Military Families
CDC?
When should you register with the CDC if you are going to be using them for childcare? Also, how exactly do they work? I have heard you can have a plan where you just drop them off everyday or that you can also drop them off on an "as needed" basis. Would the 'as needed" cost the same, less, or more. My husband and I have schedules that only overlap 2 days a week, and maybe a couple hours a day 2 more days, so I would hate to have to pay for full time care when we don't need it, but I also believe in putting your children in an environment to socialize with other children so I would rather no put my child into in-home care. We are trying to figure out what we will do when the baby comes along and are really struggling.
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Re: CDC?
Call the CDC at your base. I know wait lists vary from base to base. They will be able to answer all your questions too.
Ditto pps. Waitlists for infants are usually long, because the center can only handle a small amount of infants as compared to toddlers or preschoolers. Ours is so backed up here that they're building a 3rd center for the infant overflow. The wait for a newborn here is over 15 months.
And FWIW, not all the centers offer drop-in care. I was bitterly disappointed when we moved here and DH left for 3 months - I was really counting on drop-in care to get a break from time to time. Only the in-home providers offer drop-in care here, and it's based on whether they have a no show that day. You have to call that morning, so it's pretty much impossible to plan anything.
Have you looked into a mother's day out program? If you're just looking for a few hours here or there for your work overlap/socialization for baby, that might be better than trying to deal with drop-in daycare. The YMCA has a great MDO program.
ETA: I just went back and checked the amount of days you're looking at, and I really think you'll probably need to consider full-time care. 2 entire days and a few hours on 2 more additional days is going to be way too much to try to handle with drop-in care. Possibly part-time care, but you'll probably only have that option with an in-home provider.
It does vary by branch and installation, but for us (Camp Pendleton), drop in care works like this:
** $4 an hour, plus extra for meals and snacks if child will be there during that time. I would think this wouldn't apply for the infant room.
** Reservations can be made up to one week in advance. So you can call on a Monday to reserve the next Monday. I do find this to be a bit of a PITA, but the early bird gets the worm.
** They do have a limit on the number of drop in hours per month. I can't remember it off the top of my head, but it's very generous.
DD goes twice a week for about 5 hours while DH is deployed. She loves it and I have been very impressed with the program. All of the age levels are accredited.
ETA: This link has some good info about the cost for full time care at CDC's as well as subsidized child care if the wait list is too long: https://www.militaryhomefront.dod.mil/tf/childcare
Also, wait lists are usually prioritized. I know here, single active duty parents and dual active duty are the highest priority. Applications have to be re-submitted every 3 months, but they recommend you fill one out as soon as you know when you will need care, even if it's several months in advance. If I were you, I would get on the list now.
Hello! I mostly lurk on here but I wanted to say in-home care is an environment where children socilize with other children too. Sorry, I take offense to that as I am a in-home care provider on base. In-home care on base have strict regulations and rules we must follow as well and we have to do the same type of training as employees of the CDC.