Child Care - Help me decide!

[Persephone1]

When I go back to work in May/June (July ) I'll be putting DS into care for 2 days a week. I'm conflicted as to which one is better for us and need some opinions.

I have DS on the List for FDC in the suburb where I work. There is NO FDC Carers in the suburb where we live (we live about 3 suburbs from where I work, about a 12 minute drive, or three train stops away). I'm a bit nervous about whether we get a place, and whether it'll be the right kind of care for us, but my family has had good FDC experiences in the past and I like the idea of DS being in a home, family setting.

There's a new commercial child care centre opening up just around the corner from where we live - like, seriously, a 3 minute walk from our house. It was an ABC Centre but is now owned by another organisation and is being refurbished ready for opening in February. I've secured a spot there for DS, if we want it.

FDC will have 4 children and one carer. The CCC around the corner will have DS in a room with 15 other children (0-12 months, and then 1-2 years) with one carer per four children, so four carers in the room.

There are pros and cons to both. FDC will be near my work, so I can leave and see DS at the drop of a hat, and perhaps even visit him during the day initially (for my benefit more than his ). But the CCC is near home, so if I can't get there, it'll be easier for DH to get there from his work. FDC is cheaper. CCC is possibly more convenient. We take a punt on the carers either way.

What do you think? Maybe it doesn't really matter you know, 6 for one, half a dozen for the other...but if you have experience with both, which have you preferred and why?

And if anyone knows how I can make a million dollars so I can stay at home and not put him in care, let me know please.

[onthefly]

Have you spent much time at either centre? I'd go with whichever you feel best about - the carers, culture etc are the most important thing.

[Persephone1]

Have you spent much time at either centre? I'd go with whichever you feel best about - the carers, culture etc are the most important thing.

The CCC hasn't opened yet, and luckily we can visit and spend some time there and get a feel for the place before deciding - but have secured the spot with no obligation. The FDC will depend on a spot opening before we can meet the carer and decide.

[butterfly_warrior]

I've only ever had Sam in a centre. I'm happy with the centre, because they took such care to find out what Sam's routine was so that they could do the same things there as we do at home. Sam's also a bit of a social butterfly, the more people the better, so for him it's better to have him in a centre where there are more carers and more kids. For Sam, to be in FDC would be just like being at home - and he goes a little bit nutty if we stay at home too much. He likes to get out and about. The centre is more stimulating for him, I feel.

Which one do you think would suit your son's personality better? Would you be able to take breaks from work to breastfeed your son in FDC? But to some extent, that could mean more distress for your son as he's being left more than once each day.

BW

[Persephone1]

Hmm, good point BW - DS is very much a little social butterfly already, and many people have commented that he'll be fine in CC because he "goes to anyone." He's a bit of a flirt, tbh I'll take that into consideration too. Ta.

[Mak]

My DD's have been in cc from ~ 9 months of age. I preferred that as I had some experiences with private Nannies that worried me a little BUT that is definitely a personal preference! I think the key to whatever you choose is to go with your gut feel and how the options align with your needs/expectations.
Thing such as settling routines, nappy choices (some centres etc don't do cloth here) and parenting philosophies etc. Also for us opening hours etc were important as we have to work over Christmas and often have early starts, awfully practical but important as we have little/no back up.
I like that our centre has a mildly chaotic feel and that there always seem to be a few things on the go when I go to get the girls. They have also been very flexible/creative about helping my DD1 deal with her separation anxiety at drop off as well.
It is a hard one as I was hoping to get FDC before the kids hit kinder age and then swap them over but we have ended up having a day at cc and then enroling in our local council kinder as well - in hindsight it has worked well so far but there have been plenty of moments that I felt awful amongst it all!!!
Hmm not much help am I???!!!!

[Crystalwings]

I started DD in FDC as that is the only option for us here for under 2's when she was 6mths. I had some issues with my first carer and wasn't happy with some things so when a spot came up with another carer i took that and she was absolutely fantastic. Working in CC myself i guess i am fussy and have high standards but changing carers was the best thing we did. The fdc then stopped doing it and went to work in a small local centre so DD is there now that she is 2 and absolutely loves it. While it is more expensive i have to say that there are benefits of centre based care such as
- more accountability in terms of licencing and accreditation
- if a carer is sick they can be replaced by a casual. ie unless your boss is very flexible you can potentially have to take alot of time off if the carer or their children get sick which happened to us.
Some other things to concider are
- If the fdc has a lot of babies or high needs children she has no one to share the load with like in a centre environment
- If choosing fdc be sure to ask about the television as i have heard so many people comment that their fdc had the tv on all day

I really think that no matter where you go so long as there is someone who has built a rapport with your child and they are in a secure and loving environment where there is strong attachment and plenty of quality interaction then the model of care is irrelevent. There are definately pros and cons of both.

[My Three Sons]

I have used both, and have also worked as a FDCer (was just over 1 year though). With my first son - i used FDC a few days a week and childcare the others. I ended up dropping the centre and keeping him in FDC- but at that point i was working for family day care running their playgroups, so i knew the carer VERY well and she was one of their best carers. There were certainly some i wouldn't put my kids in with, but there was some that i would have loved to have used. Most of the time if his carer was sick they were able to find him a spot somewhere else, or i was lucky in that a couple of times i was able to bring him to playgroup instead.
However when i had to put #2 and #3 in care to go back to study, i decided the childcare centre was just better for us. It was the same one i used previously, and some of the staff were still there which i loved. I have had absolutely no regrets putting them in there, He has learned so much!
It really does depend so much on the individuals in both places. You can have great and crap FDcarers and great and crap staff at a childcare centre- and the same with the managers of both.
Really it just comes down to where YOU feel most comfortable with him being. No one else can decide that for you.