We are moving to Atlanta in the next 4-6 weeks (just found out yesterday) and are now desperately searching for care for our 14 month old. We will be staying temporarily with my parents who live near Oak Grove/Northlake and I will be working downtown. So we are looking for somewhere close to either of those or somewhere in between. Can anyone help with a recommendation? I've tried 8-10 places so far and everyone has a wait list. Thanks!
Both of those areas are going to be tough. Wait lists are common inside the perimeter- particularly downtown. You may need to also consider home daycares church programs until you get a call from a center. You can search daycare providers and read about their inspections here:
I highly recommend a daycare close to where you'll be living (even if it's temporary), as it makes it easier for both parents to do pick-ups... and if you're sick, but still need daycare, you don't have to drive all the way in towards work!
Downtown daycares are not only notoriously full (hence the wait lists), but expensive. My husband and I work in Midtown/Buckhead, and found wait lists already for our child to start in January 2015. We ended up picking somewhere closer to home (though we have to drive away from work initially), and were able to choose our favorite option up there, no wait list, and less expensive.
There are several Montessori schools in the Oak Grove area that offer full day/extended hours for babies as young as 8 weeks. I have a bunch of clients who have kids in them (I'm a Realtor and work a bunch in that area), and they have nothing but great things to say about them. I can try to find out the names for you, but you can probably also just do a google search. Email me if you want more info! anadi @ remax . net
Thanks everyone. I have found that they are much more expensive and the wait lists are longer closer to downtown. I've started to check on the state website. I am definitely not opposed to home facilities if they're good. It's just hard to find good recs. My husband's with the National Guard and will be down at Ft. Benning until December so if I can find something close to them, the grandparents are willing to help out. It just always nice to have a recommendation from someone who actually has had kids in a facility.
Re: Moving to Atlanta-Daycare Recommendations
https://decal.ga.gov/providersearch/SiteSearch.aspx?prekonly=y&newsearch=y
Good luck!