors, where learning happens naturally. She has missed work frequently when her own children became ill or when their caregiver or one of their other clients are sick. This bothers her on a professional level as she does not want to let down her employer, and she understands that her young customers function best when their care is consistent. She brings a great deal of compassion for parents to her job, relating to the meltdowns that often result from rushing toddlers to keep to a schedule. These situations arise in her own life, when one of her children insist on putting on their own shoes, for example. She chooses to let them complete their task as often as possible, believing that interfering in this process can be quite detrimental to the child’s development. She is very empathetic to parents dropping off half-dressed, unfed youngsters who are distraught over an interruption to their morning plans.
Day care spots are extremely difficult to find, and this was the case even before the federal subsidized day care program was launched. This mother put her name on a waiting list in the centre that cared for her first child when she learned that she was expecting another child. It took three and a half years before an opening became available. This wait seems to be the norm, and not just in large urban centres.
In a few short years, her children will attend school but she will still need before and after school care if she continues to work in her current role. Her husband has a good job (with a pension) and works a regular day shift. His commute means he is unavailable at the key moments before and after her work day. Her extended family is nearby and would like to help but their circumstances prevent this from being a regular occurrence.
Our mother is considering opening her own day care which would allow her to spend more time with her own children and control their playmates and environment. She is confident that with her training and experience, references would easily ensure any openings she creates would be filled. She remains torn between her desire to spend more time with her own children and providing them and other youngsters quality care and walking away from a corporate job with income and security. KG