I have received many requests for an update on Stepping Stone Academy! I am honored to oblige those requests - thanks for caring!
If you want to catch up on what has already happened...
Jump Into Your Purpose
Baby Steps for Stepping Stone
Making Mountains Out of Stepping Stones
The funny part for me is going back and reading those posts...and shaking my head at myself for being SO naïve. I had no idea what I was getting into...or how much I would LOVE it.
This journey is, by far, the most exhausting, stressful, and Holy-Wow complicated thing that I have ever taken on. And yes, that includes having two small children (ask me about this when they are teenagers, and I may change my answer).
I recently posted to the blog's Facebook page that I had 2 weeks to be DONE, and my Social Services application turned in. Since then I have gotten a lot of "WHAT?!" feedback, so allow me to explain:
Social Services is a state agency.
Understand now?
In all of their wisdom and beautiful bureaucracy, Social Services needs me to accomplish about 6 months worth of work in about 2 weeks of "real world" time. Why? So that they can have their full 60 days of leisure to approve it all. Otherwise, I risk not being approved before our target opening date of September 2.
My one teeny problem with this: I have been calling and e-mailing the same Social Services office, talking to the same people, asking questions (stupid ones, if I am to judge by their attitude when answering them) and slaving away through the night, EVERY NIGHT, for two months now on all of the crap that they are demanding of me....and you don't think this could have come up before now?!
The mistake that the licensing agent made was acting incredulous when I told her "No problem," she could expect me to show up to my orientation program on July 8 with my application in hand.
She scoffed at me. I could hear it. Right through the phone.
Challenge accepted.
Any energy, perseverance, or sweat that I had invested over the last 8 weeks looked like a total joke when compared to the aftermath of that conversation.
I am 100% aware that my reaction to this challenge is unhealthy. The amount of determination I am suffering from is borderline "Lock her up in the padded room!" In my defense, however, I shared with a friend that I thought I might be kind of crazy, and we ultimately determined that if I was truly crazy...I probably wouldn't realize it. Therefore, since I AM aware that my behavior is erratic and abnormal - I am not actually crazy. Do not argue with this. It has been decided, and I am not open to disputes.
Sleep has been pretty much eliminated from my routine. No time for such a waste of precious hours. My meals, when I do remember to eat, have consisted of whatever I can eat with one hand while typing, holding a phone, or driving with the other. My children have sought shelter at their grandparents' or babysitter's house during the day, climb all over me and sit on my head while I type or make phone calls during the evening, and sleep soundly while I work through the night. They are annoyed with me, to say the least, but I have explained to them that Mommy has to be a busy jerk for a few weeks, and we will be back to normal soon. They totally understand (No, they don't) and therefore, behave like angels (No, they don't) and certainly don't do crazy, wild things to try and get my attention (Yes, they do). My mantra right now? "We will ALL survive this."
So basically, I suck as a mom right now, but I am kicking this application's ass...kind of...sort of...mostly.
You may be wondering what exactly does "the application" mean - what's so terrible about filling out an application? People do it all the time. You apply for jobs, credit cards, whatever - we all do it.
The application for licensing a Child Day Center with the state is not just a form to be filled out, however. I mean, there is a form that you have to fill out (several pages long, in fact), but it's all of the "required attachments" that get you...
Social
Services Required Attachments for Initial Licensure:
VA State Corporation Commission Certificate - This is the certificate that you get when you register your business with the State. Check!Business License - This one was easy. I just went to the Town Hall, filled out a form, and wrote a check...after I calculated my "expected" revenue for September-December 2014.
Character Reference Letters from 3 people that are not related to you by blood or marriage - I actually had four AWESOME friends who got these to me within a couple of days of me asking for them. THANK YOU times a million for y'all's awesomeness!
Annual Operating Budget - HA! I am tempted to slap my whole bajillion-paged business plan with 3 YEARS of annual budget and cash flow projections on their desk! I can take zero credit for the numbers, that was totally the CPA from the business center and the credit analyst from the bank, but still - BOOM! THANK YOU, totally patient CPA and Credit Analyst! I promise I'm not as dumb as our conversations while constructing this document made me feel.
Evidence of Insurance - My "insurance lady" is on it! THANK YOU super nice insurance lady who was willing to put up with me calling and saying "Hey...I need insurance...TODAY."
Credit Reference Letter from a Bank - Because the bank that I am working with on this is THE best bank with THE best people ever....the V.P. whipped this up for me this afternoon. Another big THANK YOU goes here!
Operating Agreement - In your face Social Services! I already went on Legal Zoom and got one of these for my loan process. Next!
