How can we improve the childcare crisis?

[Anonymous]

Quit and raise your kids. I did, in Fairfax County. yes, money will be tighter but your kids will need you in a crazy place like the DMV, Even more so when they get into middle and high school. You only get one chance to raise your children. If you mess it up, nothing else you ever do will matter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The insane waitlists for daycare.

The nanny shortage.

The lack of parental leave.

What can reasonably be done to even take a step in the right direction?

Stay home and you take care of your children. I did. Why can't you?

Since you're fundamentally uninterested in recognizing any problem here, you might want to move along from this discussion.

There is no problem. Your children are not my problem or concern. What is it about this that none of you understand?

Ah a isolationist! You exist only in this world alone- is the correct? Nothing about how other people's children are raised or cared for impacts our society? Employment doesnt impact our society? Do you and your children not live in society? Do you understand what happens when there is no middle class or do you just hope to be on the rich side of that divide?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re in Maryland you need to listen up. The childcare crisis is going to get worse. So much worse! The State will expand pre-K3 and pre-K for programs throughout the entire state. Sounds good, right? For many daycares this is bad news and at our conferences a lot of daycare’s will be closing because they will be losing a huge portion of their children. With only two infant spots, if your home daycare, I am, that leaves you with infants and two year olds which is not sustainable.

The state also wants providers to get a college degree in early childhood education. This means if you have any other degree it is not valid. many women work from early in the morning till late at night when do they expect us to go back to school to get a degree? We are tired, we are burnt out and we have our own families that we need to care for on top of the children we care for during the day.

As it is people are ready scoff at $275-$325 a week, how much more are they willing to pay for a daycare with a early childhood education degree? It won’t be enough to cover the tuition and time that will go into it, never mind the abuse that many face from parents. People disrespect providers by bringing in sick children, not paying on time, dropping off early or picking up late.

The childcare crisis has many facets and that is my point of you about a major driving force. Adding the extra pressure and requirements from the state will mean more daycares will leave the profession entirely which ultimately is bad news for parents.

Yep, this happened already in DC and many centers had to close because it is so expensive to care for infants and toddlers without having their slots subsidized by preschoolers!

On the other hand as a consumer I have to pay for 0-6 years of daycare because nothing is free until K and my son turns 5 in January so he will basically be 5.75 when he enters K. If I only needed to pay for years 0.5/1-3 it would be a different calculation. Having the first 6 months of maternity leave possibly combined with 3-6 months paternity means the 1st year is covered. I only need to work about age 1- turning 3 for preK3.

Good for you, but not many people get that much leave

I don't have that much leave I actually had no maternity leave. As the person above me stated the most expensive part of daycare and most vulnerable children are those who are under a year and so if you can at least get to 6 months for maternity leave and then provide 3 to 6 months for attorney lately you can likely get most children to 9 months to 12 months without non parental care.

I absolutely needed 3 months to recover from childbirth and a C-section while taking care of an infant on my own because my partner had to go back at day 4. I got 0. No maternity leave no disability nothing.

And, you didn't know this prior to getting pregnant?

No I did not know that after a failed condom plus failure of plan B that I was pregnant. And further more I did not know that I would have complications with my c-section (didnt plan on a csection at all) nor a baby with health issues nor PPA. But thanks Susan you are a real peach!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The insane waitlists for daycare.

The nanny shortage.

The lack of parental leave.

What can reasonably be done to even take a step in the right direction?

Stay home and you take care of your children. I did. Why can't you?

Since you're fundamentally uninterested in recognizing any problem here, you might want to move along from this discussion.

There is no problem. Your children are not my problem or concern. What is it about this that none of you understand?

Ah a isolationist! You exist only in this world alone- is the correct? Nothing about how other people's children are raised or cared for impacts our society? Employment doesnt impact our society? Do you and your children not live in society? Do you understand what happens when there is no middle class or do you just hope to be on the rich side of that divide?

Trying to throw shade won't work. If I saw your child in danger, I would run after him/her but child care is your responsibility. I don't know why so many of you have children and then can't wait to leave them with strangers so you can go back to work and complain about missing them but you have to work. No. If your spouse is working then you have to figure out the crap you can cut out of your life so that you can stay home and see your child's first step, hear first word, take them to a park and fly a kite. Yes, you have to give up a lot of luxuries and you should be willing to do this. If you're foolish enough to hav a child without a committed partner, tough. Every choice had a consequence

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Quit and raise your kids. I did, in Fairfax County. yes, money will be tighter but your kids will need you in a crazy place like the DMV, Even more so when they get into middle and high school. You only get one chance to raise your children. If you mess it up, nothing else you ever do will matter.

