My Daycare Journey

By Mimi Hecht

 "Working from home with an adventurous and constantly hungry

 toddler is akin to riding a boat on pavement - it just doesn't happen."

MY DAYCARE JOURNEY

So how exactly did I know it was time to send my first child into the world of daycare? How did I realize I was ready for the next stage of his barely two-year-old life, sending him off every day into some other woman's competent arms?

In short, I was going nuts. 

There, I said it. I know, I know - that's not exactly a feel-good explanation, not a thought-out analyzation of his little-man needs. I was just losing my mind. You see, I'm not a stay-at-home mom. I mean, I definitely do stay at home, hardly ever putting on makeup or any other shoe wear but slippers. But it's not because I belong to the noble group of women who dedicate all their days towards caring for and occupying their little ones at home. It's because I work from home. And let me tell you, working from home with an adventurous and constantly hungry toddler is akin to riding a boat on pavement - it just doesn't happen. Every time I would sit at the computer to work, my 20-month old would think I was starting "Elmo" or "Eli" from Mitzvah Boulevard. When he kvetched and shrieked his way into my lap only to discover a boring document of "ABCs," the scream got louder. The result? No work. Just lot's of puppets.