This is Ms. Pam, the wonderful woman who watches Avery every day. I've been meaning to get a picture taken with her and Avery for a while. This isn't the best picture in the world, but I wanted Avery to have a picture for when she gets older.
Ms. Pam is the best woman in Plano to watch children. She's been doing this for forever! She started watching kids when her little girls were young, even though she was an accountant and was making a very decent living, between her and her husband. She told herself she would stay at home with her girls, and would watch one more of their friends to make some extra money. She told herself she would go back to work after her girls were in school. 16 years later, she is still doing this, despite the fact that her girls are in college, one going for a masters at Rice and the other a sophmore at UT. She says this was just was she was born to do. She really just loves kids. She has a woman named Sonja who has helped her the last 10 years. She only watches kids until they turn 3, then they go to pre-school.
I really couldn't imagine anyone else watching my daughter. When I got this new job, I really thought I was going to have to find someone else to keep Avery and I cried. Literally, cried. Thank goodness it worked out that she could still keep her because I don't think I could have handled it.
Every single parent/child relationship and situation is completely different and I am a firm believer that every family's way is different. Every family must find what path works for them. In our family, Avery going to an at home daycare is what works well. Avery is really getting so much out of being there, every day. They don't have a structured learning time, or curriculum, but I don't really think they need a really structured learning time at 2 and under. They do alot of reading and structured play, they teach them Spanish, stuff like that. But Pam says that at this age, especially the babies under 1, what's most important is just to love on them and play the way they want to play and give them an environment where they can play with other kids. I think Avery is benefitting so much from spending her day with other kids. I couldn't tell you all of the ways this has been proven true. All I know is that my daughter is crawling, talking constantly, she is smiling all the time, she loves being around other kids, she sleeps well, she eats well, and she is really happy. I have a feeling a big part of that, aside from her father and I, is Pam.
It makes me feel good, knowing that I can be at work and still leave my daugher who someone who loves her so much too.
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