Money may not be tighter. With my income and one child in day care it would have been a wash and I wouldn't have had any take home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The insane waitlists for daycare.

The nanny shortage.

The lack of parental leave.

What can reasonably be done to even take a step in the right direction?

Stay home and you take care of your children. I did. Why can't you?

Since you're fundamentally uninterested in recognizing any problem here, you might want to move along from this discussion.

There is no problem. Your children are not my problem or concern. What is it about this that none of you understand?

Ah a isolationist! You exist only in this world alone- is the correct? Nothing about how other people's children are raised or cared for impacts our society? Employment doesnt impact our society? Do you and your children not live in society? Do you understand what happens when there is no middle class or do you just hope to be on the rich side of that divide?

Your kids are your responsibility. There is zero reason you should be entitled to free child care. No, your employment doesn't impact society. Real middle class get child care help in this area. The problem are rich people claming to be middle class living in million dollar homes who expect hand outs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re in Maryland you need to listen up. The childcare crisis is going to get worse. So much worse! The State will expand pre-K3 and pre-K for programs throughout the entire state. Sounds good, right? For many daycares this is bad news and at our conferences a lot of daycare’s will be closing because they will be losing a huge portion of their children. With only two infant spots, if your home daycare, I am, that leaves you with infants and two year olds which is not sustainable.

The state also wants providers to get a college degree in early childhood education. This means if you have any other degree it is not valid. many women work from early in the morning till late at night when do they expect us to go back to school to get a degree? We are tired, we are burnt out and we have our own families that we need to care for on top of the children we care for during the day.

As it is people are ready scoff at $275-$325 a week, how much more are they willing to pay for a daycare with a early childhood education degree? It won’t be enough to cover the tuition and time that will go into it, never mind the abuse that many face from parents. People disrespect providers by bringing in sick children, not paying on time, dropping off early or picking up late.

The childcare crisis has many facets and that is my point of you about a major driving force. Adding the extra pressure and requirements from the state will mean more daycares will leave the profession entirely which ultimately is bad news for parents.

Yep, this happened already in DC and many centers had to close because it is so expensive to care for infants and toddlers without having their slots subsidized by preschoolers!

On the other hand as a consumer I have to pay for 0-6 years of daycare because nothing is free until K and my son turns 5 in January so he will basically be 5.75 when he enters K. If I only needed to pay for years 0.5/1-3 it would be a different calculation. Having the first 6 months of maternity leave possibly combined with 3-6 months paternity means the 1st year is covered. I only need to work about age 1- turning 3 for preK3.

Good for you, but not many people get that much leave

I don't have that much leave I actually had no maternity leave. As the person above me stated the most expensive part of daycare and most vulnerable children are those who are under a year and so if you can at least get to 6 months for maternity leave and then provide 3 to 6 months for attorney lately you can likely get most children to 9 months to 12 months without non parental care.

I absolutely needed 3 months to recover from childbirth and a C-section while taking care of an infant on my own because my partner had to go back at day 4. I got 0. No maternity leave no disability nothing.

And, you didn't know this prior to getting pregnant?

No I did not know that after a failed condom plus failure of plan B that I was pregnant. And further more I did not know that I would have complications with my c-section (didnt plan on a csection at all) nor a baby with health issues nor PPA. But thanks Susan you are a real peach!

You didn't have to carry the pregnancy or could have chosen adoption.

No one has maternity leave. Many of us save it up for years to be able to take 3 months off paid. I worked for 10 years and rarely took a vacation/sick leave so I could have paid maternity leave. And, yes, my kid had lots of health issues. I quit and we figured it out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The insane waitlists for daycare.

The nanny shortage.

The lack of parental leave.

What can reasonably be done to even take a step in the right direction?

Stay home and you take care of your children. I did. Why can't you?

Since you're fundamentally uninterested in recognizing any problem here, you might want to move along from this discussion.

There is no problem. Your children are not my problem or concern. What is it about this that none of you understand?

