| Friday, May 13, 2005 |
| I Fought the Good Fight and Lost |
Thanks to Susie for the create your own South Park character link.
Well, things went just as I had expected and worse. Rance suggested last night that I take Lauren in this morning and talk with the home daycare lady (HDL). Rance read my blog last night while I was at bunco and he said that he also did not like how Lauren's face was dirty and crusty when he picked her up, especially when he was taking her to a doctor's appointment. It was a relief to hear him say it and that maybe we should consider another daycare.
When I arrived this morning, HDL was very standoffish. I asked if we could sit down and talk and she said she preferred to stand, towering over me and Lauren sitting in a chair. That should've been my first clue to pick up my crap and get the heck out of Dodge.
I began by saying that Rance and I were concerned about Lauren's baby acne on her cheeks and that we would like it if she could help keep her face and hair clean. She looked at me like I was speaking a foreign language and that there was no way we ever took home a dirty-faced babushka. That was my second clue to pick up my crap and get the heck out of Dodge. She finally quit staring and said, "Okay."
I then stated that I've noticed that when her helpers change Lauren's wet diaper that they don't always use a wipe. She has constant diaper rash and I would prefer that they always use a wipe. Then I got that same damn stare again. I now know what it feels like to be a Jehovah's Witness sitting in a stranger's home. But, after the long uncomfortable silence, she finally said okay.
Now here's where it all falls apart. I told HDL that this next thing was very difficult for me to talk about because it really upset me. I told her that the formula story had gotten back to me through TP telling my best friend Julie (BFJ). She denied that she had told TP anything and said that maybe her mom (one of the helpers) told TP. She said she never discusses private stuff like that. So I'm sitting there, listening to her lie to my face, thinking about whether or not I should call her out on the lie. I thought, "Okay, if you don't discuss things with parents, then why is your mother doing it?" By this time, I'm really expecting an apology for the mother's indiscretion, but I never got it. She essentially said that whatever TP was telling BFJ was not the truth, that maybe BFJ was adlibbing or making up stories. HDL doesn't even know BFJ, and she's calling her a liar. Not cool in my book lady. That was clue #3 to pick up my crap and get the heck out of Dodge.
The next part gets really fuzzy through my haze of anger, so I hope I can tell it the way it really happened. I told HDL that this wasn't the first time I had heard about discussions at my expense. I knew that she and TP had discussed our drugstore misunderstanding and that TP had come to pull her kids if need be. HDL said that she never heard what the original story was and that, yes, TP had come to her. Yeah right, so you're not going to ask why on Earth would you want to pull your kids that you've been watching for the past three years? Give me a break! She then went on to say that it was most likely ME that had brought the sickness to the daycare and that TP's kids were not the instigators. Oh, so it's my fault now. I see how you are. Put the fault on my shoulders. She continued to say that I was VERY RUDE yesterday when I walked in and did not say anything to her husband when he asked, "How are you doing?" I don't even remember him saying that, but I most likely grunted or gave a half smile given the enormous lump of anger in my throat. I said I was sorry about that, but I was so angry that I couldn't speak. I didn't mean anything to the husband because he was never a part of it. She just kept going on and on about my rudeness. I said, "I don't understand why this is such a big issue, I was upset and I've never been rude to you before." She hurumphed under her breath and said nothing. By this time, I was so angry I felt the tears welling up. She wasn't addressing the issue and putting blame on me. I decided that it was time to get the heck out of Dodge. I picked Lauren up and chunked her car seat and bag at the door. I tried to open up the crappy latch on her storm door, and when I finally got it open, I jerked Lauren around a bit. HDL shouted, "Don't fling her around like that! It's okay baby." Uh, WHAT? Your stupid door makes getting in and out of here a royal pain. Shut up.
So, I stood there in the doorway, ready to make a run for it. I wanted to leave so badly, but I had no idea what I was going to do or if there was even another daycare position open. I asked her why she kept going back to accusing me of being rude yesterday. That was not the underlying problem in this situation. I told her that I felt betrayed that discussions were going on about my private business and that I've dealt with enough of that in my life. I said, if you want us to go, just tell us. She said that she would've given us a two week notice if she wanted us gone.
I anticipate that we're going to get that notice when Rance picks up Lauren this afternoon. We're currently looking into daycares as I speak. Wish us luck. |
| posted by ieatcrayonz @ 5/13/2005 |
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