Would you send your kid to daycare tomorrow?

lmd0137

New member
Sorry if this is not appropriate to ask here but i figured other working moms would understand this situation better than anyone.

My kid has had some sort of bug this week. This is the fifth time this year I have had to keep her home for 2+ days. It’s been pink eye or respiratory viruses and I’m so over it. My husband is out of sick time. I can work from home so I attempt to do it badly with a sick kid until he builds up more sick time.

Sunday afternoon, temp spiked initially to 100.7F. Her mood was miserable all afternoon/evening. Obviously we were keeping her home.

Monday and Tuesday, her temp has hovered around 99.5-100.8. She hit 101.2 one time yesterday morning when meds were wearing off. I’ve been alternating children’s Motrin and Tylenol because she has been miserable. Whenever I tried to not give her meds, her temp would rise and she would become a whining, crying mess.

Last night her fever seemed to possibly break? This morning she is happy and bouncy and chatty. She’s asking for food. I haven’t given her any medicine since 7:00 pm last night and it’s nearly lunch time here. Temp is hovering around 99.5. Not going up, but not really going down either. But at least it’s not medicated.

And I’m drowning with work. She’s been so good and cooperative but she’s also been a sick 4 year old. It’s been hard. I really want to try to save my sanity and be able to go to my office and work uninterrupted for just two days this week.

I know 100.4 is technically a fever for her age so technically she’s not running one. So….if you were drowning in work and your kid’s temp stayed down all day around 99.5 and she was happy and acting herself, would you send your kid to daycare tomorrow? My daycare doesn’t have a policy that defines a fever. Just says no fever for 24 hours.

I’m desperate but trying not to be the jerk. Help.

Update: Thanks everyone for so much helpful feedback. It’s near the end of my work day. No fever spikes. Temp has hovered closer to 99.0 most of the day. Even got some 98.5 readings. No meds and lots of fluids. Eating and drinking normally and….bouncing off the walls for part of the day and making work very difficult. Assuming her temp stays down without meds, we are going to try sending her in the morning. Hopefully we are on the other side of this one. Thanks for all the kind words and encouragement. It’s been a tough week so far, but mostly glad my little one is feeling better.
 
@lmd0137 Our health unit requires 24 hours fever and med free before they can return to daycare/school. So I think you’re safe to send her if nothing changes.
 
@lmd0137 98.6 is an average- not a golden number. She may just run hot (especially running around and playing.) You know her best and it doesn’t sound like you’re trying to send a sick kid in. If she normally runs closer to 98.0 I’d keep her home, but 99.5 isn’t a fever and she’s showing no other signs of illness it sounds to me like she’s ready.
 
@katrina2017 Exactly. I once tracked my daughters temperature at every diaper change (she was little and this was when daycares required a negative Covid test to return and it could take four days to get one even scheduled) and every day she’d be around 99.5 for the same time period. It was just her body’s natural fluctuation.

But happy, unmedicated, and under 100.4 would mean returning to daycare to me.
 
@katrina2017 Most people’s (including adults) temps go up in the afternoon. And supposedly the 98.6 “normal” temp is based on very bad data from over 100 years ago. Anyway, my daycare preschool, and pediatrician doesn’t consider it a fever unless it hits 101.1. Everything under is not a fever without any meds - elevated sure but that’s it. And same about as others: 24 hours without a fever and no meds we’re allowed to send them back.
 
@lmd0137 Fever free for 24 hours and acting normal, I'd send them to daycare too. For what it's worth, my son had an ear infection recently where he'd wake up fine then spike a fever sometime in the afternoon and become lethargic, for 3 days before I decided to take him to the pediatrician because I couldn't figure out what was wrong. Never complained his ear hurt, never tugged at it.
 
@winsomebulldog A few months ago, an ear infection might have been my first thought. She got tubes in her ears in January and hasn’t had an ear infection since. Wish we could have gotten those sooner but the ENT made us wait.
 
@winsomebulldog This happened with my kiddo 3 weeks ago! After spiking to 103 in the afternoons after naps, I finally took him in and was surprised to find out he had a double ear infection. No indication of ears bothering him!
 
@meigancam01 I’m a mom and nanny and I’ve worked for a lot of WFH parents (both before and during Covid) and the companies have all had a rule that the worker must have childcare in place if they are WFH. Is that not the case for your company?
 
@mrshw Nope, it’s not for me. I work for a tech start up as the finance and operations manager directly under the CEO. I used to work for 2 of his companies until he sold the larger one last year and now I just work for this one. Both companies have been fully remote since conception, long before Covid.

As long as I get my work done I can keep my own hours (aside from meetings, of course), and my husband works 24 hours on, 48 off so he takes care of them on his off days while I work.
 
@lmd0137 My daycare specifically says fever of more than 100.4 free without medication for 24 hours so yes based on her current status if she continues to not have a fever I would say you’re in the clear for tomorrow
 
@lmd0137 Yes I would send her. I have specifically asked our daycare and its 100.4 forehead temperature.

They miss too much to keep her home when its 99.5 and you can tell she is on the mend.
 

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