Ah a isolationist! You exist only in this world alone- is the correct? Nothing about how other people's children are raised or cared for impacts our society? Employment doesnt impact our society? Do you and your children not live in society? Do you understand what happens when there is no middle class or do you just hope to be on the rich side of that divide?

Trying to throw shade won't work. If I saw your child in danger, I would run after him/her but child care is your responsibility. I don't know why so many of you have children and then can't wait to leave them with strangers so you can go back to work and complain about missing them but you have to work. No. If your spouse is working then you have to figure out the crap you can cut out of your life so that you can stay home and see your child's first step, hear first word, take them to a park and fly a kite. Yes, you have to give up a lot of luxuries and you should be willing to do this. If you're foolish enough to hav a child without a committed partner, tough. Every choice had a consequence

And when your children are in school- what then? Are there suddenly jobs available? How much does your spouse make that you can afford to be home for your entire existence?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re in Maryland you need to listen up. The childcare crisis is going to get worse. So much worse! The State will expand pre-K3 and pre-K for programs throughout the entire state. Sounds good, right? For many daycares this is bad news and at our conferences a lot of daycare’s will be closing because they will be losing a huge portion of their children. With only two infant spots, if your home daycare, I am, that leaves you with infants and two year olds which is not sustainable.

The state also wants providers to get a college degree in early childhood education. This means if you have any other degree it is not valid. many women work from early in the morning till late at night when do they expect us to go back to school to get a degree? We are tired, we are burnt out and we have our own families that we need to care for on top of the children we care for during the day.

As it is people are ready scoff at $275-$325 a week, how much more are they willing to pay for a daycare with a early childhood education degree? It won’t be enough to cover the tuition and time that will go into it, never mind the abuse that many face from parents. People disrespect providers by bringing in sick children, not paying on time, dropping off early or picking up late.

The childcare crisis has many facets and that is my point of you about a major driving force. Adding the extra pressure and requirements from the state will mean more daycares will leave the profession entirely which ultimately is bad news for parents.

Yep, this happened already in DC and many centers had to close because it is so expensive to care for infants and toddlers without having their slots subsidized by preschoolers!

On the other hand as a consumer I have to pay for 0-6 years of daycare because nothing is free until K and my son turns 5 in January so he will basically be 5.75 when he enters K. If I only needed to pay for years 0.5/1-3 it would be a different calculation. Having the first 6 months of maternity leave possibly combined with 3-6 months paternity means the 1st year is covered. I only need to work about age 1- turning 3 for preK3.

Good for you, but not many people get that much leave

I don't have that much leave I actually had no maternity leave. As the person above me stated the most expensive part of daycare and most vulnerable children are those who are under a year and so if you can at least get to 6 months for maternity leave and then provide 3 to 6 months for attorney lately you can likely get most children to 9 months to 12 months without non parental care.

I absolutely needed 3 months to recover from childbirth and a C-section while taking care of an infant on my own because my partner had to go back at day 4. I got 0. No maternity leave no disability nothing.

And, you didn't know this prior to getting pregnant?

No I did not know that after a failed condom plus failure of plan B that I was pregnant. And further more I did not know that I would have complications with my c-section (didnt plan on a csection at all) nor a baby with health issues nor PPA. But thanks Susan you are a real peach!

Start thinking ahead and you see many of the things that can happen. Condoms are used to prevent spreading general diseases, they are not for birth control and now you know why, don't you? Next time, think ahead, Karen!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re in Maryland you need to listen up. The childcare crisis is going to get worse. So much worse! The State will expand pre-K3 and pre-K for programs throughout the entire state. Sounds good, right? For many daycares this is bad news and at our conferences a lot of daycare’s will be closing because they will be losing a huge portion of their children. With only two infant spots, if your home daycare, I am, that leaves you with infants and two year olds which is not sustainable.

The state also wants providers to get a college degree in early childhood education. This means if you have any other degree it is not valid. many women work from early in the morning till late at night when do they expect us to go back to school to get a degree? We are tired, we are burnt out and we have our own families that we need to care for on top of the children we care for during the day.

As it is people are ready scoff at $275-$325 a week, how much more are they willing to pay for a daycare with a early childhood education degree? It won’t be enough to cover the tuition and time that will go into it, never mind the abuse that many face from parents. People disrespect providers by bringing in sick children, not paying on time, dropping off early or picking up late.

The childcare crisis has many facets and that is my point of you about a major driving force. Adding the extra pressure and requirements from the state will mean more daycares will leave the profession entirely which ultimately is bad news for parents.

