venting

I am NOT a morning person, I never have been. I choose to go to our "late" service at church (10:30am) because trying to get out the door any earlier than that on a Sunday is an assault and outrage to my body and mind. However, our parenting class is taught every other Sunday at 8:30am and I am willing to make sacrifices for the sake of my family's happiness. By the time yesterday's class was over, I'd dug deep inside me and unearthed some stuff that rattled my spirit, so I was looking forward to the church service and the opportunity to nurse my weary soul (and body, and mind).

Turns out, no one was on the schedule to work in the Nursery during the 10:30am service. Since I have a 19mo child in there, I went ahead and took the extra shift to help out(I'm scheduled for the fouth Sunday of every month). Now, I've been to church conferences where the speakers actually ask people to ACT like Christians towards one another in the crowded parking lot as they leave, and I'm reminded of that every time I work in the church nursery. I need an extra measure of grace and patience towards my fellow parents on those days. See, my church is pretty loosey-goosey, not one of those places where people feel looked down upon and judged. Which is great and has brought a lot of healing to my heart, and to Mo's. But it also means some of the others in attendance are not always functioning at a "do unto others" level. So, yesterday was not a good day for me to be in the nursery...

Open letter to the other parents who use the Nursery

We love your children and hope they will enjoy being here while you participate in our service. However, in order for us to provide the BEST care for all the children who use the Nursery, please help us by:

1. bringing a snack and a bottle/sippy cup for your child so that they don't go after another child's snack or drink. This is especially important if your child has the appetite of a T-Rex and a habit of grabbing whatever he wants out of someone else's hands.
   
2. leaving only those things which are necessary for us to care for your child. This does not include your coat, parenting class materials or commuter mugs.
3. if your child is suffering from separation anxiety, please come in the room and sit with them for a little while before you leave. This will probably help them with the transition. By bringing them into the room and refusing to acknowledge that they don't want to stay, you are making them feel rejected and putting the nursery worker in charge of an overly distraught child, on top of the other children that are there with various needs for attention. One child wailing tends to upset the others and cause a domino effect of crying.
4. once you have left the room, please don't come back unless it's time to take your child home or change their diaper. Please do NOT come back for your cellphone, car keys, coat or checkbook. Your child will see you and want to go with you, and will most likely get very upset when you leave right away without them. If you just want to check on them, we have a very nice one-way window for you to look in from the hallway.
5. taking a minute to talk to the nursery workers about your child before and after dropping them off. Our nursery workers are other parents, just like you. They may have questions for you or have something important to tell you, especially after observing them play with others (or not) for two hours.