My holidays, how much clearer can I make it!!

[AliceK]

Grrrrr
I give out an A4 sheet with my holidays on at the beginning of the year. Then when I do invoices at the end of one month for the following month I detail on the invoice my holidays if there are any in that month and against it in the fees column I write £ NIL against that day / days. So, why is it that last week on a day I had booked off I have 1 school child waiting for me in the playground to be picked up. Then this morning (I'm not working today) I have 1 parent text me late to say sorry and that her DS is not coming today sorry for being late in letting me know. I text her back saying good job you didn't turn up as I'm not working today. grrrrrrrr, it makes me so mad. How much clearer can I make it to them.
I've just sat and done a REMINDER of holiday dates sheet with the rest of the days this year that I have already booked off and they will all be getting a copy of it the next time I see them.
How is it so difficult to write your childminders holiday dates in your diary / calendar and get yourself bleedin organised :angry:

xxxxx

[karen m]

I have this with 1 family , I have booked my holiday for may NEXT year given parents the dates and got why are you not going in the holidays this year sorry I try to be flexible but find someone will always complain as have holiday child and TT only , but come on you have 9 months notice

[charleyfarley]

I had the nerve to take 2 weeks holiday last year, the first time in 5 years I've actually booked time off may I add.

A parent gave me list of when my after schoolie would be with me during the 6 weeks holidays and yep she had him down to come to me for 2 days when I was actually on holiday. I told her no way was I coming back from Florida for those 2 days :laughing: They've now left :)

I've booked next years holiday already so will keep reminding the parents till I go :thumbsup:

Carol xx

[kellib]

I do the same, I email them a copy and I give them a sheet of paper with dates on too. Yet I still get 'oh when are you back?' etc.

I even had one mum txt me when I was on holiday saying she would see me with LO tomorrow, I quickly replied that unless she was planning on flying out to Portugal she wouldn't be seeing me for another week!

[hectors house]

I give them all plenty of written and e-mailed notice but still end up sticking piece of A4 paper on inside of my front door (so they see it when they leave) saying 4 weeks to go to my holiday, then cross it out and write 3 weeks etc and some of them still don't make arrangements!

[Samijanec]

I had this as well, I gave them all plenty of notice, then texted them a week before as a reminder and even spoke with them all the last day before of the holidays. Told them all exactly when I would be back to work only to be woken up on the last day by a mindee and dad. I told him I wasn't working till the next morning and that I'd text mum and talked to her about it and that I couldn't have mindee that day as we didn't arrive home till the early ours and everyone was sleeping and I had lots of sorting to do.. He just said ohh she hasn't looked at her texts. It was also on my web site and in every letter I'd sent them for months!!

[doris127]

Snap - same here!! I gave out my holidays for this year last November. I have it as a pinned post on my online diary so every time they log on it appears in their screen so they have to scroll past it to see what we've been up to.

Ours are off fri/Mon this weekend. Have never taken it off and its not written on my holidays. However 1 mum had no idea they were off school at all and another has taken the Mon off as she assumed I was off. Means I've 2 less so every cloud.......

[stardust]

Yeah I have parents like that. Calling me when I was in Devon. Then getting miffed at me because I'm on holiday. Despite her having a list of dates at the beginning of the year, a reminder on her invoice the 2 previous months before and me saying 'See you in a few weeks'
But seriously guys how dare we take holiday? Its wrong that we feel we deserve a holiday!

[SJ35]

I can't book definate dates very far in advance as it depends when my husband can get time off. He runs a busy pub restaurant so it depends what the staffing levels are like at the time so we can't give much more than the 4 weeks notice needed in the contract.
I am up front with parents about this and it only causes problems for one family out of the 5 I have.
I do try to get cover from another cm but its not always possible.
I used to feel guilty about taking time off but not any more. We deserve it!!

[Daisy De]

I give out a holiday sheet in January, which I get parents to sign and return to say they have seen and noted my holiday dates.

Then they are all also on the end of my monthly newsletter, ones coming up in that month are in bold red to stand out. They return a signed sheet to say they have received the newsletter so I think I do more than enough to let them know when I'm not open. I even mention the holiday or bank holiday in the main text of the newsletter, you would think they would be sick of my reminders :D

Do have the odd parent forgetting but I don't feel guilty because I think I am OTT about letting them know.

[Ripeberry]

This is why I'm TT only as there was no way that I was going to be made to feel guilty about having a holiday. It's ridiculous how some CMs NEVER have any time off because it will inconvenience someone. I'd rather save some of the money for the lean times.

[AliceK]

Well I have given out Reminder sheets to the parents I have seen this morning, the rest will go out as and when I see the parents. Hectors House I like your idea of sticking a notice on the front door too, I will be doing that :thumbsup:

xxxx