Yep, this happened already in DC and many centers had to close because it is so expensive to care for infants and toddlers without having their slots subsidized by preschoolers!

On the other hand as a consumer I have to pay for 0-6 years of daycare because nothing is free until K and my son turns 5 in January so he will basically be 5.75 when he enters K. If I only needed to pay for years 0.5/1-3 it would be a different calculation. Having the first 6 months of maternity leave possibly combined with 3-6 months paternity means the 1st year is covered. I only need to work about age 1- turning 3 for preK3.

Good for you, but not many people get that much leave

I don't have that much leave I actually had no maternity leave. As the person above me stated the most expensive part of daycare and most vulnerable children are those who are under a year and so if you can at least get to 6 months for maternity leave and then provide 3 to 6 months for attorney lately you can likely get most children to 9 months to 12 months without non parental care.

I absolutely needed 3 months to recover from childbirth and a C-section while taking care of an infant on my own because my partner had to go back at day 4. I got 0. No maternity leave no disability nothing.

And, you didn't know this prior to getting pregnant?

No I did not know that after a failed condom plus failure of plan B that I was pregnant. And further more I did not know that I would have complications with my c-section (didnt plan on a csection at all) nor a baby with health issues nor PPA. But thanks Susan you are a real peach!

You didn't have to carry the pregnancy or could have chosen adoption.

No one has maternity leave. Many of us save it up for years to be able to take 3 months off paid. I worked for 10 years and rarely took a vacation/sick leave so I could have paid maternity leave. And, yes, my kid had lots of health issues. I quit and we figured it out.

So you dont think it should be better care provided to women? That getting short term disability from the state for any other health issue is valid but major abdominal surgery is not? B/C the ACOG disagrees with you and has supported maternity leave and better postnatal care because of our outcomes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re in Maryland you need to listen up. The childcare crisis is going to get worse. So much worse! The State will expand pre-K3 and pre-K for programs throughout the entire state. Sounds good, right? For many daycares this is bad news and at our conferences a lot of daycare’s will be closing because they will be losing a huge portion of their children. With only two infant spots, if your home daycare, I am, that leaves you with infants and two year olds which is not sustainable.

The state also wants providers to get a college degree in early childhood education. This means if you have any other degree it is not valid. many women work from early in the morning till late at night when do they expect us to go back to school to get a degree? We are tired, we are burnt out and we have our own families that we need to care for on top of the children we care for during the day.

As it is people are ready scoff at $275-$325 a week, how much more are they willing to pay for a daycare with a early childhood education degree? It won’t be enough to cover the tuition and time that will go into it, never mind the abuse that many face from parents. People disrespect providers by bringing in sick children, not paying on time, dropping off early or picking up late.

The childcare crisis has many facets and that is my point of you about a major driving force. Adding the extra pressure and requirements from the state will mean more daycares will leave the profession entirely which ultimately is bad news for parents.

Yep, this happened already in DC and many centers had to close because it is so expensive to care for infants and toddlers without having their slots subsidized by preschoolers!

On the other hand as a consumer I have to pay for 0-6 years of daycare because nothing is free until K and my son turns 5 in January so he will basically be 5.75 when he enters K. If I only needed to pay for years 0.5/1-3 it would be a different calculation. Having the first 6 months of maternity leave possibly combined with 3-6 months paternity means the 1st year is covered. I only need to work about age 1- turning 3 for preK3.

Good for you, but not many people get that much leave

I don't have that much leave I actually had no maternity leave. As the person above me stated the most expensive part of daycare and most vulnerable children are those who are under a year and so if you can at least get to 6 months for maternity leave and then provide 3 to 6 months for attorney lately you can likely get most children to 9 months to 12 months without non parental care.

I absolutely needed 3 months to recover from childbirth and a C-section while taking care of an infant on my own because my partner had to go back at day 4. I got 0. No maternity leave no disability nothing.

And, you didn't know this prior to getting pregnant?

No I did not know that after a failed condom plus failure of plan B that I was pregnant. And further more I did not know that I would have complications with my c-section (didnt plan on a csection at all) nor a baby with health issues nor PPA. But thanks Susan you are a real peach!

Start thinking ahead and you see many of the things that can happen. Condoms are used to prevent spreading general diseases, they are not for birth control and now you know why, don't you? Next time, think ahead, Karen!

