Dear fellow daycare parents,

I have a bone to pick with you. Please refrain from sending your sick child to daycare.

I know you have important things to do – work, meetings, deadlines, appointments, etc.. It is difficult to miss such important things when you have a sick child, but please just find a way to make it work that does not include exposing your child’s sickness to the entire daycare.

Some families have multiple kids in daycare, so it’s terribly easy for illness to spread throughout the entire family. Your decision to send your child to daycare affects everyone at the center – children and employees alike.

Please be considerate and put yourself in your child’s position asking, “Who would I want caring for me if I felt this badly?”  The answer is typically NOT a daycare teacher – it’s you!  And there’s no place like home to sleep and recover from feeling rotten.

Due to your poor decision-making, I now have two children at home with pink-eye.  That was one illness we had not yet encountered, and such an introduction is always enjoyable a royal pain. Thank you for the inconvenience and annoyance that you have shared with my family.

I hope you think twice before sending your sick child to daycare (or even going out to communal play-places or play-dates). I will try to do the same as a courtesy to your child and family as a whole, so we can enjoy many healthy, happy days.

Sincerely,

Mama O

Dear big sister and little brother,

If you see another kid at daycare who is sneezing, coughing, rubbing red eyes, just run away, wash your hands, and stay as far away as possible from him or her. Do not kiss, hold hands, touch eyes, wipe noses, eat boogers, lick the table or floor, or put toys in your mouth. Wash hands often!

Please arrange NOT to get sick on Mondays and Tuesdays – the only two days that Mom works. Dad and I are much better equipped to handle sickness Wednesday through Sunday.  Please also shoot for getting sick during typical daytime hours too, such as between the hours of 7am – 8pm.

We appreciate any and all attempts to follow our suggestions.

Love you!

The Management – Mama and Daddy O.

(I also thought about writing to employers, asking for their flexibility in working with employees who are parents. Providing sick days or vacation days that can be used is all part of making it easier on families. I know this isn’t always the case.)