Poll; Providers: Would you use Full-Time Daycare for your Infants/Toddlers?

[DBug]

Nope. If my husband wasn't dead or absent, I would never send my kids to daycare. I sent my boys (toddlers at the time) to a friends house for about 10 hours a week for the course of a year or so, and I won't do it again. I just have a very specific way I want my kids raised, and I don't trust anyone else to do it my way . If I wasn't doing home daycare, I'd be doing a night shift somewhere to make ends meet, and that way my husband could be with the kids when I'd be working.

I just don't believe in having kids just so someone else can raise them. That said, I'm not about to presume that other people have the same belief system. That's why I don't have a problem with doing daycare .

[Live and Learn]

None of my own children have spent a day in childcare.

[BusyBee]

My daughter has never been in daycare. The only time a stranger cared for her was in the daycare at Bible Study or MOPS, but then I was always right there and there were others around.

I plan on doing this for another year to year and a half and then my daughter will go to an afterschool program. But by then she will be old enough for me to feel comfortable. Plus she would only be there for about an hour or so. (Of course, this is me with my perfect plan of being able to find a job!)

[Mom_of_two]

I worked outside the home until my oldest was 2 and my youngest was a newborn, so my two year old was in Daycare. We were at a center affiliated with the community college here and loved it!! It was a great experience. Once I had my second I decided to open my small daycare, so she was in daycare for a month at the same place (I resigned on maternity leave but gave a month notice so they could hire a new counselor.)

I LOVE being home with my girls and enjoy daycare. The thought of them being in daycare now makes me sad and I am glad they don't have to be. I will send them to pre-school when they are 4 (my oldest in the fall.)

But, I do not agree with the idea that women who must out of necessity or who choose to because they value their career are letting other people raise their children. Does that mean a father who works full time is not raising his children? Or once they get to be school age they are not being raised by the parent? Part of a parent raising the child, if they happen to use daycare, is choosing a person (and school at that point unless they home school) who fits with their values. I certainly don't feel like I am raising the children I care for during the day, they are very bonded with their families. Of course, there are always exceptions and unhealthy people etc. etc................Just my opinion.

[Cat Herder]

Cat, I know you provide services for infants and toddlers only and I am sure you are the next best thing to mother, but my feelings are only my opinions and are in no way a reflection on anyone who puts their infant in full time child care or any one who provides full time child care to infants.

No worries.... I could not agree more. I think you rock, actually. Nothing would make me happier than being put out of business because more women stayed home with their own.

There is NO WAY my kids would step foot in Daycare if I had another choice. Luckily I do I planned and established this home daycare before I got pregnant with my children. I learned my lesson the hard way.

I even tell my prospective clients I will help them start their own if they like for the same reason. Very few takers, though. I guess that is one of the reasons why I was curious.

I overheard several women state that they NEVER had any intention of staying home with their kids while lunching at the local mall..."not even if I did not work" and I was just shocked. These were small infants in carriers and strollers by their sides.

They were even joking about using the drop in center by the mall so they could catch a quick movie, too....

[KEG123]

NO way no how. I always HATED the idea of sending my kid to daycare. I'm glad I never had to send him, he always had me or daddy. Now that I am doing daycare, he is getting socialization. So it's win-win for him.

[MsMe]

The idea of sending children (I don't even have yet!!!!) to daycare brings tears to my eyes.

I have always planned to say home with any children I would have. As I approach (within 2 years) that time it is becoming a possiblity that we may NEED my income. I have a "home" daycare now and it would still break my heart if I had keep it open after I had children. I have tough choices to make and my first instinct is to scream "THEN I JUST WON'T HAVE CHILDREN" I know a childless life is not for me so I will keep searching for a middle ground.

[Missani]

Both of my children went to daycare as infants (DS1 was full time as an infant, DS2 was 3 ten-hour days/week) and we had a great experience. If I could have stayed home with them, I would have, but we need 2 incomes and being a DC provider wasn't possible for me at the time. I have no regrets and do not feel guilty about it whatsoever.

With that said, I am glad I was able to establish my home daycare when my kids were 16 months and almost 4. I love being with them, I love my job, and I love caring for other children. I am very grateful that things have turned out the way they did, but it was a soul searching decision for my entire family.

[PeanutsGalore]

No, but that's mainly because my son wouldn't do well in a daycare environment. He's a great kid, but he's got a high needs sort of temperament--high energy and needs lots of watching and interaction, or else he's in trouble! And unhappy.

No judgment on anyone else and the decisions they make...I also have always been of the mind that if I pop a baby out, I should figure out how to stay home and take care of it, because no matter how much a stranger (even related by blood) loves your kid, they can't love them as much as you do, and you have no control over how well your kid is cared for. So staying home and caring for my own children has always been my plan.

[Kaddidle Care]

People are under the impression that they must work to make ends meet. Now if you are a single parent, this is true. But if you have a spouse that brings in double your mortgage payment per month, you can make it.

Simple savings of a Stay-at-home Mom:

1: Work wardrobe (You don't have to dress in business suits to stay at home and you know what? You can actually wear things until they fall apart!)