Venereal disease not general. This would be obvious to most people but I don't want to take a chanc with you misunderstanding.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re in Maryland you need to listen up. The childcare crisis is going to get worse. So much worse! The State will expand pre-K3 and pre-K for programs throughout the entire state. Sounds good, right? For many daycares this is bad news and at our conferences a lot of daycare’s will be closing because they will be losing a huge portion of their children. With only two infant spots, if your home daycare, I am, that leaves you with infants and two year olds which is not sustainable.

The state also wants providers to get a college degree in early childhood education. This means if you have any other degree it is not valid. many women work from early in the morning till late at night when do they expect us to go back to school to get a degree? We are tired, we are burnt out and we have our own families that we need to care for on top of the children we care for during the day.

As it is people are ready scoff at $275-$325 a week, how much more are they willing to pay for a daycare with a early childhood education degree? It won’t be enough to cover the tuition and time that will go into it, never mind the abuse that many face from parents. People disrespect providers by bringing in sick children, not paying on time, dropping off early or picking up late.

The childcare crisis has many facets and that is my point of you about a major driving force. Adding the extra pressure and requirements from the state will mean more daycares will leave the profession entirely which ultimately is bad news for parents.

Yep, this happened already in DC and many centers had to close because it is so expensive to care for infants and toddlers without having their slots subsidized by preschoolers!

On the other hand as a consumer I have to pay for 0-6 years of daycare because nothing is free until K and my son turns 5 in January so he will basically be 5.75 when he enters K. If I only needed to pay for years 0.5/1-3 it would be a different calculation. Having the first 6 months of maternity leave possibly combined with 3-6 months paternity means the 1st year is covered. I only need to work about age 1- turning 3 for preK3.

Good for you, but not many people get that much leave

I don't have that much leave I actually had no maternity leave. As the person above me stated the most expensive part of daycare and most vulnerable children are those who are under a year and so if you can at least get to 6 months for maternity leave and then provide 3 to 6 months for attorney lately you can likely get most children to 9 months to 12 months without non parental care.

I absolutely needed 3 months to recover from childbirth and a C-section while taking care of an infant on my own because my partner had to go back at day 4. I got 0. No maternity leave no disability nothing.

And, you didn't know this prior to getting pregnant?

No I did not know that after a failed condom plus failure of plan B that I was pregnant. And further more I did not know that I would have complications with my c-section (didnt plan on a csection at all) nor a baby with health issues nor PPA. But thanks Susan you are a real peach!

Start thinking ahead and you see many of the things that can happen. Condoms are used to prevent spreading general diseases, they are not for birth control and now you know why, don't you? Next time, think ahead, Karen!

Yes they are. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/contraception/male-condoms/ Plan B is also used for a backup method.

Where did you take sex ed- church?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The insane waitlists for daycare.

The nanny shortage.

The lack of parental leave.

What can reasonably be done to even take a step in the right direction?

Stay home and you take care of your children. I did. Why can't you?

Since you're fundamentally uninterested in recognizing any problem here, you might want to move along from this discussion.

There is no problem. Your children are not my problem or concern. What is it about this that none of you understand?

Ah a isolationist! You exist only in this world alone- is the correct? Nothing about how other people's children are raised or cared for impacts our society? Employment doesnt impact our society? Do you and your children not live in society? Do you understand what happens when there is no middle class or do you just hope to be on the rich side of that divide?

Your kids are your responsibility. There is zero reason you should be entitled to free child care. No, your employment doesn't impact society. Real middle class get child care help in this area. The problem are rich people claming to be middle class living in million dollar homes who expect hand outs.

Thank you! I'm so tired of the whining from the UMC meanwhile you find out their retirement + stock accounts are fat and flush. Give me a break.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you’re in Maryland you need to listen up. The childcare crisis is going to get worse. So much worse! The State will expand pre-K3 and pre-K for programs throughout the entire state. Sounds good, right? For many daycares this is bad news and at our conferences a lot of daycare’s will be closing because they will be losing a huge portion of their children. With only two infant spots, if your home daycare, I am, that leaves you with infants and two year olds which is not sustainable.

The state also wants providers to get a college degree in early childhood education. This means if you have any other degree it is not valid. many women work from early in the morning till late at night when do they expect us to go back to school to get a degree? We are tired, we are burnt out and we have our own families that we need to care for on top of the children we care for during the day.