Asbestos Statement from an Asbestos Inspector - Nice try Social Services, but I asked my bank pals for this weeks ago and we just got it in the mail yesterday.
Written statement of organization (who is responsible for what) - Yeah, I'm just going to whip up a flow chart for this one. It'll say:
Annual Operating Budget - HA! I am tempted to slap my whole bajillion-paged business plan with 3 YEARS of annual budget and cash flow projections on their desk! I can take zero credit for the numbers, that was totally the CPA from the business center and the credit analyst from the bank, but still - BOOM! THANK YOU, totally patient CPA and Credit Analyst! I promise I'm not as dumb as our conversations while constructing this document made me feel.
Evidence of Insurance - My "insurance lady" is on it! THANK YOU super nice insurance lady who was willing to put up with me calling and saying "Hey...I need insurance...TODAY."
Credit Reference Letter from a Bank - Because the bank that I am working with on this is THE best bank with THE best people ever....the V.P. whipped this up for me this afternoon. Another big THANK YOU goes here!
Operating Agreement - In your face Social Services! I already went on Legal Zoom and got one of these for my loan process. Next!
Asbestos Statement from an Asbestos Inspector - Nice try Social Services, but I asked my bank pals for this weeks ago and we just got it in the mail yesterday.
Written statement of organization (who is responsible for what) - Yeah, I'm just going to whip up a flow chart for this one. It'll say:
Employees' Responsibilities = The kids, DUH.
M's responsibilities = Everything else...oh, and the kids. Questions?
Signed Sworn Disclosure Statement - This is a redundant form that you are required to fill out and sign, swearing that you haven't committed any crimes. You turn it in along with your background check....which is proof that you haven't committed any crimes...wait...what... Never mind. Printed it. Signed it. Done.
Staff Information Sheet - This is a piece of paper that you list your employees on. At this point, I feel like they are just making random requests for trivial documentation. This is uncomfortably familiar from being a classroom teacher in a public school....
Copies of any brochures to be used - Really? You need to see my marketing materials? I just....*siiiiiigh* YeahOKSure. Why not?
Daily Schedule for each age group - Oh dang, I need a schedule! I was just going to let all of the kids run around and bounce off of each other all day. I better get on that. *eye roll*
Inventory of all indoor and outdoor play equipment - When I read this, I thought that I was misunderstanding it - you are probably thinking the same thing. "Does that mean an actual list of EVERYTHING in the building that the kids can play with (every toy, how many books for each age group, what games, every DVD, CD, piece of sports equipment...)?" Yes. Yes. It. Does.
Criminal History Record Check - This has been sent to the State Police and I'm waiting for it to come back....and sweating every time I check the mailbox and it's not there.
Child Protective Services Central Registry Check - Well, if you can believe it, this is a form that has to be mailed to Social Services...and I have to wait to get it back...so that I can turn it in to THEM with my application. Yeah...try to figure that out. Actually, don't. Don't waste the energy.
Building Inspector’s Report - Building should be ready for inspection any day! Woo Hoo!
Fire Inspection Report - I have a meeting with the Fire Chief on Friday to schedule an inspection and to go over my Emergency Preparedness Plan. That's another gem of a document that I'm expected to produce.
Department of Health Inspection Report - I called to schedule this and they were like, "Yeeeaaah, you don't need an appointment. We'll just come out there whenever you're ready." Ummm, thank you for making that 5 minutes of my life stress-free, you beautiful people!
Floor Plans/Site Plans - I submitted these to Social Services 3 WEEKS ago for the pre-approval process...and this will shock you...I have still not gotten anything back. It very clearly said on the paperwork that I would get a response in 10 business days. When I called (and called...and called) and finally got a hold of the Inspector who has them, I was basically told that they were really busy. When I questioned the licensing office about that, I was again told that they were really busy and it just wasn't a priority. Nice.
Copies of all forms to be used - Wait...Every form that I will use at the Academy? For everything that requires a form? Yes. Yes, that is what that means. And in case you want to know how many forms that is... I don't know. I haven't counted them all, but they are currently occupying a decent sized chunk of my flash drive.
Copy of Policies & Procedures - This is a work in progress. I'm about a dozen pages deep on the Stepping Stone Academy Staff Handbook and close to the same with the Parent Handbook. Not even close to done. Now you understand the constant typing...and the development of what I am fairly certain is carpal tunnel in my elbows.
