22205 (Highland Pk/Overlee Knolls area)-- looking for neighborhood info and childcare options

[Anonymous]

So it looks like we're going to be moving to Arlington in May--very excited! I think the neighborhood is called Highland Park/Overlee Knolls. We're coming from Capitol Hill and we have a general familiarity with Arlington but no close friends that live there.

The first order of business is childcare. Our 16-month-old is in a nanny share now and we'd love to find another one, but we are open to daycare centers as well. I work part-time but I will pay for a full-time spot if necessary. Are nanny shares pretty common in that area? How would I go about finding a family to share with? What daycares do people recommend? I sometimes work from home so it would be nice to find something fairly close. I'm sure waiting lists are long so I want to get on this asap.

Also, any suggestions on meeting people in the area? I think I heard someone mention a swim club? Anything else I should know??

Thanks so much!

[Anonymous]

welcome to 22205:
We are in a share because we could not find childcare at a center. you will probably be able to join a share by searching your neighborhood list serve, if there is one and I suspect there might be, and join MONA which is the MOTH of ARL.

I think once your child is 2 or 3 there are LOTs of great childcare options in the area.

don't get me started on wait lists.

[Anonymous]

Yes, definitely join MONA - www.monamoms.org $25/year and lots of good information about all things child-related as well as Arlington related.

Because of the "baby-boom" in Arlington as well as people moving to Arlington from other areas (moving here from the Hill seems very popular!), many things have long waitlists. Swim clubs, preschools, daycares, etc. There is a swim club near you called Overlee, but I believe the waitlist is about 5 years +. They do have a website.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

You can usually get an August membership at Overlee Swim Club. Otherwise, you can go to the Knights of Columbus swimming pool, which is the purgatory for people waiting to get into the neighborhood swim clubs.