Day Care Germs

My little guy has been battling a runny nose, sore throat, and cough for the past week. I even had to go in to work late on Wednesday so that I could stay home with him until Joel took over at 1:00. I was a little worried about how my supervisors would take it, but they're all parents too and were very understanding. The thing that bugs me is that this happened directly because of the usual stuff that happens by being at a daycare. It's so frustrating knowing that your child is getting exposed to more bugs than usual, and even more so when you can see that the other kids at the center are obviously sick when you drop off or pick up your kid. I love that it's a home-based daycare, because he gets extra attention in a warm, comfortable home instead of a center. But I don't love that sick kids tend to stay a little longer than they would if they were in a larger center-based daycare. I wish that other parents would keep their kids home when they're sick, rather than bringing them to daycare and waiting for the provider to tell them they have to go home. Usually it's too late at that point, and everyone else's children have been exposed to whatever is attacking your kid. Look, I understand that you don't want to or can't afford to miss another day of work to stay home with your child, but guess what? Neither can we!

And another thing that worries me a bit is that there is another toddler who attends Ethan's daycare but is at home this month recovering from heart surgery. What about when he comes back? He will be extra vulnerable to infection, and it's a bit scary to think of him being exposed to the bugs that have been floating around daycare this week. Did I mention that two of the other boys were out with major ear infections this week? Ugh! Just hope that my boy feels better soon. Even when it's minor, I hate seeing him feeling under the weather.