My babysitter broke my 3 month old's arm!!!

Ashlee - posted on 05/01/2012

Oh my goodness is baby okay? my heart is with you . my son is going to be 3 months old and i have no choice to go back to work (the income is needed) this scares the crap out of me what can you suggest ?

i hope everything is okay now and your little one is doing well. (poor baby )
please let me know what ha shappend with the baby sitter.

Aracelis - posted on 01/13/2009

Having to work and trust your child with some one else is the hardest thing to do. The best thing you can do is focus on your future and your childs and try to really check every back round of the next person who cares for your child specilly talking to neighbors. Best of luck this is not as easy decision or thing to deal with but it always gets better.

Kayla - posted on 01/13/2009

This is absolutely unbelievable. I would have flipped. I can't imagine that conversation with your sitter once you found out what had happened.

Savannah - posted on 01/13/2009

Quoting Shawn:

WOW!!! I can kind of relate..my son went to an home daycare when he was little and thought things were great. My mother-in-law went at random times to pick him up and never saw anything unusual or questionable. One day, I went to drop my son off and some lady I had never seen answered and said my sitter need to go to Dallas so she was there to watch the kids. I thought there is no way I am leaving my child with this stranger and took the day off. My husband and I started contacting other parents and found out all types of things that day..a parent had come in and found their child with a blow pop wrapper stuck to the roof of his mouth and another parent came in and found their child had a small puzzle piece in their mouth. Several parents said they had come in and the sitter had the kids gated off in a room in the back while she was up front watching tv. Later that day, my coworker that used the same sitter, had left her child with the "subsitute" sitter, said he came home with a black eye that day and the lady couldn't explain how it happened. After talking to other parent, several of us reported her to the state and she had to shut down..sadly to say, temporarily..until she completed some training. I did manage to find the most wonderful inhome sitter there was..it was a bit out of my way..but well worth the extra drive and piece of mind when my kids were in childcare, so there are good ones out there. I absolutely agree with the person that says to trust your gut. When I went to find another daycare, I told them I would like to come and check out the daycare, but wouldn't give a specific time or date..you should be able to walk into a childcare setting at anytime unannounced(except naptime of course!!) and if someone is bothered by that then your child does not need to be there!! Nothing should be happening there that they should have a problem with you seeing!! Keep in contact with other parents that have their kids there if you can..we gained a world of information about our first sitter that we would have never known b/c my son was too young to talk at that time. Good luck!!

Wow!  I'm glad you got your child out of there before something worse happened.  Thanks for sharing your story.  Women's intuition is amazing.

Savannah - posted on 01/13/2009

Quoting Niki:

Quoting Kris:

I just read this...oh my goodness! I had our boys in an in home day care for about 18 months and was always worried about what happened at her home while I was not there. I am sorry that happened to your son!!!! I wonder if you will have a jury on this case.

The choice of deciding on whether you will have a jury or not is up to you.  Call the DA and request that they prepare a Motion for Request of Trial by Jury.  There is a small jury fee associated with this that they will undoubtedly require you to pay, but it is minimal, usually around $30 here in TX.  Bottom line is although the DA has your case, not a private lawyer, it is still a case involving your dependant and you have the right to make this kind of request.  Best of luck and try not to think all babysitters are like this, otherwise going to work will become impossible and the anxiety will pass on to your little one.  Love to you and your baby boy.

 

 

Thank you!!!!  I appreciate the advice!

Gloria - posted on 01/12/2009

omg... you poor thing... Hope it all works out.   Hope your little one recovers 100%

Leigh - posted on 01/07/2009

That is horrible. I can't believe someone would do anything like that to any child, especially a 3 month old baby. I never had a problem with injurys but my very first babysitter left my daughter with someone I had never met. I wouldn't have known except the idiot came into Walmart (where I worked at the time) and went through my line, without my daughter. I took her out that very day and found the most wonderful private daycare. She was the greatest woman with 3 of her own kids and we became great friends. I should have known something was wrong with my first babysitter because we never got along very well. I've noticed that if you don't feel comfortable and can't become close friends with your babysitter, there is probably a reason for that... In other words, like others here have said, Follow your gut. Good luck and I hope she gets everything she deserves.

Shawn - posted on 01/07/2009

WOW!!! I can kind of relate..my son went to an home daycare when he was little and thought things were great. My mother-in-law went at random times to pick him up and never saw anything unusual or questionable. One day, I went to drop my son off and some lady I had never seen answered and said my sitter need to go to Dallas so she was there to watch the kids. I thought there is no way I am leaving my child with this stranger and took the day off. My husband and I started contacting other parents and found out all types of things that day..a parent had come in and found their child with a blow pop wrapper stuck to the roof of his mouth and another parent came in and found their child had a small puzzle piece in their mouth. Several parents said they had come in and the sitter had the kids gated off in a room in the back while she was up front watching tv. Later that day, my coworker that used the same sitter, had left her child with the "subsitute" sitter, said he came home with a black eye that day and the lady couldn't explain how it happened. After talking to other parent, several of us reported her to the state and she had to shut down..sadly to say, temporarily..until she completed some training. I did manage to find the most wonderful inhome sitter there was..it was a bit out of my way..but well worth the extra drive and piece of mind when my kids were in childcare, so there are good ones out there. I absolutely agree with the person that says to trust your gut. When I went to find another daycare, I told them I would like to come and check out the daycare, but wouldn't give a specific time or date..you should be able to walk into a childcare setting at anytime unannounced(except naptime of course!!) and if someone is bothered by that then your child does not need to be there!! Nothing should be happening there that they should have a problem with you seeing!! Keep in contact with other parents that have their kids there if you can..we gained a world of information about our first sitter that we would have never known b/c my son was too young to talk at that time. Good luck!!

