DH and I have figured out our childcare arrangements. There is a daycare very close to our house that we love, and they have part time. LO will go to daycare 3 days a week and luckily DH and I have flexible enough jobs where we can each stay home one day a week with the baby.
We filled out the daycare application last night and I'm dropping it off this afternoon. The director told us that if we submit the application at about 3 months along, she'll save a spot for us for when LO is ready. We totally got a kick out of signing the application in the spot for "Parent Signature".
Anyone else have their childcare arrangements set for those who are going to be working outside the home?
Re: Arrangements for LO after you go back to work?
06.10.12 +HPT 06.12.12 Beta #1 = 2,770 06.14.12 Beta #2 = 6,300
1st U/S 06.18.12 2nd U/S 06.25.12
09.24.12 It's a Boy!! ---> Jacob Owen
Our IF Journey Began: October 2009
**8 Failed IUI's, 1 Blighted Ovum, & 1 Failed IVF**
Dx: MFI, DOR w/MTHFR Homozygous A1298C & Hypothyroidism
03.2012 Lab Results: FSH 6.83 AMH 0.67 TSH 3.8 E2 17
SA 156 million 93% motility 3% morphology
**~PAIF/SAIF Always Welcome~**
Yes! Congrats on your decision!
We are going with the daycare associated with my company... we get a nice discount, but it is also an outstanding facility. DH is dropping off the down payment today! I feel so relieved to finalize our option because it was really stressing me out. Our daycare also offers part-time for infants. I've asked my boss to go part-time after baby, but I won't get an answer for a while. Either way, we're covered for both full-time or part-time!
I am insanely jealous that you have everything set already!
Childcare is definitely turning out to be my biggest pregnancy stressor - childcare is super expensive where I live and getting in daycare can be a blood sport. Right now we are on the waitlist at a center where my office has "priority" but I am still #161 on the waitlist (at this rate, we will get a slot when this kid is ready for kindergarten). Other centers near my office won't even put you on the waitlist unless you have priority. We are still going back and forth between a nanny share (slightly more expensive, but much more convenient) and daycare... but that decision may be made for us depending on whether we can even get a spot at the daycare.
Just a thought - would you want to be a nanny for a family? Still have that second income, but be able to be with LO at the same time.
Make a pregnancy ticker
We have ours done too. It's so nice to have one less thing to worry about in the coming months, that's for sure!
We are lucky and have a SIL that is going watch the baby. Her home is "sort of" on my way to work in that it's really only about 5-10 minutes out of the way.
It's sad to think about taking LO to daycare already though.
  
We are looking to do in home care for #2 for the first few years -- we have two places that are pretty confident they will have a space around the time we need it. Whichever works out best with timing is what we'll go with - we really liked both of them. Worse case is that we can get into our DS's center, which we like, but it's more expensive...
Either way it goes, I'm glad we have it figured out at this point! Its the first thing I start stressing about once I see the BFP!
DS1: Quinn - 10.22.10 and DS2: Cole - 01.18.13
Just a thought - would you want to be a nanny for a family? Still have that second income, but be able to be with LO at the same time.
Yea I have thought about that, that would be a good idea! I also thought about running a daycare eventually when we move into a bigger house. But that wouldn't be for a while now, I'll worry about that later on down the road!
Wow. I feel behind the ball because we haven't decided anything. #1 was watched by my inlaws for the first 18 months and then he went to an excellent daycare center.
#2 was watched part-time by my inlaws for the first year (part-time at the same daycare center as #1), and then he was full-time in the daycare center after that. he's now in a different daycare center, and is 4.5 years old.
When baby #3 comes, we're contemplating sending it to the center that #2 is at, however, #1's friend's mom does an in home daycare center at her house and that's literally around the corner from our house. I like the idea of a home-based daycare, at least in the beginning, so I am going to talk to her about it and see if that might work for us. It's cheaper than the center, and super convenient.
I love the center that #2 is at, but he won't be there much after the baby is born (assuming I go back to work in April, he'll be there until June and then moved to where his big brother goes, and then will start Kindergarten in August).
Obviously, we are still undecided. ;-)
There are times when I *** to myself about living in Africa. The day to day crap, the near dialup speed Internet, the cobras that have made my way into the kitchen, etc. but when I read a thread like this, I am so happy to be so lucky to live in South Africa. Five women have already approached me about being nanny. The cost? The going rate is roughly $200 a month for 8am to 6 pm, Monday through Saturday, including all cleaning and laundry. I will pay a bit more than that, and ask fewer hours - I don't need all of that. But I will be very happy to have help with dishes and laundry. And to be honest, to be supporting someone who otherwise has nothing.
Ive chosen my nanny, she is the daughter of our farm manager. She was working those hours as a maid for a neighbor, but she was fired when she had a baby. She is desperate for work that will allow her to look after her own baby. Bonus: kiddo gets to learn Zulu!
Home in the bush.
I'm originally from Kenya and trust me, right now I would give ANYTHING to raise my baby back there. Child care is so affordable, as is domestic help. My sister moved back two years ago, and she just had a little boy five months ago. Her life is soooooo easy it's ridiculous. She's a stay at home mom and has two maids so her only job is her baby. Everything else is covered - the cooking, the cleaning, the gardening, the laundry, etc. She has it soooooo nice.
We will luck out when it comes to this for the most part. We are both Fire fighter / Medics. We have been opposite shifts for most of the time. So every other day one of us is at work. So there will always be someone home. The only time we will run into bumps in the road is is Navy weekends (hes now a weekend warrior) So days he has drills on my shifts we will have to figure something out.
But we have talked when our child gets about 2 we will put them in part time day care to get the social skills. But we have a while until we need to figure that part out.
This LO will go to the same center and we're guaranteed a spot since DD is already there.
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