baby care when returning to work

[Mama Mae]

Hello,
I'm new here and was just reading a bunch of other threads that were all very informative so figured I may as well give it a go.

I'll be returning to work full-time after my baby (due May 20) is born and I'm wondering what sort of advice/ideas you folks have on finding the best affordable sitter.

I've read a bit about the "right" questions to ask and how I should go to the center or home to check it out, but that all seems obvious, I'm looking for info that comes from your actual experiences.

Thanks a bunch!

~ Mama Mae
~ Mama Mae

[egoldber]

Well, I don't have permament child care arrangements, but I know several folks that do. I think the one thing that a lot of them said was really surprising was how OFTEN they had to find a new provider. If you have a home based provider or a nanny, it is not uncommon for for the turnover to be really high. One poor mom I know had to find THREE daycare providers in the first six months. Another woman I know had to leave an excellent situation because the provider became seriously ill (breast cancer) and had to give up her business. Another woman's provider had to leave to return home (to another country) to care for a sick family member.

So I would just remember that flexibility is key and that there is no ONE perfect person.

HTH,

[dd_ani]

I don't know what state you are in, but in some you can order a report from the state licensing agency (like Department of Job and Family Services) and they will send you the most recent inspection reports on any centers you are considering.

Also talk to the centers about HOW they price things -- that can make a big difference. In our case, our schedule is very erratic due to Dh's travel. So, the ability to pay for fractions of a week has been very helpful.

Look at the age groups also, especially for a wee one. One of the most popular centers in our area had only a single group for 0-18 months. ("oh, we just put the little ones up on this table in bouncers or let the bigger ones kind of walk around them...." Pah-leez!) Compared to the place where we are, which has two groups for that age range, depending on how mobile they are, well, there was no comparison.

We preferred the center idea to a home sitter based on our schedule, plus the fact that if the home sitter was sick, you were out of luck. Plus, we figured that the centers were a little bit more closely regulated and supervised.

Talk to other parents. A good resource is someone who works in a school and has contact with their drivers, if they pick children up. My mom gave me a good idea of who to avoid based on how irresponsible their van drivers were. Sure, you may never have to worry about that, but if that is the person they send out to represent them in public, shouldn't they be at least reasonably competant?

Also a good sign is a place that has separate cribs for each child. I think it cuts down alot on the illnesses, although colds and flu are a constant problem in any situation.

We actually are very lucky-- the center that we chose was the one where DH went from the time he was 6 weeks old :). (But we did not choose it based on that -- we still did a full check of other places and got the state reports to be sure!) And, it still has alot of the same staff. That is another good sign -- staff longevity. If they are treating their staff well and the staff is happy, chances are the kids are too.

Good luck!

Michelle