Navigating difficult conversations with families in Nevada County

Provider:

I have a large family child care license. I've been doing it for 36 years. I did close in late March. I had a lot of children who were sick. They had different little illnesses and it was getting a little funky. We couldn't tell what they actually had, two had pneumonia and a couple others had hand, foot, and mouth infections, so it got really funky towards the end. During that time, they had closed the schools and so I decided, there's just too many unknowns going on. So we went ahead and closed at the end of March. Then we stayed close through the month of April and during that time, a lot of the parents were not essential workers, so they couldn't go back to work anyway. So it worked out kind of, where both of the parents’ lives were only able to stay home because they could not go to work. They were able to care for their own children during that time and then as soon as we knew a little bit more about it, and what to do and how to somewhat maneuver around the COVID-19, still not knowing a lot, we reopened may 1st. Then all the parents that were essential workers were able to go back to work, which became more of my parents at that time because they work in hospitals, pharmacies, and real estate. There were a bunch of things that fit in a criteria so they could go back. So we continued to be open through May till now. We just did a whole different protocol. We did an outdoor classroom. We were outside in May, June, July, August, September and we were only using the indoors when we were napping or potty or babies or infants napping, just to keep the wellness and to have everybody breathing outdoors. We didn't make the children wear masks, because we didn't know. It wasn't required of us one, and they didn't think it would be comfortable for them. My husband and I, who were in the program working with our employees, decided not to have them come because we couldn't control where they were on the weekends and evenings. We didn't want anything coming into our program that we weren't sure about. So we were very cautious, very scrutinized with our own lifestyle, and what we were doing, so we did wear masks. During the days with the children, parents wore masks to pick up. They didn't come into the play yard, except for one at a time to get their children. The children had a six foot radius to stay away from the parents. It was just very much working in the unknown and we've been open ever since.

But, some parents tested and we had one set of parents that tested positive. So they of course stayed out for I believe three weeks during that time and they were tested again before they came back. I don't think their children ever got tested, but they didn't show signs of anything either. But the children who were sick in our program right away, those children did not come back after we reopened. Their children had, I mean the parents had funding through Sierra Nevada children's services and their funding didn't extend, so there was no need for care. I do know one of those families did have COVID, so I’m not sure if those children did, or I didn’t. It's still unknown to ask.

Interviewer:

So during those months, when you're closed, how did that impact you financially?

Provider:

Well, we were just closed, one month. Knowing that it would totally impact us, we decided to take the next step. We did reopen the following month. We did have our blessing from Sierra Nevada Children's Services because for one month, they did pay for children who were subsidized. They paid for that one month that we were closed, so that was a good thing. At that time, I had six children, so part of my program was being paid for.

Interviewer:

Was there any other grant or public assistance that helped you stay open during that time?

Provider:

We did get some PPE, which was hand sanitizers, cleaning products, masks, and things like that. They came through as well, headstart was part of it, but it was a mutual group of people who came together. I believe it was Head Start, first five, and our local obesity planning commission.

Interviewer:

Did you feel like you had enough supplies and resources that you felt comfortable keeping yourself and the kids safe?

Provider:

We did. I felt like we did. I mean, you know, we juggled, we hunted, and we found things. It was tough at first, because at first you couldn't find diaper wipes, which was a big deal. You couldn't find diaper wipes in our community at all. You didn't want to go to another community because you didn't know, again. So I ordered a lot of things online, but now I think that we are able to take care of our needs.

Interviewer:

Have you noticed any change in the demand that you've seen during the pandemic, like any change in the demand for care by age group?

Provider:

Yes, and I think that happened, county-wide. A lot of us who do family childcare, we do continuity of care. So we usually have them from two to five and when they’re five, they go off to school.

