CM club- why is it always me!!!

[pol26]

Grr as you may know on Tuesday I gave my only mindee notice of four weeks.
After one thing and another things are too much:
1 I will be 30 weeks preg soon
2 DD1 needs me now before second bubba comes
3 His pre-school is a two hour round trip
4 I get £77 per week and pay out £30 in petrol, then ther is food etc...
5 His parents drop him and collect him as and when they feel so doing anything is impossible to plan, even though I have asked them repeatedly not too
6 He only eats toast and oven chips- well along with sweets, chocolate, crisps, and what I would deem 'crap' and I won't feed him that.
ETC.......
Any how, I gave notice on Tuesday of four weeks and mum seemed a little narked but I knew that she would be and guess it's a not so nice part of the job, any how then yesterday she rang and said she wasn't sending him; he had been 'sick'.
It seemed odd as he was fine at mine on ~Tuesday but who knows.
Anyhow last night I had a call from the childminder who had given him up because he was too much. She said that she felt bad as mindee's mum had caught her as she was taking mindee to pre school (ex-cm's son is in mindees class) and collared her trying to get her to take mindee back as I had said I didn't want him any more and wanted to 'get rid' of him asap. Ex-cm said she would think about it and quizzed on my notice but mum had said I wanted him gone now!!!
So that is how ex-cm called me as she thought it was odd as we have become quiet chatty in the playground. Said that she thought his mum had been 'story telling'. She said she might have him back short term if I had, had enough and I wanted to give him up sooner than later for my benefit (???!Who do I believe?!) So I said that if she wanted to have him back that was fine and I didn't mind at all as my health is more important and obviously mindee knows her v.well and her children.
She finished with she would let me know than changed it to, oh well no probably better that mindee's mum lets you know what we've decided! That threw me as initially I thought she was being friendly on my part not now sure if she was just fishing...
So then today it was dad who dropped mindee off (late, I might add) and said nothing. I am so gob smacked that I didn't know what to say and Dad said he would collect him from school as the footie is on. so I had mindee for two hours today, rather than 6 hours. i know I still get paid but we have a lot of projects to finish before he goes.
GRRR not sure whether to call mindee's mum tonight and ask her what she had said to ex-cm or just leave it.
Any advice... PLEASE

The problem is, if your contract says 4 weeks notice, you can't give less than 4 weeks unless you pay HER in lieu of notice. Unless you are happy to pay her to be done with the whole situation then I wouldn't do anything.

I would wait & see if she brings up the subject - if she wants to leave earlier, get her to put it in writing; you can bill her for the remainder of the notice period or waive the charge if you think its appropriate, this way she can't accuse you of not fulfilling your contractual obligations.

If she says nothing but doesn't send her child ("sickness" or anything else) thats a different matter, just keep billing her til the end of the arrangement. It'll be a shame if you don't finish the projects you've started but there's nothing much you can do about that.

Hope it works out in the end for you.

I have no problem with working out my four weeks notice, that is after all what we have agreed. However I do feel hurt that mindee's mum has gone back to ex-cm and made out I had said I wanted to get 'rid' of him. I didn't, I will be sad to see him go because he is so gently for a 3.5yr old boy.
More annoyed with the fact that I never know where I tand with them, He was dropped off at 10:30am this morning when time is supposed tpo be 9:30-10. And yesterday was told he didn't need collecting from school. I just feel I could plan mytime better if they had the decency to either leave him with me at agreed times or take him away altogether now. It isn't fair on anyone.
I have the feeling that because she is paid up until the end of the month that is when I will have him and then leave next month which I would owe them a weeks work and they a weeks pay. If this happens I will be reallycross because that really is taking the mickey and so will charge her for that week regardless of whether I have mindee or not. Yet if she was to tell me now that is what she thinks is going to happen, I would just let her off that last payment as we've then been fair to each other.
OH GOD KNOWS....