Niki - posted on 01/07/2009

Also, even if for some reason she never gets charged criminally (although we all know in hearts that she should), you can always take her to Court through civil litigation to recoup your damages, financial and otherwise. There are plenty of personal injury lawyers that will work on a contingency, meaning they only charge once you get a judgment. Almost every state has type of lawyer referral service, where they can find an appropriate lawyer for your type of case and get you a little to no cost consultation.

Niki - posted on 01/07/2009

Quoting Kris:

I just read this...oh my goodness! I had our boys in an in home day care for about 18 months and was always worried about what happened at her home while I was not there. I am sorry that happened to your son!!!! I wonder if you will have a jury on this case.

The choice of deciding on whether you will have a jury or not is up to you.  Call the DA and request that they prepare a Motion for Request of Trial by Jury.  There is a small jury fee associated with this that they will undoubtedly require you to pay, but it is minimal, usually around $30 here in TX.  Bottom line is although the DA has your case, not a private lawyer, it is still a case involving your dependant and you have the right to make this kind of request.  Best of luck and try not to think all babysitters are like this, otherwise going to work will become impossible and the anxiety will pass on to your little one.  Love to you and your baby boy.

Heather - posted on 01/06/2009

She should be charged. DHS takes these things very seriously and a fracture like that is not accidental in a 3 month old baby.I am sure the DHS staff knows she is hiding something and want to build the best case possible against her.  Thank god it wasn't worse.

Savannah - posted on 01/06/2009

Quoting Sandra:

As a former daycare provider, I am telling you to trust your gut!!! The fact that she called and asked when you were picking him up, that she was driving him around because he wouldn't stop crying. That twisting break says to me that something happened, maybe it was an accident, but she KNEW something was wrong or she would not have called you in the middle of the day. I don't want to bad mouth an fellow provider, but something just does not seem right there. Please trust your gut instincts and NEVER worry about offending a provider when the safety of your most precious little one is in question. You will never regret it if you follow your instincts, but may be going down a bad path if you don't! Good luck and I will pray for you and your little one!

Thank you Sandra.  You seem to really understand.  She is hiding SOMETHING!  You are also right about trusting your instincts.  I should've done that ...  Looking back there were signs, red flags if you will, but I didn't want to believe them.  This is a tough lesson I learned but I will ALWAYS trust my gut when it comes to the safety of my child from now on.  Thank God it wasn't worse!  Seriously, THANK YOU GOD!

Savannah - posted on 01/06/2009

Quoting Scarvia:

I just joined today and read your post. All I can say was I got goosebumps reading your story. OMG is right. We can all underdstand that handling a child is so hard especially trying to dress them, maybe that is when it occurred by twisting her arm wrongly, but to drive around and not say or suggest that was something wrong is totally dishonest. I would have beaten her up after her dishonesty.

I thought the same thing at first.  I thought surely this was some sort of accident but ALL the experts/doctors I've talked to say that a spiral fracture is not easy to do and can't be done by dressing or something innocent like that.  I am so ready for them to charge her I could scream!  Thanks for reading my son's story. 

Victoria - posted on 01/04/2009

i just saw your post and am so sorry to hear this has happened to you, we had a problem with my son's childminder( although he never suffered any injury), every time he was due to go he would kick and scream and be very distraught, he was't like it if he went to anyone else, just her, i finally listened to him and took him out, he never has said anything happened but he is so much happier and now he's in a private nursery with superiors and other child carers there's less chance of anything happening.

take care and i hope justice prevails.

Angela - posted on 01/03/2009

There was a situation with my brother and sister just after my daughter was born, so we considered daycare's with webcams. We didn't go with any of them, but in your situation it would have been a requirement.



I agree with the poster Sandra that she knew something happened. It may have been an accident, but I can only imagine she had to have been terribly frustrated with your child to cause a spiral fracture. Nannie's elbow is more common, since it takes much less force (my mom did this to my sister pulling her up from a slide).

Angela - posted on 01/03/2009

Totally every parents worst nightmare. I can't imagine what that experience must've been like for your whole family. You are in my thoughts and thanks for the updates. You are a strong, brave lady who sounds like a wonderful mom!!!