But a lot of those children who were in school couldn't return to school, so a lot of families asked us to take back the siblings of the children that were already here. So a lot of us who were at 12 capacity, went ahead and took the 14, which was two extra school aged children. So we did that to help one of the families and to just assist where there was a need. Because they were all familiar with our program, that was a really cool thing and it was really good for all of us. But yeah, they're larger than the things that we have in our program, so we had to incorporate larger learning activities for them, and even larger equipment for them because we didn't know how long. We would incorporate a lot of different things that would engage them, keep them busy, and keep them curious. A lot of loose parts and just things that would keep them involved. Some of them had materials that they had to do on zoom classes and things like that from school, so that got incorporated. Also, one child actually worked out okay. One of the other children was younger, so you had to dismiss yourself from what you were doing, and keep popping in to make sure that he was okay and pottying, so that part was a little bit tricky to maneuver, until we got comfortable with the teacher, and she got comfortable with what was happening with him, that he wasn't just home alone with mom. He was in family childcare, and we had other children to care for, so she would put the bulk of the important things during one part of the time, where I can be more present and then the other stuff she would keep for when I had to walk away and do other things.

Interviewer:

Yeah. Did you have any increased cost, like better internet or increased food costs?

Provider:

Definitely, it would go up, you know, like the food cost, especially having older children, they eat more, they're hungry more often, and they want different things that you may or may not serve at the present. So a little bit of food cost increases, but not really because we make most of our foods, so it's just an additional amount to be made. Then with the internet, I just had them bump up. The kind of internet we had wasn't working throughout the house. So I had to bump it up so they could use it in the dining room. Little things like that.

Interviewer:

Can you talk a little more about how the wildfires of summer 2020 impacted being a family child care provider during the pandemic?.

Provider:

We had some very smoky days and we had ash and stuff all over the tables and outdoor things. On those days, we had to make some really tough decisions. Are we going to be outside today? Should we, you know, go indoors and be COVID activated or outdoors and be smoke activated? Yeah, so we just had to play by ear and try to do what we felt like was safe. We spent a couple of days indoors, just because there was really thick ash in the play yard and on the table, so I thought, “Gosh, if it's just stuck overnight, this is what we're breathing all day”.

Interviewer:

If you can describe, how worried or afraid you've been during the pandemic about you or your family or the children getting exposed to COVID?

Provider:

Well, It was extremely stressful because you're not in control of anyone because families have the choice if they want to go out of town for the weekend or who they are getting exposed to, or who the children are exposed to, or what are they bringing back?, who are they going to expose, and when do they come back? So there was a lot of fear and a lot of frustration, when you would hear families go, yeah, “we went to Las Vegas for the weekend”. You would just want them to, you know, maybe to be tested before they come back and it was an awful position to be in because it feels like you're making demands on people that seem unreasonable, but at the same time, extremely reasonable. Tom and I couldn't afford to get COVID, my husband's 70, and I'm in my 60s. So it was one of those things, it's just like, “yeah, we really don't want to get this disease, and we're doing everything in our power to not come in contact with it”. But we were not, we were powerless as far as families bringing it to us, so we had to be really cautious. I wrote a letter to everybody just saying, this is what we're doing to secure your safety and your children's safety, we would really love to know that you're doing something very similar. If you're not, then you need to be quarantined, you know, for X amount of days before you come back to make sure that you're okay or get tested. I mean, I felt uncomfortable asking that of them. I know some of them were uncomfortable, because we did, because some people didn't believe it was a big deal. Programs like family childcare, a lot of times, people don't realize we're open for 10 to 12 hours a day. We open, you know, at six and close at six and that’s 12 hours. I’m open 7:30am and close later, you know, 12 to 10 hours a day. It's a very long day. When you have extra kids and extra things to navigate, it's just you're done at the end of the week.

Interviewer:

How would you say that the pandemic has affected your general wellbeing or mental health?

Provider:

Well, I see that we're resilient and given the things that are thrown at us and you can navigate them with a good common sense and have to try not to take it too personal because it's not a personal thing for anybody. I think it changed us all a lot to know what's important. I wouldn't hesitate in the future of taking more time off or doing more things that would be mentally healthier. Like I said, working 12 hours a day for more than a year with next to no days off, you know, we had to take the holidays off, but that was it. Then we took that one month, it was a very long year.