As it is people are ready scoff at $275-$325 a week, how much more are they willing to pay for a daycare with a early childhood education degree? It won’t be enough to cover the tuition and time that will go into it, never mind the abuse that many face from parents. People disrespect providers by bringing in sick children, not paying on time, dropping off early or picking up late.

The childcare crisis has many facets and that is my point of you about a major driving force. Adding the extra pressure and requirements from the state will mean more daycares will leave the profession entirely which ultimately is bad news for parents.

Yep, this happened already in DC and many centers had to close because it is so expensive to care for infants and toddlers without having their slots subsidized by preschoolers!

On the other hand as a consumer I have to pay for 0-6 years of daycare because nothing is free until K and my son turns 5 in January so he will basically be 5.75 when he enters K. If I only needed to pay for years 0.5/1-3 it would be a different calculation. Having the first 6 months of maternity leave possibly combined with 3-6 months paternity means the 1st year is covered. I only need to work about age 1- turning 3 for preK3.

7
Good for you, but not many people get that much leave

I don't have that much leave I actually had no maternity leave. As the person above me stated the most expensive part of daycare and most vulnerable children are those who are under a year and so if you can at least get to 6 months for maternity leave and then provide 3 to 6 months for attorney lately you can likely get most children to 9 months to 12 months without non parental care.

I absolutely needed 3 months to recover from childbirth and a C-section while taking care of an infant on my own because my partner had to go back at day 4. I got 0. No maternity leave no disability nothing.

And, you didn't know this prior to getting pregnant?

No I did not know that after a failed condom plus failure of plan B that I was pregnant. And further more I did not know that I would have complications with my c-section (didnt plan on a csection at all) nor a baby with health issues nor PPA. But thanks Susan you are a real peach!

Start thinking ahead and you see many of the things that can happen. Condoms are used to prevent spreading general diseases, they are not for birth control and now you know why, don't you? Next time, think ahead, Karen!

Yes they are. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/contraception/male-condoms/ Plan B is also used for a backup method.

Where did you take sex ed- church?

Well, sweetie pie, I have no unplanned children and my birth control pills worked 100%. I don't believe a word of your pity story but as soon as I find my 1/8 inch violin and I will play the world's saddest song on the world's smallest violin just for you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The insane waitlists for daycare.

The nanny shortage.

The lack of parental leave.

What can reasonably be done to even take a step in the right direction?

Stay home and you take care of your children. I did. Why can't you?

So, your answer is to keep women out of the workforce?

Not women. There are SAHD and will be more and more of them. For the first year, a baby needs a parent. A grandparent can step in but a parent is best.

Ok, so how about a year of parental leave? Some of us can't afford to just leave our jobs and/or would have a lot of trouble getting a new one without moving cross-country. Other countries do this. It's possible.

Stop having children you can't afford.

Okay, so only the rich will have children. Who do you think will do almost every working and middle class job in America then?

Real middle class and lower income can get day care vouchers in this area. Its those of us who make too much to qualify but day care costs are the same as our take home pay that it makes it impossible to work.

For the poster who says a grandparent can step in. Mine live 10 minutes away, healthy and have never babysat even once in an emergency in 13 years. Can and will are two different things. I could be dying and my mom would still make up an excuse not to help.

Here's my thoughts - I know 'MC' people who bought $800K - $900K homes - which in this area you know is not some palatial estate but still acceptable - that were whining after they were stripped of a $1,200/month CTC.

Why should you get a daycare subsidy when you can afford and willingly bought a $1 million property? Why shouldn't you be expected to use your HHI, usually $150K - $400K, again seems high enough to me - to provide for your own children?

If you actually know such people, they are running a scam. Either their parents bought their homes or they are lying about how much they received in CTC or they are purposefully making their lives a living hell. Here's the math:

800k house means down payment of 80-160k, plus annual mortgage payments of about 45k. In order to qualify for $1200 in CTC, they would need to have four kids under age 6 (logistically challenging) AND they need to have an HHI of under 150k. Daycare for four kids in that age group is going to cost 60k at least (or maybe you find a nanny willing to take all four kids, but I don't see there being any savings because a nanny of 1-2 kids in DC easily costs 40k so good luck)

Let's say they make $149k to slide under the CTC cap, and assume some favorable taxes due to mortgage interest deduction, retirement savings, and having kids. Their take home is around $115k.

