Dr. Cox

So... will your child be going to daycare, or is Mommy (or Daddy) going to stay home? Most families need two incomes to get by, it seems like most kids end up in day care. In a way I think that's good. This is their first opportunity to learn to interact with other children.

TheNanna

I would prefer a at home setter.

Dr. Cox

I'm sure that would be everybody's preference, but it is not always practical. If you call a service, they're going to charge you an arm and a leg. Most of your friends and family probably have jobs of their own. If you're lucky enough to have someone trustworthy who is willing to watch your child in your home, you should really jump on that opportunity. Not everyone is that fortunate. Even though it is still expensive, sometimes daycare is the most logical option.

Weekapaug

I expect that I'll be going with daycare too. A home sitter would be wonderful but I can't really afford that right now. My wife will be a "stay at home mom" for the first few months (she quit her job about 6 months ago) and then re-enter the workplace, at which point we'll scout out daycare options.

Popo

My wife is retired so she will be taking care of my grandchild most of the time. I will also when I am retired.

Proud_Parent

We day care. It allows my son to play with other children, and assures me they are actually being cared for.

DCMerkle

When I was younger, before I had children of my own, I was a sitter. Both the parents of the children that I watched were architects. They had the bucks. Everyone was on a rigid schedule. I saw this as being a good thing and I went along with the rules, but I also saw it as a very stress-filled, anxiety ridden household.

Heaven forbid if one of the children were sick. It just threw the whole schedule off. The mom was really a control freak and if the baby had a cold she just knew it was going to end up being pneumonia, then the older child would get sick, and then there was the Dr's appointments that had to be made and kept, the medicine that had to be given on time, measured out to the very gram and so on. She was a trip!

Calm was not a word in her vocabulary. She stressed to the max. Now, her hubby was more of a laid back person. He would quietly deal with the matter, steer everyone in the right direction, leave very simple instructions for me, grab his wife and put her in the car and off to work they would go. Thank god for him...lol

Looking at this from the other side of the coin, after I had kids, I knew that there was no way I could afford daycare and I knew that a schedule was important. Jean, (the stressed out Mom) was my example of what I did not want to be like! I stayed home for 3 months before I went back to work. I did have family that took care of my daughter, so finances was not too much of a issue.

My baby would get sick and that was because germs were a part of life. With Jean, she would do background checks on the germs...lol She always felt her world was coming apart because a germ had caused such havoc. If she'd had her way, everyone would have worn face masks.

In a nutshell, staying at home vs. daycare has its pros and cons. Is your child any safer in a group setting? Would they catch more colds, flus and so forth, than they would at home? Are you saving anymore money? What is your child losing or gaining by being in daycare or at home? All these questions are things that only you know the answer to. It can be simple as you want it to be or it can be something to stress over.

DCMerkle

Sgt.peppers

Day care seems best to me, it helps the child learn to not depend on their parents and helps them interact with others. My 3 year old sister goes to day care, and my brothers kid will probably go to day care.(I know big age difference).

Helen

sunshine

If both parents work than day care is probably inevitable, but If one parent doesnt not work than they should probably stay with the child