Interviewer:

What would you say has been the most challenging part of being a childcare provider during the pandemic?

Provider:

I think that one piece that I was talking about is just having that communication with your families and hoping that they feel emotionally the same way you do, and that they understand your reason for wanting to be very protective of the children. You care for the families that are in your program, and for yourself, you know to make sure that we can all stay well, that was the most stressful part. We had a lot of parents who were wonderful. They were on board, and they did their very best, and they were doing everything in their power to make sure they were safe, and that they were comfortable. Then I had others who it wasn't a big deal to them. They didn't react the same way. I had to ask more of them sometimes. I even had to ask his family to please be tested. I'm glad I did, because he tested positive. So they didn't get to come back for three weeks, because he had tested positive and then she tested positive a week later. So it was one of those things. So that was hard and we all learned something. I do feel like I kind of stepped in areas where it wasn't comfortable for them either. You know, I didn't want to be their boss, but these are the things I'm asking of you. If you don’t want to be here, you're welcome to go anywhere else, but this is what I need to keep these families safe.

Interviewer:

So what would you say for you has been the most helpful thing as a childcare provider during the pandemic?

Provider:

I do appreciate the R&R sending us resources and the referral service at Sierra Nevada Children's Services. They really did check in with us and they really did try to support us. If nothing else, with the things that they had that were available to them, and our local r&r person. I don't know what her position was, but she would email us and say, you know, “are you doing okay, are things okay, and are there things that you need? Is there anything that we may be able to help you with?”. So that support felt good!

Interviewer:

Is there anything that would have been helpful to you, that you didn’t get?

Provider:

Maybe if we have something that came more directed at the parents, from our city, government, or from doctors, but everybody was in the unknown. So nobody knew, or knew what regulations they could do or what you could ask. Asking someone that wasn't crossing a line, you know? CDC is always fabulous with that, but CDC at the time was not doing anything. They weren't doing what they would normally be doing because the CDC at the time wasn't being supported properly. Now I feel like it's much better and being vaccinated is wonderful. I've always told all the parents here from the get go as soon as it becomes available to me. I'm getting it and a lot of them go, “are you kidding?!” and go “isn't scary” and I say, “no scary is not having it” because now I won't be mad at all of you when you guys make decisions. I will be happy. I know we're all safe here under this roof.

Interviewer:

Is there anything else you want to share, that you haven't already, that you think will be important for us to know?

Provider:

I feel like we were able to cover a lot of ground with different agencies in town. We did a lot of zoom. I belong to the Childcare Coordinating Council. I sat on their board, so we were able to go through a lot of things that were helpful about what's around us, and things that might support other programs. I am an early child care person who works for early child care. It's the ECP, and Nevada County on the childcare Council. I have 20 mentees, so I was able to share all that information with all of them, and get some input back and how were they struggling? How were they working with things and everybody seemed pretty much on board and similar. But the fear was there for all of us. Closing was the biggest fear for a lot of them because closing meant no income. I had even spoken with some that even though they had known about people who had become exposed, they had that family stay home, but they didn't share that information with other families. for fear that they would have to shut their doors for a period. So we kind of walked them through the edges of that, and just said, you know, it'd be so much easier if you just go get that family tested and be closed two days instead of two weeks. So that's how we dealt with it and that provider did take our advice. So it was helpful for me to have this sort of community, a sound board where you were able to provide support, then also maybe feel like you were part of a group, getting information from others that were connected, and tied into other agencies that had more information at the time like Sierra Nevada Children's Services. That person or just who is there in our office, she was able to get a lot of information from the health department, which was the hub of the information in Nevada County.

Interviewer:

What is your favorite part about what you do?

Provider:

Gosh, there's so many favorite parts. It's just this really incredible thing that children bring to you. It's innocent. It's adorable. You know, when they talk to you and their little ways that they're trying to say words they don't really know. It's just, there's just this beautiful vibe with children. They're very innocent. They're very natural. They come with a lot of love.