Adventures in the Childcare Hunt

[emu0013]

I bet using the words low cost you get all sorts of crazy......

[lgsdesigner]

Wow...that sucks. I am also in the interview process, and have seen/heard some interesting things.

One provider was showing me around her home, and I asked her where the baby would be sleeping for naps.
She lead me into a room that had the damn CAT'S LITTER BOX and it looked like a closet. She said she would put the pack n play in there. I said "Ummm....so when your cat needs to poop, you just let the cat do its duty so my son can smell it?"
She paused and said "Is that a problem??"
Uhhh- YES. Definitely a problem.

[tdart14]

We luck out as SIL runs an in hone daycare and looks after our little girl for free.

Even if your girl did come ba k with the policy and if the other kids were vaccinated, I don't think I would consider her an option anymore.

[tdart14]

Feb 19, 2015 10:30:40 GMT -5 lgsdesigner said:

Wow...that sucks. I am also in the interview process, and have seen/heard some interesting things.

One provider was showing me around her home, and I asked her where the baby would be sleeping for naps.
She lead me into a room that had the damn CAT'S LITTER BOX and it looked like a closet. She said she would put the pack n play in there. I said "Ummm....so when your cat needs to poop, you just let the cat do its duty so my son can smell it?"
She paused and said "Is that a problem??"
Uhhh- YES. Definitely a problem.

I got some serious side eye going on for that lady...

[scattered]

Have you tried care.com? You get background checks through them. I have hired twice through them.

[mrsf0831]

Feb 18, 2015 23:59:55 GMT -5 @deziniki said:

So here is my tale.

I put out an ad in craigslist to ask for potential low cost 3 day a week (6 hours each day) childcare. I wanted to try and find something that is less than the 650 a month range I had found so far.

I have already received 4 replies and I followed up with pretty standard questions and letting them know that we are still discussing options.

One of the replies I asked them what their immunization policies are because she watches two other kids. Pretty standard question. She responds with:

"I actually can not give out personal information about another child. It's actually against hippa laws. I have a background check that was completed by the state and its good until January of next year. Let me know if you are interested. Thanks"

I work in behavioral health and have a good knowledge of both mental health and regular health law... Which HIPPA applies to.

HIPPA does NOT apply to releasing immunization policies. I am not asking for identifying information about the kids or copies of their records (which she couldn't supply if she did require them... Per HIPPA).

I sent her a very sharp email letting her know that I have every right to ask and any licensed establishment would give me their policy.

I have the feeling she isn't licensed, which I am fine with, but she needs to provide the policy and submit to a background check. At this point I won't go near her though.

All I can say is Wow! Can't even answer a simple question correctly and she watches people's kids.

[lgsdesigner]

Feb 19, 2015 12:47:44 GMT -5 @deziniki said:

Feb 19, 2015 11:03:09 GMT -5 scattered said:

Have you tried care.com? You get background checks through them. I have hired twice through them.

I am going to look again but the last time I looked the minimum I could find was $10 an hour people. :-(

I am seriously considering being a SAHM and being a full time proctor parent. More money, tax free, and I don't have to stress about my baby and how much her care will be.

Sittercity is another one, and $6 an hour is the norm, if that helps. 

[morenajuliet]

I would not look for a reputable place on Craig's list. I would ask friends in the area, coworkers, etc. I understand budget but Craigslist is going to open you up to a bunch of crazy. I second what pearl mentioned about seeing if there's a mommy group in your area that you can ask for references as well. We recently had to switch providers (our provider became very sick) but I really wanted a new home care provider for my daughter and felt best going through a personal reference. Good luck!

[jerseyakl]

Are you not open to part time daycare? I would imagine pricing would be lower for daycare than for in home, although it would still be well above the $650 mark in my area. I know the 6 hours/3 days makes it hard, but perhaps it is worth exploring?

I don't have experience with care.com (yet) but would definitely be worried about craigslist. Do you have any neighbors with young ones? Maybe sharing a nanny would work? Or looking into a local college if they have a program geared toward child development/early childhood education, etc. they may out out a list of students looking for work.

Good luck! We are daycare hunting and it is so hard. We found one place we LOVE but I hate the name. It is called "my special spot" and I can't say it with a straight face. Obviously that is not complaint worthy, but it makes me laugh!

[byebyebooze]

I would look into the part time daycare too. It may very well be a good deal less expensive than an in home. My daycare does half days (6 hours and under) for $35 a day - and we live in a relatively high COL area.

[amelandre]

I used to find jobs on care.com. That's how I got hooked up with my old Au Pair family (in Austria) and when I lived in Cincinnati I got quite a few short-term/incidental sitting jobs. Obviously not everyone on there will be as stellar as me, but they do require references and you can meet the people to interview beforehand.

[freddyisready]

One of my standard phone questions, before we even go for a site visit, is "do you accept cloth diapers?"

One lady (been in business for 18 years) said "oh no. I would, but I can't figure out how to keep the older kids out of the used diapers."

Ok. End of convo. If you seriously can't keep toddlers out of a wet bag, then you won't be watching my kid. Make me wonder what else the kids are getting into. Derp.

[scattered]

I actually posted a part time mothers helper gig on care.com this afternoon. You might have better luck posting your need and how much you'll pay and let them reply to you.

[teachermama2015]

Feb 19, 2015 12:52:51 GMT -5 lgsdesigner said:

Feb 19, 2015 12:47:44 GMT -5 @deziniki said:

I am going to look again but the last time I looked the minimum I could find was $10 an hour people. :-(

I am seriously considering being a SAHM and being a full time proctor parent. More money, tax free, and I don't have to stress about my baby and how much her care will be.

Sittercity is another one, and $6 an hour is the norm, if that helps. 

I think $6 probably depends on where you live.  $12-15 is the norm here.  I use to get jobs on care.com and sittercity.com when I was a nanny.  I also found a couple of date night sitters on care.com when I had my foster kids.  You do have to pay a monthly fee for the site though.