Tell me how you found your PT Child Care

[Anonymous]

I am planning to reduce my work schedule form FT to PT early next year. I have a 2yr old and 5 month old in a home daycare that I absolutely love but she only takes kids FT. I have been looking for PT alternatives and am not finding many options. Most places only take FT kids and the PT alternatives will not work with my work schedule - ex. only MTW or TF openings.

For those of you work PT, what is your child care situation? Do you pay for FT but only use it PT?

[Anonymous]

When we were looking for PT care, I found very few places (including home daycares) that actually had PT as an option. Finding PT at a center is nearly impossible. I understand why, since it makes more financial sense for the center to accept FT applicants only. We finally found a center that offered PT (Easter Seals CDC), but I don't believe they offer this set-up anymore. We eventually went to FT care anyway, but it was very hard for us to find a place that did PT when we needed it. Are you in VA? You can contact Infant-Toddler Connection and they should be able to help you find a place that will work for you.

[Anonymous]

We have done a combination of options - PT at an in-home daycare (that I was able to work my schedule around), and now a PT nanny. But finding PT childcare is very difficult. Personally, if you love your in-home care (and depending on your work schedule), I would consider eating the cost to continue to pay for the FT spot, and then just consider the extra hours you flex / babysitting time. So all extra Dr's appts, car repair trips, workouts, date (daytime dates are GREAT!), etc. would come out of those daycare hours.

You might also see if your daycare is willing to let you 'sublet' your spot for hours you're not using so that another kid could come (pay) during those hours but technically you would still be on the hook for the FT spot if that other child had to withdraw, etc. - basically a traditional spot split, but you assume the financial risk for the split rather than the daycare.

[Anonymous]

We needed very PT care because my spouse and I have very different work schedules, resulting in us only needing care ~10 hours a week (spread over 3 days). I posted a detailed craigslist ad, since I knew I was really looking for either a) a college student or b) an older woman who liked kids and wanted to pick up a little extra money. I found a college student. I agree that you'll be hard pressed to find any licensed center that will take kids on a part time basis.

[Anonymous]

We had a really hard time. Before moving here, we were in a great center that allowed a couple families in each age group to do a split deal (2 day/3 days) which was perfect for us, but I haven't found anything like that here.

We ended up finding a full day preschool (9-3) with an infant room, but they only do 5 days a week. I ended up changing my schedule so I'm working more than I used to - 5 six hour days instead of 2.5 longer days. I wish I had one full day home with the kids, but we couldn't work that out. I found that even the centers that offer 3 day a week programs charge you almost as much as for 5 days. If you have an in home daycare you love, I'd consider just keeping your kids there and eating the extra costs -- even if you could find it, you'd probably pay just as much for a 3 day a week daycare center or preschool.

We also looked into getting an au pair or doing a nanny share, but the logistics of that never panned out for us.

[Anonymous]

Babysitter through Care.com

[Anonymous]

We ended up finding a nanny by advertising at local places of worship and college groups. If that hadn't worked we may have used Infant Toddler Family Daycare to find a place for us since they have part time rates.

[Anonymous]

We have had a horrible time. We finally decided to pay FT and only use her 3 days/week. Nanny loves it. Us not so much, but the alternative (revolving door) is worse.

[Anonymous]

We were using an in home daycare full time. After 5 months I told her I wanted to work part time so I could spend more time with my daughter. She said she would pro-rate. I feel very lucky!

[Anonymous]

Depending on the ages and time your looking for, have you considered 2, 3, or 5 day preschool, or a more informal Mother's Day Out for the younger one?

[Anonymous]

Ask everyone you know, and look on Craigslist, and call all the available providers on your state's website. With two kids, it might make more sense to hire a part-time nanny, and if you're flexible in your requirements, I don't think it's that difficult to find.

[Anonymous]

I sent out emails to several parenting listservs I'm on (one at work and one where we live) asking just this question. I got a few suggestions for in-home daycares and a lot of recommendations for Children in the Shoe in Bethesda. We toured there, loved it, and miraculously ended up with a PT slot just a few weeks ago. My daughter's been doing great so far, and while it's not cheap, I'm thrilled to have found such great PT care for her. We only pay for the days we go. They're the only center I've found that has PT options; not sure about DC and VA, since I didn't look there.

We also considered a nanny share, but felt a center would be better for our outgoing little girl. I see lots of requests for nanny shares, and many families are quite flexible with the arrangements.

[Anonymous]

Yes, if you have any neighborhood list serves, or parenting groups (even if you're not a member) in your area, post there!

[Anonymous]

I've also been very frustrated with this. Right now my DH and MIL have been making it work so that I can do PT work, but we can't keep this up, so I am in a similar position. I looked on Care.com and posted an add there -- several people applied. A friend of mine found her PT nanny through Care.com.

A couple of the people I contacted on Care.com were college students. I think that is a great arrangement if you only need a couple of days a week or a few short days. My frustration was that the person I interviewed didn't have a ton of experience with infants, but I understand that this is common if you aren't hiring a nanny. On the positive side, she had a very reasonable price.

Right now what we are most considering is a nanny share of sorts. If you can find someone who has a nanny right now and is willing to have your children in the nanny share only a couple of days a week, that would be perfect. The other alternative is finding someone who has a nanny but only needs her PT. We found a family whose kids are going to preschool two days a week now. The nanny wants FT work, so they are seeking someone who needs her PT so that they can keep her PT themselves. Arrangements like this would be ideal. Maybe post on local listservs and ask around. GL!

[Anonymous]

first we were in an in-home and ate the cost. as a PP said, i tried to still bring her most days by scheduling appointments etc on my non-working days.

currently, we are in a share situation at a bright horizons. so we share a spot with another child (3 days/2 days). i actually randomly came across an ad on DCUM by the family looking for a share partner because the other child they were previously sharing with had moved into the next classroom. it was TOTAL luck. at the center we're at, they allow two of these share arrangements per classroom and my guess is that they are very hard to find because most people work full time and are looking for full time.