paid care

my youngest (3) is in childcare for a day a week just to give me some respite. but lately he's not been happy and, i have to say, a number of things have bugged me about centre care ie. number of sick kids, 3 notices of major illnesses (eg.slap face) on the front door, discovering one worker with 15 ( ) toddlers etc.

So have checked out Family Day Care and decided on one in my area today after we went to a few the other day. It's swings and roundabouts a bit (a pain to prepare their food for the day) but DS2 sounds like he prefers this place to childcare. He's a quieter boy than my eldest too and i think institutional care can be a bit overwhelming at times.

love to know what the rest of u think........

Oooh! I forgot, there may be some that prefer a nanny etc. so your comments welcome too.

__________________
poppyg

Me - 37
DH - 39

Last edited by poppyg : 27-07-2007 at 08:14 PM.

  #2      

some of each ?

I know how you feel........

I did use family day care when my eldest was in care 3 days a week as a toddler and I had to go back to work and then when the next one came along and he was at school, I put her into a child care centre one afternoon a week so I could take a writing contract.

There's an up and down side to both: I was a bit horrified one day when the family day care lady, who I had liked very much, explained that she had spent the day at the local Westfield Mall with my son in tow and that his lost shoe was the result of her inattention while chatting with her friend that she had met there.......hmmmm

And all those childhood illnesses like slap face, yep are a down side of instituitionalised care. But on the whole if your kid does not get them at child care they will get them at kindy or school usually, so it just delays things a bit.

I think you have to be comfortable with the carers at any place you leave you child: centre or home and if your gut instinc tell you that there's something not right follow your instinct as a Mum.

__________________
:::iona:::

  #3      

I put my kids in Family day Care for 2 days a week when they were 6 months and 2.5 years old, to give me some respite when I was recovering from depression/anxiety. I had a phobia about child care (mainly to do with them picking up bugs), so FDC was a good choice for me. Their carer is now a good friend of mine (just recently had her own baby), and I never had any doubts that they were being well looked after. She was a god send! I've got my fingers crossed that she will cope with being a new mum well enough to want to start doing occasional care.

The main problem with FDC was when the carer got sick - no one got care then. In a centre this wouldn't happen.

Now that my 4-yr-old is at kindy and I'm getting a grip on the ol' OCD (just call me Monk LOL) I'll be putting my soon-to-be-2-yr-old in a centre for a few hours a week.

You can have good and bad experiences wherever you put your kids - you just have to be comfortable with your choice.

  #4      

I have decided against putting my kids in child care - for now. I have heard too many bad stories about child care centres from friends and even from a friend who works at one. My 4yo DS goes to Kindy 2 days a week and it is just fantastic - I could not ask for more enthusiastic, devoted and caring teachers. It is a C&K kindy, so is a not for profit organisation which sits better with me also. I have never liked the fact that child care centres are profit based, especially ABC centres which are listed on the stock exchange. I know that this alone does not mean it is not quality care, but there is the potential for cost and corner cutting and having to answer to share holders who are only interested in the bottom line which does not sit well with me. I also do not like how little child care workers are paid. Having said that though the time may come in the future when I will need to put my kids in day care, so I will just have to make sure I visit a few and choose the one that 'feels right' and just hope that it turns out ok. If we could afford it I would choose home based care.

  #5      

the debate continues....

Hi martha_rocks! hope u enjoy our community. we're a pretty friendly bunch.

now, to the topic at hand.... yes, martha_rocks (can i call u mr? i'm so lazy ) that's the main problem with FDC is what happens when the worker is sick. i guess i'll find out . Hey BTW, i thought FDC was cheaper b/c Centrelink give more rebate on it to encourage families to use it?? The one we're moving to is cheaper both in real terms and with the rebate.

thanks for your comments Bon - i reckon you're right on the money (if you'll excuse the pun), unfortunately the bottom line often rules in our society. hey, what's a C&K kindy?

to be brutally honest; this is my take - for what it's worth..........

Child Care Centres (CCC), especially for profit ones, are often better for the parents. There's reliability (always staff to cover), more flexibile hours (can have different shifts of workers), sometimes cheaper (can be resource efficient - sometimes too efficient ); not as much to prepare in the AM b/c provide all food and nappies; more likely to seem all sparkly and well presented and have more resources to send home products of our childs day (nice painting must mean nice day at care).

The kids though - you gotta ask if it's nice being thrown in with a heap of tawdy toddlers just as egocentric as you; having to be shuttled through like a production line; not being able to fully attach to one worker; not having a homelike environment. having said that some kids need more stimulation than attachment (my DS1) and visa versa (my DS2).

It's a bit tricky to please everyone sometimes isn't it? We just have to make the best choice we can.

well, that's enough gasbagging for this morning. better go and be ready before my crew get 'up an' Adam'!

__________________
poppyg

Me - 37
DH - 39

  #6      

anoter point.

it saddens me when i see 6 week olds in day care. yep - take the minimum mat leave and back to work.

it saddens me when a child has before school care, school, and then after school care. when do they see their parents.

it saddens me when a parent forgoes traditional carers like grandparents, god-parents, aunts/uncles, friends instead of paid care. what even happened to mother's group, baby-sitting clubs, returned favours.

it saddens me that a parent has a day off and leaves their child in care because they pay for it anyway? OK we need a break but gee couldn't you put them in later/take them out earlier.

i was so lucky to trade favours with a friend, lucky to have Nanna, lucky to find a public child care centre that took short day bookings at short notice, lucky to have a job/position that allows me to work permanent part-time during school hours and work at nights in lieu when it's school holidays.

i just it's a matter of luck nowadays rather than a more family friendly society.

  #7      

lucky as.....

Parents and friends are great if you have em! I have a close friend who I do emergencies with as neither of us have parents around to pick up that slack, but my parents never lived near enough or long enough to do anything more......

__________________
:::iona:::