Childcare

BethSt · August 2013

A friend of mine had already had her childcare provider picked out right away when she found out she was pregnant, so I started looking around, holy cow, it's so expensive! I knew it was going to be bad, but my husband and I fall into that middle category where we make too much income to receive any assistance, but we don't have a lot of extra funds (it's about $60-70/day around my area) for childcare without taking on second jobs. Obviously we will make things work out, and I knew it was going to be an issue. My FIL offered to help out (which he does with my niece), but I'm a little nervous about him taking care of an infant. Anyone else feeling the childcare crunch?

cwm11985 · August 2013

Are you just looking at centers? I find it hard to believe an in-home charges that much. Check around for those. A lot of people use care.com, too.

AlphaMom82 · August 2013

When DD was born, my dad's work schedule at the time allowed him to have one weekday off per week and he was a wonderful babysitter. Don't sweat it, FIL will do fine.

My dad and I still joke that his payment was "sh!ts & giggles"...admittedly, at under 6 months, its mostly sh!ts. :P

embee1284 · August 2013

For now, I'll stay home and supplement extra costs with a nightly part time job. With 2 kids - daycare is not an option. It would be my income per week.

LolaBelle11 · August 2013

We fall into the same situation where we make too much for assistance but childcare was very expensive for us. After running all the numbers it actually made more sense for me to stay home during the day and if needed (which we havent needed to do yet) I would get a part time job in the evenings. Not saying this is an option for everyone, but it has worked out for us. We have baby #2 on the way and theres NO way way we could afford 2 in day care, so its best I am at home anyways.

springbaby03 · August 2013

This will be number 3 Im a sahm so fortunately we dont have to pay daycare.
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totalbabydoll4ever · August 2013

We do. We are in the same boat. I'm terrified of daycare and hate to take my baby to one. I am hoping if we can swing it, i'll work in the afternoon, stay home in the morning and my hubs will be home until he leaves for work. That way we won't need daycare cause one of us will be home. Not sure what we will do just yet. i don't have family close enough to do it and my family all works full time. I'm just hoping we can swing it, not sure yet. I'll know hopefully soon.

CruiseGirl28 · August 2013

I would love to stay home during the day/work evenings, but we have our insurance through my job. DH sub-contracts, so it's not offered.

And we live in MA where (I think) daycare costs are the highest. MIL is going to watch 2 days a week and I'm hoping to work from home 1 day a week. Daycare 2 days a week won't be too bad.

BethSt · August 2013

I would love to stay at home, but we wouldn't be able to meet our mortgage and expenses with just my husbands salary (I actually make more than him, but not enough for him to quit his job). It might be FIL to the rescue! Luckily my husband is a teacher, so during the summer he can stay at home.

In-home child care places are about $5/day cheaper, not that big of a difference.

katykatykaty · August 2013

CruiseGirl28 said:

I would love to stay home during the day/work evenings, but we have our insurance through my job. DH sub-contracts, so it's not offered. And we live in MA where (I think) daycare costs are the highest. MIL is going to watch 2 days a week and I'm hoping to work from home 1 day a week. Daycare 2 days a week won't be too bad.

I had a hard time finding daycare centers that allowed for part-time care. All the good ones required full-time payment. So I would start looking for something now.

Also, I know a lot is still up in the air, but Obamacare will hopefully start next year, so that might be an option for you guys for insurance if you end up wanting to stay home.

BethSt · August 2013

CruiseGirl28 said:

I would love to stay home during the day/work evenings, but we have our insurance through my job. DH sub-contracts, so it's not offered. And we live in MA where (I think) daycare costs are the highest. MIL is going to watch 2 days a week and I'm hoping to work from home 1 day a week. Daycare 2 days a week won't be too bad.

One of our good friends lives in Boston and he and his ex-wife make a LOT of money, but they still need help from parents to pay for daycare, I'm pretty sure MA is suuuuper high! I'm in VT, I think the high costs are probably because there just aren't a lot of options here, and the day care centers/homes know it! It would be great if we could figure out a way to at least shave one day off a week where baby could stay with Grandpa!

Melbelle11 · August 2013

Oh yeah. Daycare costs around me are insane. I think with our first it was around $450 per week in the infant room. Now having a second really scares me at what the cost is going to be for 2.

Fucahwe · August 2013

I'm in CT, and costs are high here as well. I actually left my career in insurance and became a sahm to avoid daycare. with 3 littles, there was just no way. I would have ended up with about $100/week after daycare costs...I'm not having a stranger raise my kids so I can make $100/week. Now my job is flexible and I am able to work around my husbands schedule so one of us is always home. I make a lot less than I did before, but in the end it makes more sense. Then he works his second job around my job, and I work my second job around his second job, lol. We hardly see each other, but the kids always have one of us. I'm thinking about leaving my full time job once this one comes along.

Nickiechan · August 2013

We paid $162 a week before DH got laid off from his job. We are looking at a center near home that is $189 a week once DH gets back to work. With a second one we where looking at $360 a week at our old center... this new center I really don't know how much it is for a second we are touring it on Monday. The price of DC will be more then our mortgage sadly, but with all our family discussions... "My earning potential is too high to be a SAHM" (:| I had such a hard time with that since I always wanted to be a SAHM and I did get a chance to be a part time one for about a year, but I still would like to be a full time SAHM... but DH is right plus I have student loans to pay for and DH was paying a lot of those when I was off for 6 months unpaid and then part time... he supported me through college and with our DS so I felt it was right to go back to work full time in February and with him losing his job it was a good choice. However, everytime I talk to him about beeing a full time SAHM... it always comes up "Your earning potential is too high.... " BLAH... :-B Double edge sword of having a degree/good paying job I guess...

rachbaby1 · August 2013

I actually found a few places that look reasonable so far, but have not gone on tours or anything yet. I'm actually more comfortable with a center as opposed to in-home, just because I like the idea of oversight. My DH had discussed the possibility of him staying home, but it just would not be an option for me. I make better money and our insurance is through my job. I love my DH, but I think if he was staying home I would want to kill him! He does not cook and is not much of a cleaner, which I don't mind normally, but I feel like if I was at work all day pumping breast milk in a closet on my breaks, and then coming home to cook dinner and do laundry instead of seeing my baby, I would lose my mind. I think he is finally getting comfortable with both of us continuing to work, since even though his income is smaller, we will still have take home for savings even after daycare expenses.

talitha712 · August 2013

We pay $220 a week for DD right now. It will drop to $200 a week in January when she turns 2. Once we pay daycare for her and this LO I will bring home less than $200 per month. However, I also carry our insurance and insurance through DH's work is not an option as it is more than a mortgage payment with an insanely high deductible. One in daycare hasn't affected things too much, but 2 in daycare is going to be rough. We are going to have to be much better about actually sticking to our budget.

Lindski22 · August 2013

I'm also in MA and we pay between 350-450/week based on how many hours we need our nanny. My husband works variable shifts so it wouldn't have been optimal to have our LO in daycare. It definitely is not fun to pay all that money when I'd rather be home with him.

VineyardMel · August 2013

I have a nanny and considered moving DD to a center, but with 2 kids the cost of a center is much higher than having a nanny so we'll stick with the current arrangement.