Friday, March 23, 2012

Foster Friday: Daycare Tour 2012

Oh, daycare! What a huge decision to make! 

It is no secret to anyone who knows me that I would LOVE to be a stay-at-home-mom.  Why?  Because it would be fun!  Playing with kids all day.  Play dough.  Trips to the park.  Nap time.  What isn't there to love?  Please don't interpret fun as being easy.  I think it is actually one of the most tiring and difficult jobs around.  But no one can argue that it wouldn't be more entertaining than spreadsheets day in and day out!  But this desire was never for the kids.  My kids would definitely be better off in a daycare with people who are trained on their development.  I really wouldn't have a clue what they should be learning or playing with.  I'd figure out a way to not mess them up completely, but it definitely wouldn't be pretty or smooth by any means.

But when it came down to it, daycare is the right choice for our family.  If I were to stay at home, our finances would be skinny-jeans-out-of-the-dryer-tight, which would cause a lot of unneeded stress in our household.  Also, we both are fortunate to really enjoy our careers.  Having made our contribution to the world everyday, I think we will be better parents when we get home each night.  I so look forward to those evening hours filled with family snuggles and laughs and memories!  And for now I'm blocking out the laundry and cleaning that will occur after their bedtime.

Now the big question was which daycare are we going to choose for our foster child(ren).  This is where it gets tricky.  We don't know when, how many or how old our foster child(ren) will be.  This makes it next to impossible to get on any waiting list for daycare, which leaves us hoping/praying for open spots when we need them!  But we wanted to at least know which daycares were still in the running and which ones should be crossed off the list.  Last week we dedicated an entire day to Daycare Tour 2012, which consisted of tours at 5 daycares.  Here's the results.

Daycare A:  Recommended by numerous neighbors!  Homey environment!  Lots of warm fuzzies when visiting!  Good diversity in children and staff!  Will give medication!  No additional cost required after our voucher!  Some openings!

Daycare B:  The fancy one.  Excellent facility!  Some warm fuzzies, but didn't feel like we'd fit in.  Not so diverse.  Will give medication!  Significant cost required after our voucher.  Basically no openings.  Some ages were even full until 2013.  Seriously?

Daycare C:  Mixed reviews heard.  Adequate facility.  Few warm fuzzies.  Good diversity in children and staff!  Will give medication!  Some cost required after our voucher.  Many openings!

Daycare D:  Mixed reviews heard.  Very nice facility!  Some warm fuzzies!  Good diversity in children and staff!  Will give medication!  Some cost required after our voucher.  Few openings.

Daycare E:  No reviews- good or bad.  Very large and homey environment!  Definite warm fuzzies!  Excellent diversity in children and staff!  Will not give medication.  No additional cost required after our voucher!  Openings for all ages!

Final Standings:
Daycare A
Daycare E
Daycare D
Daycare C
Daycare B

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