Sharon - posted on 01/03/2009

That is the most horrid thing, I work in a day care and so I get to have my 4 month old at the same place, I don't think I would trust anyone with my child unless I knew them personally. i don't know how parents can leave their children in a day care (it's only since having a child that I realized the trust parents put in day care providers).

Amanda - posted on 01/03/2009

I think this is everyones worse fear. Not knowing how your children are being raised while we are at work. I struggle with this daily. I am praying for you. I guess the key is communication and education. Not being scared to tell your caregiver exactly what is expected and not. We all assume the other human beings walking the earth have common sense, like don't hold a 2 month old baby by the arm, but that is not the case.
Good luck, I am sure he will make a full recovery and not have any memory of the trauma.

Jamie - posted on 01/03/2009

that makes me want to cry! i wonder what she thought that he was doing that was so bad that she did that to him! the fact that she KNEW and lied to you and didn't try to tell you or take him to the ER.

Holly - posted on 01/02/2009

What a horrible thing to happen to your child!! Our thoughts are with you. How is your son doing now? Hopefully justice will prevail and she will be charged. At least she is not watching any other children.

Karen - posted on 01/02/2009

I'm speechless. I'm about to put my son in daycare in April and this is exactly what I fear. I hope your little guy gets better soon. What a nightmare for you and your family. I hope that you find someone that you feel at peace leaving him with.

Sandra - posted on 01/02/2009

As a former daycare provider, I am telling you to trust your gut!!! The fact that she called and asked when you were picking him up, that she was driving him around because he wouldn't stop crying. That twisting break says to me that something happened, maybe it was an accident, but she KNEW something was wrong or she would not have called you in the middle of the day. I don't want to bad mouth an fellow provider, but something just does not seem right there. Please trust your gut instincts and NEVER worry about offending a provider when the safety of your most precious little one is in question. You will never regret it if you follow your instincts, but may be going down a bad path if you don't! Good luck and I will pray for you and your little one!

Julie - posted on 01/02/2009

I am so sorry for what you , your family and your son must be going through. It is a mother worst nightmare. You hear these thing but you never think it will happen to you. If it was a nasty accident that went wrong then she should have know at the time. She should admit that something happened and not left you to have all these things going through your head. Was there any other visable injuries? All good mothers can sympathize with you and only imagine what you must be going through, Also there can not be anything worse than this happening and then the police and so on is questioning you and making it as if you are the guilty party. When all you was doing was trying to work for a living. How can anybody ever trust anybody again after this ? I would want to throtle her for doing this to my son. It must be so hard to keep your hands off her...

I wish you all the luck with the case and really hope she gets what she deserves... One word sums her up for putting you all through this and that .... EVIL...

Monica - posted on 01/02/2009

I am so sorry to hear your story, How long had you known this babysitter? I hope she confesses. Whether it was an accident or not, if she is a babysitter she should know a babies cry if they are hungry or if something is hurting. For how long did she say that the baby was crying? Regardless, she should be charged with injury to a child.. God Bless you and your baby, you are in my prayers..

Scarvia - posted on 01/02/2009

I just joined today and read your post. All I can say was I got goosebumps reading your story. OMG is right. We can all underdstand that handling a child is so hard especially trying to dress them, maybe that is when it occurred by twisting her arm wrongly, but to drive around and not say or suggest that was something wrong is totally dishonest. I would have beaten her up after her dishonesty.

Mary - posted on 01/01/2009

That is horrible!!!

Savannah - posted on 12/30/2008

IDK? I hope that when they go to charge her with child abuse & show her all the evidence against her, she'll want to confess and not put everyone through a trial. But I may be fooling myself. But I'm getting ahead of myself. First, I hope they DO charge her. It's still pending right now. It's taking FOREVER!

Kris - posted on 12/30/2008

I just read this...oh my goodness! I had our boys in an in home day care for about 18 months and was always worried about what happened at her home while I was not there. I am sorry that happened to your son!!!! I wonder if you will have a jury on this case.

Savannah - posted on 12/30/2008

(copied from my post in breastfeeding mom's area)

Thanks to everyone for the comforting messages. I just got to read them actually. It's been so busy with the holidays. Anyways, the latest is that the case is now with the DA's office. I haven't heard anything back from them yet. A lot of you asked how I've restrained myself from beating the living daylights out of the babysitter. It has been hard but I have put it in God's hands. I'm waiting on those slow wheels of justice to turn and stand up for my baby. Surely, they can convict the babysitter. Plus, DHS watches the parents closely too (for good reason). I don't want them to think that we're unfit or prone to violence. Again, thanks everybody for the comments. Please continue to pray for us. I'll keep you all posted. -Savannah

Samantha - posted on 12/03/2008

I am sorry for what has happened. And I know how upsetting it can be when something like this has happened. I hope your son is doing well and I hope you will give us updates on the situation

Deanna - posted on 12/03/2008

That is terrible! I can't imagine what you are going through, thank God it was not worse. My thoughts are with you and your family.

Kris - posted on 12/03/2008

OMG, that's horrible!! I'll be praying for you and your family and I hope that your son will be alright and that there isn't any permanent damages.