Today I sent a sick kid to daycare. Autumn had a fever that spiked at 103.5 at about 1:30 this morning. She had been sick most of yesterday and was very listless throughout the day. For the first time ever, my child was able to tell me she was sick when she actually was sick. Most of the time she tells me she doesn’t feel well after she puts us through a wicked tantrum and has expelled all her energy by making us miserable for several minutes.
She seemed better this morning. I took her temperature twice and she was back down to normal, but she obviously was not herself. She didn’t want to watch “The Wiggles” and didn’t put up a fuss or kick her legs as I tried to get her dressed. All she wanted to do was lie down on our bed. It really was quite pathetic, but as I stood over my daughter looking so worn out, I couldn’t resist using the moment to my advantage. I put my hands on my hips and looked at her sternly. “See what happens when you eat your boogers? Didn’t Mommy say you’d get sick?” And Mommy did say that. Mommy said that just yesterday before the child got sick.
I decided to send her to daycare because today is the first day of classes at the university, and if there’s one day I really shouldn’t miss it’s this one. As we pulled into the driveway at daycare, Autumn’s weak voice piped up from the back seat. “You have to tell C- I’m not feeling well,” she said, perhaps afraid she wouldn’t get the same amount of sympathetic kisses as she would at home. Broke. My. Heart.
I told C- to call me if she thinks Autumn should go home. I’m kind of hoping she does call because I really think my little girl needs her mom right now.
Oh that is the worst feeling in the world. I hope she gets to feeling better very soon!
PS – Hope your day gets better as well!
I think the booger statement was brilliant! One day, at the playground, I told LLB not to put her thumb in her mouth because it had germs on it. She never put it in her mouth again…
I’m sorry Autumn is under the weather… maybe she’ll perk up later in the day.
xo
LBC
Poor thing. I hope you both feel better!!! ❤
Oh, i do hope she feels better. I was just telling my little one the same thing about the boogers and getting sick, of course she didn’t get sick, yet, lol. I’ll have to remember that one. Thanks for the laugh.
I hope she feels better soon. I think most of us have had to make that choice at some point in time and it never feels good. So I hope you feel better too.
Shelly-the timing worked in our favor on this one. I’m sure not all the lessons I wish to teach the kid will work out that way. Thanks for stopping by!
Thanks, LBC. Nice to see you again.
Meg-I brought some medicine over to C-‘s on my lunch and they said she’s okay but not herself. She hasn’t had much of an appetite but hasn’t been very clingy either.
I also learned that she got the whole booger eating thing from a boy at daycare. You gotta love how they pick up bad habits like that from other kids.
I understand that you had something to do but did you think about the other kids that you are exposing to your daughters illness? That really is inconsiderate. An easier day for you could lead to a couple sick days for other parents and other children.
Renee-I was fully prepared to stay home with my daughter today. I did not want to call in to work, but I most certainly would have if she still had a fever. While my post may have given the impression that I made this decision lightly, both my husband and I did take very seriously the implications of sending her to daycare with her health a little iffy.
We made the decision we did based on the information we had at the time. Today was not a day either of us could be absent from work and on another day, under another set of circumstances, we may have made a different decision. Thankfully whatever made our child ill seems to have passed as quickly as it started. Thank you for expressing your concern about her and for posting the drive-by criticism of my parenting.
I am not in the habit of being critical of other peoples parenting decisions. How you raise your child is your business. I only commented because I felt that other children could possibly be affected by your decision. I have seen how colds and viruses run through a classroom or a daycare. I fully understand what it is like to be pulled between your work obligations and your parenting responsibilities and I apologize for the way that my comment came off.
I hope your daughter feels better. We’ve been feeling icky here. At first I thought it was the eggs I ate but I think we have a touch of the flu. : ( My kids have belly aches too.
It’s so difficult balancing it all. We can only do what we can. Most kids pass germs even when they don’t have symptoms. It stays in their respiratory track. They can cough and it will spread. They’ll never be sick. A child could just as easily go to the store and touch something and bring the little buggers home . It happens
What a great mom you are to be so concerned! It takes a lot of courage to trust that someone else will comfort your child when you can’t. It’s not easy.
*hugs*
Jenni-Thanks for the well wishes. She actually is better today. Back to normal, actually, as I had a heck of a time getting her dressed today.
Yesterday was one of those days when it wasn’t a good idea to call in sick. We’re in the middle of a vacation blackout period (meaning no one can have time off) because this is our busiest time of year. My hope was that my daycare provider would call me if Autumn seemed to get worse. Sometimes it’s better to make every effort to get to work and be called away than to not show up at all. It’s one of those decisions every working parent has made or will have to make at some point.
And yeah, the girl could get sick anywhere, though I’m amazed she doesn’t get sick more from all the crap she puts in her mouth 🙂
Glad she is back to her usual frisky little self, you know as parents we all have to make difficult decisions.
I worked in daycare, I understand the parent side and the teacher side too. You did give your caregiver the needed info and that is more than any bad parent would ever do…they just don’t care.
I must admit the eating your boogers thing was a new one to me…which is amazing with how old my rugrats are.