List of the Director’s Qualifications - How about "I managed to complete this application...without even being rude to ANY of the super snarky people at the Social Services office. THAT = Qualified." (I have actually been overly nice, even when they are straight-up nasty to me...because I'm kind of scared that they'll "lose" my files if I retaliate. I feel like there's potential for that to be a real "deep end" moment for me, and I'm trying to avoid it.) Or I'll just attach a copy of my VA State Teaching License and the Certificate of Completion from the online Director's course that I'm taking. Either/or, really.
Soooo....not your typical "application" after all.
Do not mistake this blog post for a complaint, however! I have learned a lot about myself in just the short time that I started this journey. For one, I discovered the Signed Sworn Disclosure Statement - This is a redundant form that you are required to fill out and sign, swearing that you haven't committed any crimes. You turn it in along with your background check....which is proof that you haven't committed any crimes...wait...what... Never mind. Printed it. Signed it. Done.
Staff Information Sheet - This is a piece of paper that you list your employees on. At this point, I feel like they are just making random requests for trivial documentation. This is uncomfortably familiar from being a classroom teacher in a public school....
Copies of any brochures to be used - Really? You need to see my marketing materials? I just....*siiiiiigh* YeahOKSure. Why not?
Daily Schedule for each age group - Oh dang, I need a schedule! I was just going to let all of the kids run around and bounce off of each other all day. I better get on that. *eye roll*
Inventory of all indoor and outdoor play equipment - When I read this, I thought that I was misunderstanding it - you are probably thinking the same thing. "Does that mean an actual list of EVERYTHING in the building that the kids can play with (every toy, how many books for each age group, what games, every DVD, CD, piece of sports equipment...)?" Yes. Yes. It. Does.
Criminal History Record Check - This has been sent to the State Police and I'm waiting for it to come back....and sweating every time I check the mailbox and it's not there.
Child Protective Services Central Registry Check - Well, if you can believe it, this is a form that has to be mailed to Social Services...and I have to wait to get it back...so that I can turn it in to THEM with my application. Yeah...try to figure that out. Actually, don't. Don't waste the energy.
Building Inspector’s Report - Building should be ready for inspection any day! Woo Hoo!
Fire Inspection Report - I have a meeting with the Fire Chief on Friday to schedule an inspection and to go over my Emergency Preparedness Plan. That's another gem of a document that I'm expected to produce.
Department of Health Inspection Report - I called to schedule this and they were like, "Yeeeaaah, you don't need an appointment. We'll just come out there whenever you're ready." Ummm, thank you for making that 5 minutes of my life stress-free, you beautiful people!
Floor Plans/Site Plans - I submitted these to Social Services 3 WEEKS ago for the pre-approval process...and this will shock you...I have still not gotten anything back. It very clearly said on the paperwork that I would get a response in 10 business days. When I called (and called...and called) and finally got a hold of the Inspector who has them, I was basically told that they were really busy. When I questioned the licensing office about that, I was again told that they were really busy and it just wasn't a priority. Nice.
Copies of all forms to be used - Wait...Every form that I will use at the Academy? For everything that requires a form? Yes. Yes, that is what that means. And in case you want to know how many forms that is... I don't know. I haven't counted them all, but they are currently occupying a decent sized chunk of my flash drive.
Copy of Policies & Procedures - This is a work in progress. I'm about a dozen pages deep on the Stepping Stone Academy Staff Handbook and close to the same with the Parent Handbook. Not even close to done. Now you understand the constant typing...and the development of what I am fairly certain is carpal tunnel in my elbows.
List of the Director’s Qualifications - How about "I managed to complete this application...without even being rude to ANY of the super snarky people at the Social Services office. THAT = Qualified." (I have actually been overly nice, even when they are straight-up nasty to me...because I'm kind of scared that they'll "lose" my files if I retaliate. I feel like there's potential for that to be a real "deep end" moment for me, and I'm trying to avoid it.) Or I'll just attach a copy of my VA State Teaching License and the Certificate of Completion from the online Director's course that I'm taking. Either/or, really.
Soooo....not your typical "application" after all.
I have also learned a lot about the people in my life. There were some who disappointed me, who were unable to find joy in my new adventure, or who tried to use me for their own benefit. They are greatly overshadowed, however, by the rest. I have been touched by the amount of support that I have received, the number of people that are willing to help me, and how much happiness people have displayed for me.
So maybe I am a little stressed, tired, and overwhelmed.
No really, "maybe" I am - I have no idea, I don't have time to decide. All I do know is that I feel filled with a purpose, driven towards accomplishing something that will mean even more to others than it will to me, and surrounded by good people willing to share in my journey.
By the way, I hope all of those super supportive people will show up when I do an "all-call" for volunteers to put together furniture and inventory equipment next week. :))
♥M
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