2: Gas and Auto maintenance (Where to you have to go? Grocery store? Baby Dr.? Try to make sure your Dr's. are close to home.) You'll be putting a lot less miles on your vehicle.

3: Packaged/Prepared foods. Now that you're home you have time to cook and prepare things yourself. Don't forget to buy what's on sale and clip those coupons!

4: Manicures (really ladies, do we really need them? I've never had one, not even for my wedding.)

5: Hair cuts - only for special occasions - day to day is for pony tails. ::

6: Children's hair cuts - buy an at home clipper. It will pay for itself in 2-3 months!

Sure there will be things you can't have but you need to tell yourself "do I really NEED it?" It's a good question to ask yourself before you purchase anything. You learn to become low maintenance if you're not already.

I guess you already know, I never and would never put my child in Daycare unless it was a desperate situation.

[Evansmom]

I stayed home with my first child for the first 3 years and then after that she came with me to the daycare I worked at. I stayed home for 2 years after that with my first son and then he went to a home daycare so that I could go to college.

I'm doing the daycare now so that I can be home with my last little guy b/c I firmly believe that the little ones need to be with their mommas. But that's our personal family opinion and it's good that not everyone agrees with me b/c then I couldn't have a business!! ::

[jen2651]

I had my firest son and I can honestly say I wouldn't have been able to stay home. I NEEDED to go to work. I loved him but the home life part of it wasn't for me. Some past info, I went from being the life of the party/bartender in a college town I had lived in for 6 years (graduated in 4) to a real life 8-430 salary job with lots of nights and weekends where I met my husband who had 2 kids from his first marriage (at that time 2 and 4). So, basically I went from being 21 (even though I was 24) to 30, married with two kids, a real job, and a partner in 6 months...it was growing up really fast. I didn't have any problems with that, but after we had our son, I still needed that stepping stone of my job to be 'me'. I know it sounds bad, but I would not have been a great stay at home mom at that point.

Time slowly changed and by the time I was pregnant with our daughter (kids are 3 years apart) I was ready to be done. I had my maternity leave and it was horrid to have to go back. I was so mentally done. I went back to work for 5 months and the whole time was a complete struggle. I was doing a subpar job at both my life and my job. It was horrible.

So, after many talks and searching for 'signs', we decided this was the right step. So, here I am. I commend women who are able to work full time and manage their family. It was SO hard! I did it for almost 4 years, and wow...much props to those out there. Not that this is really that much easier, but I get to hang out with kiddos ALL day!

I think it really is a personal decision. I know that things would not have been good if I stayed home after my son. My husband wanted me too...I just couldn't. I loved my job and did a really good job at balancing for a long time. But soon, I was ready. And then I couldn't get out of there fast enough!

[MsMe]

People are under the impression that they must work to make ends meet. Now if you are a single parent, this is true. But if you have a spouse that brings in double your mortgage payment per month, you can make it.

Simple savings of a Stay-at-home Mom:

1: Work wardrobe (You don't have to dress in business suits to stay at home and you know what? You can actually wear things until they fall apart!)

2: Gas and Auto maintenance (Where to you have to go? Grocery store? Baby Dr.? Try to make sure your Dr's. are close to home.) You'll be putting a lot less miles on your vehicle.

3: Packaged/Prepared foods. Now that you're home you have time to cook and prepare things yourself. Don't forget to buy what's on sale and clip those coupons!

4: Manicures (really ladies, do we really need them? I've never had one, not even for my wedding.)

5: Hair cuts - only for special occasions - day to day is for pony tails. ::

6: Children's hair cuts - buy an at home clipper. It will pay for itself in 2-3 months!

Sure there will be things you can't have but you need to tell yourself "do I really NEED it?" It's a good question to ask yourself before you purchase anything. You learn to become low maintenance if you're not already.

I guess you already know, I never and would never put my child in Daycare unless it was a desperate situation.

I completely agree! I watched my mother be a stay at home mother for all of my childhood and my brothers. It was the best childhood my parents could have provided for us. She went without ALL extras. We had the things we needed and some of the things we wnated. I was raised to believe that being a SHAM was the best way to raise a faimly. My boyfriend lives and works in a town 45 minutes away from where I live and I am not interested in reloacting to his location. I live in a small town (10,000 pepole and a school district that was just voted #3 in the country for our population) his town is NOT a disirable place to raise a family but his job and money is not offered in my community. 90% of my families have one parent who works in our community and one who works in his. To be able to raise a family here and not there I will most likely need to keep my daycare open. Having my own daycare is the ONLY compromise I am will to make to make our life work. My community is VERY family based but you pay for it with the cost of living.

[squareone]

Would never have put my own children in daycare full-time if I had another choice. However, I had to work and since I had a job outside the home they had to go to daycare. I took 12 weeks of maternity leave with each of my children and reluctantly had to go back to work.

If I found a daycare provider that I trusted and money wasn't an issue, I could see myself sending my own kids to daycare one or two days a week for half a day. Maybe then I would get to find out about this "me time" that everyone talks about. ::