Indiana Babies
When did you start thinking about daycare?
Ok, I know I'm only 8 weeks. DH and I have started talking about realistic work/daycare situations. I'd like to go back PT, but not really sure if we can swing it with the cost of daycare. When did you start calling around or searching out options? Is it seriously true that highly rated ones have super long waiting lists? Some of the books I'm reading suggest getting on the waiting lists now, which freaked me out!
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Re: When did you start thinking about daycare?
I started calling around for prices once I was in my second trimester. Do you know other parents with young children in your area? They're a good place to start for recommendations. You can also check the state licensing website for centers in your area and to see what violations they have. Otherwise, take a tour of the centers you think you may like. We ruled out several places based on our tour alone.
Around here, most centers do not allow infants (under 12m) to be part-time because of the ratios needed for infant rooms. You can send them part-time, but you pay the full-time rate.
Start thinking about it now. We got on waiting lists in November (I was due in April, needed care to start in August).
We used the cdca website (Child Day Care Association) to find licensed home daycares and centers to interview....I don't know if that is just a St. Louis thing or not. Also, look in local kids/parents' magazines for ads, or you can call preschools and ask for recommendations for infant care if they don't offer it.
My experience was that many centers will only pro-rate part time care if another family is using the other half of the part time (for instance, you go M,W,F and another family uses your "spot" T, Th) Some home daycares only make you pay when you're there, whereas I found that most centers make you pay all the time (for me, that includes school breaks to hold the spot).
Good luck!
Hey Kara - it definitely doesn't hurt to look around now. In my area, I learned there were no real waiting lists and that most places (even the great ones) had openings.
I started with word-of-mouth. My university has an online "barter board" where people can ask questions, sell stuff, etc. I asked for day care recs and got probably 2 dozen suggestions. I made a spreadsheet with the common ones.
I think I started doing visits when I was about 3-4 months pregnant, but I can't totally remember.
Honestly, it's never too early but it can definitely be too late at some point!
Every DC is different as far as policies. For ours, the part-time rate is so dang close to the full-time rate that it was definitely not worth it to even consider PT.
Honestly, in Mishawaka, I wouldn't worry about waiting lists... especially since our local economy is still, for the most part, in the tank.
Around here, I've seen and heard of more and more daycares closing because of lack of children than daycares turning away kids because they're full. So, yeah, I wouldn't worry about waiting lists.
I would ask friends who they recommend.
I'll ask my SIL who they take their daughter to. It's in Mishawaka, I think somewhere off Bremen Hwy (past Meijer on Main by the bypass). They absolutely love it.
Indiana's govt website also has a list of licensed and accredited daycares... Link. That might be a good place to start if licensing is important to you. While looking, keep in mind that "childcare ministries" are not the same as licensed daycares, and do not have to follow all the same rules. I didn't know that until we started Paige in a church daycare (a "childcare ministry"), and they made us sign a ton of paperwork indicating that we knew they weren't a "licensed daycare." Legal jargon. In our case, it meant that they don't have to prepare meals for them, and that we're ok with her being in a facility that was built prior to the 1970's. They still get inspected and still have to follow the basic safety, sanitary, background checks, etc rules, so we're ok with having Paige there.
Thank you ladies! This is all really good information. I'm feeling so overwhelmed right now, but this gives me a good place to start.
Brenda, I'd really appreciate if you could ask your SIL for me. That is just right around the corner from us... and on DH's way to work! And you're probably right about not having waiting lists around here. I just have no clue what to expect, ya know?
Different situation for us- after DD was born, I SAH until she was about 4 months old, then was just in school PT, so my mom was able to watch her those couple mornings a week while I was on campus.
Once I started going FT, we looked into daycares, but DD was a little older at that point (almost 2), and that changes rates.
I did not find a waiting list for any of the places we considered, though DD did get the last spot in her 2 year old room for the daycare associated with my university. But I signed her up a couple weeks before that semester started, so it's not like I had to sign her up months beforehand.
At the place we are at now, they are very flexible with my changing schedule, but they only have PT available for the older kids (3 and up).
In your case, I would start with recommendations from friends/neighbors. Find out if those places even have an infant room. (The university daycare was only licensed for 12m+) Ask about the possibility of PT. I don't think you'll find a waiting list, so you don't have to sign up today.. just let them know about when you'd be looking to start.
In-home might be a good option for you, if you want to do PT. Or if you know someone else PT with a little one, maybe you could swap babysitting? I used to watch my friend's little girl (very close to my DD's age), and it was a great arrangement- the girls got along well, it wasn't too much extra work since they were at similar developmental stages, it was convenient/cheap for my friend, and it was a little extra cash for me.
Brenda- back at ya!
Emily- I've actually approached a friend of mine about a babysit swap. She works PT for now. However, she is also pregnant and is due 4 weeks before me. This is her second and she likely will not return to work. She said she'd consider it, but I realize it would be A LOT of work for her since it would be like taking care of twins and a 2 year old! But we'll see...
Hmm, I'm trying to send you a PM but I'm bumpstupid and can't figure out how to anything but check my own.
ETA: NM, I figured it out. YGPM!