Are you planning on returning to work after your maternity leave is over? If so, you need to begin thinking about where you want your child to go to daycare at while you are at work. In fact, you need to begin your researching your options roughly five or six months ahead of time to ensure that you will have a secure spot for your child. Many providers generally have a waiting list, especially, at the more popular daycare centers and reputable home daycare centers. Your newborn can’t attend any type of daycare center until he or she is 6 weeks or older.
Disclosure: This post is for informational purposes only. The opinions in this post are my own and is based upon my own experiences with finding a suitable daycare provider that I trust to watch my children.
Do Your Research Carefully Before Deciding on the Type of Daycare to Use?
It is best to do your research before deciding on the daycare center that your child is going to spend a majority of their time at, while you are at work. A daycare center often has set hours that they are open and most will charge you if you are late picking up your child. I personally use a daycare center for my child because I never have to worry about the teacher being sick. A home daycare may have set hours but they might be a bit more flexible with pick up times if you talk to the director in advance. Usually home daycare centers are a bit cheaper because they can set their own rates. However, both types of daycare centers are licensed by the state and must follow their specific rules.
Comments
20 responses to “Working Moms: Daycare Arrangements Need to Be Made Before Your Baby is Born”
Excellent resource you’ve provided here for a very crucial (potentially unnerving) decision.
One thing that I always thought about, before I made the decision to stay home/work from home, was to find a daycare with cameras. Although it seems as if most of the places with cameras were more pricey, it’s definitely worth it, in my opinion.
Thanks, again
Great article
The security cameras can give me a peace of mind especially if you are able to log on and peek in on your child’s classroom.
OMG so true – it’s so important to be prepared with your childcare!
In fact, I would even have a back daycare planned just in case something falls through or the first daycare doesn’t have room when you are needing childcare.
I made the choice to stay home…but this is a super list for those who need to.
I was a stay at home mom when my oldest two were born, so this was new to me when I had my youngest son.
Great list. I have been in childcare as a teachers aid. There are so many options and things to look for when planing childcare.
I agree Marcie, not all daycares are treated equally or run well.
This is great advice for moms needing care for their infants. I never had to research this, but I would have really valued this post if I’d needed it.
Thank you for your feedback Lisa, my goal is to help working moms realize that they can’t wait until their baby is born to start making arrangements for daycare.
It might just be me, but it’s hard to determine exactly what the situation will be for first-time moms because I know I got a bit clingy and didn’t want to leave my son! Now I’m a stay-at-home mom! Love the detailed list though.
I know it is hard for you to leave your new infant at daycare. I was thankful and my husband was a stay at home dad for a while and he didn’t have to start daycare right away. But I would have been a basket case to leave him so young in someone else’s hands.
Cool info for those who are experiencing that stage.
Thank you Lolo.
Chrissy I can’t tell you how many times a parent signed up a new infant at my childcare and decided last minute not to enroll as they weren’t ready to separate when it was time to go back to work.
Yes it is hard for moms to leave their baby. I know I couldn’t do it with my older ones. Luckily, with my youngest he got to stay home with daddy for the first 7 months.
It is important that before we return to our work, we have already found a childcare provider for our children. With the many different childcare providers and options, it may be difficult to decide but with the help of some friends and research, we can find the right one for our needs.
Thank you for sharing your experience Sheryl. I agree your friends can with children are a great resource when it comes to finding childcare.
It’s definitely best to be prepared and set plans before the baby arrives. Finding a childcare provider is not an easy task and it will always be good to start looking as early as possible so one can definitely find the best one. It’s good that important points about daycare arrangements are discussed. This will help a lot of mommies out there.
Thank you Bettye for stopping by.