Babysitter or Daycare Center?

One of the biggest decisions of becoming a parent is deciding who will care for your infant. While in a prefect world all mothers would stay home with their children until school age, financially most couples cannot afford it. Therefore parents must choose a caregiver for their children.

There are many possibilities. Some people are lucky enough to have another family member, such as a grandparent, that can look after their children. However, others must depend on strangers.

Because good childcare is often far and few between, it is not a bad decision to begin looking into options before you ever get pregnant. Some childcare centers begin taking names on list when the mother first finds out that she is expecting.

Childcare centers, or daycares, are one option for your child when you go back to work. Childcare centers are required to follow strict guidelines and require finger printing and background checks for workers. They are required to stay within adult and child ratios. They also usually provide outside time and meals or snacks for the children. The workers are required to chart details about your baby's diaper changes and food intake. The downfall of childcare centers is the turnover in workers. You cannot depend on your child being taken care of by the same person. The workers may work different shifts. Workers quit and new workers are hired.

Some people decide to turn toward private childcare in a person's home. The children often become closer to the person in a home care center because they are with the same person all of the time. You often develop a closer family type relationship with the caregiver. However, home childcare is often not controlled such as childcare centers. Many times home caregivers are not licensed and do not report to the state. Before choosing a home provider, make sure that you get references or know the person well. In a home care center, different age children are grouped together instead of separate like in a childcare center.

Another ideal situation is to hire someone to come and keep your baby at your home. However, due to only keeping one or two children, this is usually a very expensive option.

No matter which option you choose on childcare, remember to act quickly and begin getting your name on waiting list. You do not want to be looking for a sitter only days before you are to return to work.