So I've now seen a total of four daycares. Some near. Some far. Some clean. Some not-so-clean. Which would you go for:
1) The semi-tidy ground-level daycare with carpets stuck down with duct tape and more locks on the doors than Fort Knox...even the inside doors. Due to the owner's beliefs, Abner would not be allowed to dress up for Halloween (something I had been really looking forward to after seeing this fantastic idea for a costume).
2) The less-than-tidy, bordering on downright dirty home adorned with fake plants (even outside!). I know this is not a comment on her ability to care for children, but clearly she has no taste. Not to mention the fact that she had the largest TV I've ever seen and all the kid's chairs and swings were lined up theatre-style in front of it.
3) The spectacularly tidy home of a family where even Martha Stewart herself could learn a thing or two about homemaking and organization with heaps of toys, books, puzzles, games, activities, crafts, etc. to play with between morning devotionals and afternoon prayer. Sounds lovely, but we're not practicing Christians, so this may be a bit odd to explain to Abner as she gets older. "Mommy, mommy, you just took the Lord's name in vain."
or...
4) The just-moved-in-on-the-weekend-and-don't-know-where-anything-is daycare where the owner dropped Abner on her head. Seriously.
I think we'll go with the Christian woman. It seems I'll have to work on cleaning up my language.
have you considered a nanny share? i found one on craigslist when i went back after cohen. it was a woman that lived a few blocks from our house and she had a son 5 months older. i ended up paying almost exactly the same as a home daycare and they even offered to have the care half time in my home. also, because there were only two of them we got a double stroller so that they could still venture out to the community centre/science world and the library. i still cruise the daycare ads on craigslist and see people looking to share all the time. might be worth considering. i don't think i could compromise on the christianity, but then that ism y hang up i guess. good luck.
ReplyDelete^ t's nanny share idea is a good one. our cousin did that exact thing and has been really happy with her situation. it's what we were thinking of too, if need be.
ReplyDeletebut... of the above choices, i'd decide between the christian woman and the baby-dropper. depends how flandersy the first choice is (and what fits with your beliefs). you could try the baby-dropper again once she's settled?
None of the above. Run, Abner, run!
ReplyDeletethe other thing to consider is how long do you think she'll be in this person's care? If Abner is still on lists for bigger / better daycares, maybe the in-home one will only be for a little while. If so, nothing wrong with a caregiver who is maybe over-religious; how much dogma can she teach a one-year old anyway? Between 1 - 2 years, you're mainly looking for quality babysitting, not any kind of formal learning environment.
ReplyDeletemy 2.5 year old doesn't remember much from his first year. thank god because the daycare I went with was not ideal. and so my advice is:
go with your gut and Abner's gut. (separation anxiety aside, does she tolerate the caregiver?)...and don't settle.