Infant Daycare, New to Town

[Anonymous]

My husband and I are expecting our first child this summer, and he is considered a job transfer to DC next year. We're leaning toward making the move, but it likely wouldn't happen until next spring or summer (and certainly not until after we've returned from leave). What should we do about daycare in this situation? We plan to enroll our daughter in daycare in our current city when I return to work, but she may only be there for a few months if we end up moving. It seems like it will be next to impossible to get a spot in an infant daycare in the DC area if we wait until our plans are more concrete. Should we go ahead and get on some wait lists now (even if we don't know where we'll be living)? Would that just be a waste of money and time? Should we accept that we'll need to get a nanny until our daughter is old enough to enroll in a toddler program? I'm sure this situation isn't uncommon - what do you other people do for childcare when they're new to town with an infant?

[Anonymous]

Where in DC will his office be?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where in DC will his office be?

We'd both be working near Farragut Square. (I'd also transfer offices if we make the move, and my employer's DC office is located in that area as well.) I'm wondering if it makes sense to at least get on some waitlists near where we'll be working or if that will seem a bit crazy since we do not have concrete plans to relocate at the moment. I just don't want to end up in a situation a year from now where we're struggling to find childcare, especially since it's looking more likely than not that he'll take the transfer!

[Anonymous]

Get on waitlists now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where in DC will his office be?

We'd both be working near Farragut Square. (I'd also transfer offices if we make the move, and my employer's DC office is located in that area as well.) I'm wondering if it makes sense to at least get on some waitlists near where we'll be working or if that will seem a bit crazy since we do not have concrete plans to relocate at the moment. I just don't want to end up in a situation a year from now where we're struggling to find childcare, especially since it's looking more likely than not that he'll take the transfer!

Get on a few wait lists near Farragut now. You can pass and keep your place if you’re offered a spot before you’re ready to move and there’s some chance you’ll actually have a place of you go ahead with the move. I’d rather be out $200-300 now to get on waitlists and not move than have to find and pay for a nanny in a year, although your financial and stress circumstances may be different.

[Anonymous]

I would get on the waitlist at Bambini Federal Triangle or Golden Triangle asap

[Anonymous]

Definitely get on waitlists now.

[Anonymous]

Waitlists are a good idea.

What people do is a nanny share with another family. It isn’t much different in costs than a daycare center for infants and is much more flexible in timing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Waitlists are a good idea.

What people do is a nanny share with another family. It isn’t much different in costs than a daycare center for infants and is much more flexible in timing.

Requires coordination with another family which can be hard if you’re new in town though so I think OP would be well served by getting on some wait lists just in case.

[Anonymous]

I would get on some list. But looks like depending on the timing you may not need infant care. Once your kid is around 1 they move to the next level at some day cares. Ours always had a lot of movement in the end of summer when the oldest kids age out and then everyone gets bumped up to the next class. Keep that in mind when you are considering your timing.

[Anonymous]

As a general rule I think there are some longer wait-lists in downtown DC, but I would try to find a daycare closer to where you live. It makes more sense to have your daycare closer to your home bc if you have to pick up a kid for some reason you are likely going home anyway or if you end up working at home.
I've found that you can generally find a spot within a month or two if you are more north in the city, but note that I don't know much about the suburban daycare lists

[Anonymous]

OP here - Thanks for the advice! I was worried I might be jumping the gun on this a bit, but it sounds like it's not a bad idea to pay a few wait list fees now in order to maximize our options next year if we end up needing them. I was interested in Bambini Golden Triangle, so I think I'll try there and also potentially Bright Horizons L Street. Ideally I'd prefer daycare close to home rather than work (especially since my employer has moved to a hybrid model and I will not be commuting every day), but it's so hard to say where we'll end up especially if we have to rent at first. We'd love to live in NW DC, so I've also thought about getting on the wait list at BCDC and/or St. Albans. Those locations look like they would be decently accessible from a number of different neighborhoods in the NW, but please let me know if I'm off base on that. Given the timing of when we'd likely move (probably late spring/early summer), we'd probably need infant care for a couple of months before our daughter turns 1. Good to know that there may be movement at some centers at the end of the summer though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here - Thanks for the advice! I was worried I might be jumping the gun on this a bit, but it sounds like it's not a bad idea to pay a few wait list fees now in order to maximize our options next year if we end up needing them. I was interested in Bambini Golden Triangle, so I think I'll try there and also potentially Bright Horizons L Street. Ideally I'd prefer daycare close to home rather than work (especially since my employer has moved to a hybrid model and I will not be commuting every day), but it's so hard to say where we'll end up especially if we have to rent at first. We'd love to live in NW DC, so I've also thought about getting on the wait list at BCDC and/or St. Albans. Those locations look like they would be decently accessible from a number of different neighborhoods in the NW, but please let me know if I'm off base on that. Given the timing of when we'd likely move (probably late spring/early summer), we'd probably need infant care for a couple of months before our daughter turns 1. Good to know that there may be movement at some centers at the end of the summer though.

We are at Bambini Federal Triangle and love it, so if you want to get some info, I am happy to direct message if you post a way to do so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here - Thanks for the advice! I was worried I might be jumping the gun on this a bit, but it sounds like it's not a bad idea to pay a few wait list fees now in order to maximize our options next year if we end up needing them. I was interested in Bambini Golden Triangle, so I think I'll try there and also potentially Bright Horizons L Street. Ideally I'd prefer daycare close to home rather than work (especially since my employer has moved to a hybrid model and I will not be commuting every day), but it's so hard to say where we'll end up especially if we have to rent at first. We'd love to live in NW DC, so I've also thought about getting on the wait list at BCDC and/or St. Albans. Those locations look like they would be decently accessible from a number of different neighborhoods in the NW, but please let me know if I'm off base on that. Given the timing of when we'd likely move (probably late spring/early summer), we'd probably need infant care for a couple of months before our daughter turns 1. Good to know that there may be movement at some centers at the end of the summer though.

We are at St Albans and love it, I was very skeptical at first, but after a month or two I eased up and it has been such a great experience for my kids! The teachers are amazing and love the kids so much, the admin for the most part is responsive and understanding, and caring. The parent community is really great and doesn't get too weird as some school/PTA type situations can become. As for the facility it is big, so it has a library, a playground, a tot lot, a gym for when the weather is crappy, and they are right near AU so they have access to a lot of green space for them to run around. And as you stated the location for ease as a family with some uncertainty as to where you are going to live is great, right next to metro (red line), target, across from Whole Foods, it makes my life a lot easier to just be able to do everything in one trip.

[Anonymous]

We're looking now and there are open spots at the downtown daycares, while neighborhood ones tend to have waitlists. In addition to the list above, check out Dept of Interior and Small Savers.