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View Full Version : A FEW QUESTIONS AND IRRITATIONS ABOUT CHILDMINDING!



mummyme
10-11-2011, 10:56 AM
Hi all,

1. I started minding in March and have been quite lucky. I have 2 2 year olds pretty much full time (term time only :jump for joy: ), pick up a 6 year old 2 days a week after school, sometimes more and my own son who is 4 so has just started full time school :( . When do you all fit in your paperwork? I dont like to do it with my son around as in my mind he puts up with having the others around as it is without me using other time that could be spent with him, doing paperwork. Is it wrong to spend a short time during my day with just the mindees around doing my paperwork. I would be sitting with them in the sitting room (like I am doing now whilst on here :laughing: ). What do you all do?

2. One of my two year olds says 'eh' after pretty much everything I say, whether im talking to him or not. Everytime he says it, I say 'pardon' and he then says pardon and i then repeat what i have said or tell him that I was talking to 'x'. Is this right do you think. Only a silly little thing i know but quite wearing. If I just repeat myself straight away he will say 'eh' over and over. He did make me laugh yesterday though, he said 'eh', I said 'pardon', he said 'what'. :rolleyes:

3. Both the 2 year olds use cups with a lid and i hate them walking around with them (when we are at mother and toddler they both know to sit at the table). With the older ones, i put their drinks on the dining room table and they are used to that, I have a wooden bench in the living room and it is now the 'juice bench'. I am encouraging them to leave the cups there and stand there and drink. One is fine with it the other has a moan about it. Am i being unfair or will they get used to it do you think? What do you all do?

Sorry this turned into a bit of a long one and thank you so much to everybody who bothered to finish reading!:D

Mouse
10-11-2011, 11:18 AM
I do the majority of my paperwork while I have the children here. I don't see anything wrong with that. I don't sit & play with the children 100% of the time as I don't think it is necessary or helpful. They need times when they have the freedom to play by themselves and make up their own games. If they need me, then obviously their needs come before any paperwork. I am always in the room with them and paying attention to what's going on.

As for the mindee who keeps say "eh", I don't think there's much you can do about that other than keep doing what you're doing. It is a phase (sometimes quite a tedious one!), but they do grow out of it.

With drinks, I have water in beakers on a tray on a low cupboard. Next to the cupboard I have a small matt (an Ikea bathmat) and the children sit or stand on there if they want a drink during the day (for snack time drink they sit at the little table). To start with it takes a lot of reminding to get them to stay on the mat, especially if they are used to walking round at home, but they soon get used to the idea. I won't have them walking round with drinks. It's your house, so your rules. If you don't want children walking around with drinks, then don't let them and don't feel bad about it :thumbsup:

sharonmanc
10-11-2011, 11:19 AM
I can only comment on the drinks, I woudl say start as you mean to go on, they shoudlbe static with drinks and food to reduce choking hazards. I have not started inding et, but with my own children, they know that any snack or juice that is nto eaten or drank at the table is to be consumed on the rug in the front room, to the pint my 2 year old tells me to sit on the rug when i brign in a drink lol. They soon get used to it.

Helen79
10-11-2011, 11:24 AM
I do paperwork while the children are here aswell. as long as their happy playing and you're sitting near them if they need you then it's fine.

My ds used to say eh and it is so wearing. It's a phase that lasted the best part of a year so I can't even tell you that it'll pass quickly :panic: toddlers take about 10seconds to process a question so it may be something he says while he's thinking about it, rather than asking you to repeat. I just ignored my ds saying it after a while. He had heard me and normally would respond after he'd had a think.

They'll soon get used to standing near the bench to drink so I would be consistent with it and just keep reminding them.

mummyme
10-11-2011, 11:29 AM
Thanks for the replies. As regards the drink thing, i appreciate your advice. I believe that it is dangerous to walk around with drinks. I have wooden floor so the juice can easily be wiped up but i worry about a mindee slipping. I didn't want to seen cruel or overly fussy. I realise that you cant be too house proud in this job :laughing: . It is a difficult one when they are perhaps allowed to walk around with drinks at home. But as you say, they soon learn. I have a good routine with them and they picked that up easily enough.

x

maisiemog
11-11-2011, 05:01 PM
I also do most of my paperwork whilst mindees are around, or on a friday which is my 'day off'!

Drinks have to be drank whilst sat down in my house. As its either the table or the sofa I sit them on the sofa with their drink. Snacks are eaten at the table. They all know the rules and it works well. Even the schoolies know to come in, take their shoes and coats off and sit on the sofa. If they aren't sat on the sofa I assume they dont want me to pour them a drink!

mushpea
11-11-2011, 07:44 PM
if you dont like them walking round with drinks then dont let them,, mine sit at the kitchen table if they are having a drink,, I hate it when they come out of school with their bottles haning out of their mouths,, if the trip its gonna really hurt their mouth.
as for paper work I do it when they are happily playing cause I dont see why I should do it evenings or weekends which is my own time.
as for the 'eh' I would just persevre and within time they should get it.