Minus 45k in mortgage payments = $70kk
Minus 60k in childcare = $10k

So you know multiple families who have 10k a year to pay for food, clothes, and other necessities, and their main concern is the CTC, which by the way they still qualify for, just a little less money and it is paid as a refund instead of monthly?

Let me save you the time of answering. No. You don't.

The expanded CTC was actually an additional $1,000 a year per a child and there were plenty of people authorized for the program who did not in fact have the annual income necessary to have $12,000 per child in tax deductions per year.

Second, your assumption that each family is paying 20% - 30% as a down payment and/or in closing costs of their housing expenses is also faulty. I know plenty of people who just scrapped up 5% and got in with what they had.

Third, the family I referenced has 2 kids over the age of 12 and 2 kids under 5. The difference is or was $1,100/month in cash deposits. If you want to discount the extra $100/month have at it. But their childcare costs are roughly $3,200/month plus benefits - the nanny watches the two kids on a schedule which is $38K a year not $45K.

Based on your calculations, their housing is paid for, their childcare is paid for, and they an extra $1,000/month for incidentals. Plus the childcare costs are temporary until pre-K enrollment. I don't see the problem or why the government needs to subsidize them or anyone else.

If you put down 5% on an 800k home, you are now paying 5k+ per month on your mortgage (plus you are paying PMI). This actually makes the math worse than what I offered because you could argue that their parents gave them the down payment, but very few people have family willing to help them pay their mortgage. Which means now their annual mortgage costs more like 60k.

Good job looking up the actual rules on the advanced CTC payments for your imaginary family so that your math on that technically makes sense, but now that their imaginary mortgage payment is higher, they still only have $17k a year for food and incidentals. Since feeding a family of six that includes 2 teenagers is going to cost you around 1k, and doctors co-pays suck up the rest, I guess their kids do no activities and have no friends. And no money for any of their four kids to go college either. I'd feel really sad for this family if you hadn't invented them for the sole purpose of making a point that, by the way, you have still failed to make.

Zero empathy for a family who makes those choices.

This family does not exist, so it's smart to save your empathy for actual people.

An actual family of 6 with less than 150k in income cannot afford an 800k house in DC (would never get approved, would never be able to save for the down payment, would never be able to afford the mortgage payment. That family would be living in an exurb, commuting 45 minutes each way, and drowning in debt.

It is unlikely they would have childcare costs at all because they'd probably sacrifice the mom's 60k salary (which would not even cover childcare expenses after taxes) and live on the husband's 90k salary while she stayed home. This would save them hundreds of thousands of dollars but she'd have to stay out of the workforce for so long that it would would torpedo her career, and they'd be stuck trying to save for retirement and college for four kids on one salary plus whatever she could find, making probably a fraction of her prior salary (plus she needs flexibility because even once in school, her kids have vacation days, holidays, and sick days, and they have a very slim budget for camps and emergency childcare. And that budget might be slightly augmented by CTC but not enough to help them spend a million on a house.

I guess you can be mad they had four kids. But to give you a sense of what reality looks like, we're a family with one kid on a 130k, we own a 1000 sq ft house we bought for 400k 8 years ago. We have one 15 year old car. We used CTC to buy better quality food for our kid (more fresh fruits and vegetables, fewer processed foods which are cheap and kept our grocery bills down), pay for dentist visits (we are not offered dental insurance through work), buy school uniforms when she went through a growth spurt (it's a public school, don't worry), and enroll her in an inexpensive gymnastics class at the Y because her pediatrician says she needs to work on coordination and her teacher says she lacks confidence.

I don't actually care if you empathize with me or not (truly, don't give two sh!ts what you think of me) but thought it would be useful to provide a picture of what an actual family benefitting from CTC looks like.

And yes, we should overhaul the childcare system with more paid parental leave and subsidized childcare programs so that we can pay childcare workers a living wage for hard work without bankrupting families. Both my mom and I have worked in childcare facilities and it is hard and draining work, but as a parent myself I know how hard it is to find quality care in budget. The reason my kid is an only is that we simply cannot afford to have more. And we are two college graduates (I have the loans to prove it) in white collar professions (DH is an engineer for a public agency, I'm a teacher) who are careful with money and do not live beyond our means. If we are just barely making this work, I have trouble understanding how families with less stable jobs, more kids, less education, or all of the above make it work.