Daycare

My husband and I looked at eleven different daycares and only found two we felt were acceptable. Applying entails paying a fee to hold a spot. We did this about five months before his arrival and it was scary because so many of them said they didn't have any openings until late 2009 or 2010 (Insane!).

About a month after my son was born, we got a call from one of the daycares. Of course it was the most expensive, so I made a call to the other daycare and asked if there were any upcoming openings. That place was called Bright Star Kid's Academy. I liked it a lot but since they never bothered to return any phone calls once they had our application fee, I am glad my son isn't going there. They taught me a $50 lesson.

My son has been in Bright Horizons for a little over three months and he loves it there. It's amazing how much he thrives from being around the other kids. My husband and I stagger his drop off and pick up so he doesn't spend a full day there but he does get enough time to feel like he had some fun with his buddies. Of course it would be ideal if one of us could stay home with him but seeing how much he enjoys it there made us realize there are some advantages to daycare when both Mom and Dad must work.

If you know you are going to need daycare services, you should start looking early. We first googled daycares in our neighborhood, then we visited the ones that sounded good to us in person. I also recommend reading the Daycare Centers: Overview article on Babycenter.com.

Good luck and hope you are able to find a daycare worthy of your little one or win the lottery so you can stay home. :)