Chevy Chase DC or MD Infant (3 mos +) Childcare

[Anonymous]

Hello - I am expecting in May and will need childcare for a 3 mos old come August. I know very little about day care vs. nanny care, nanny share, etc. I am leaning towards day care since there are more people there to care for the child and more regulation in place. Does anyone have advice for us?

Why do you prefer daycare vs. a nanny?
What local daycares do you recommend?
How do you get in when there are long waiting lists?
Do you know of any good nanny's that need work or would like to care for another infant?

Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Brief answer before returning to work: My daughters are both in daycare. I selected daycare because (1) kids love to watch other kids, (2) I felt more secure about the care provided not being dependent upon anyone's mood on any given day (since I know there are times that I want to scream, I'm sure that childcare providers feel the same way, and I felt that a group would both keep each other level and give each other a chance for a break).

[Anonymous]

My two kids are in daycare, at a center and have been so since 4 months. I guess the biggest plus of daycare is the checks and balances - having more than one caregiver to make sure the others are providing good care. The other nice thing is that the center is almost always open so you don't have to worry about your nanny getting sick or having to take time off. You also know that they are not put in front of a tv all day. My older child has made some very good friends and so have we with her friends' parents. The downsides are sickness and getting in and out of the house with a small kid is no fun.
In terms of waiting lists, I think you'll find that they are much shorter in the 'burbs. We got off the lists at Family Academy and Children in the Shoe pretty quickly. We went with Children in the Shoe, which I recommend (and they don't require a fee for the waiting list). Good luck!

[Anonymous]

We went with a nanny share because I couldn't handle the stress of not getting into a daycare when I needed to go back to work. We figured, if the nanny share doesn't work out, we'll take a spot if/when one becomes available. We did get off one list (three months after I returned to work and 11 months after we went on the WL) but turned them down. For us, nanny share is great. Sharing brings down the cost (to about daycare level) and gives DS some socialization. Our nanny is older and experienced and very capable of dealing with babies.

[Anonymous]

To Nanny Share Mom - How did you find your nanny? How do you know she is reputable? How much does nanny share cost vs. day care? I know day cares can run around 1500 - 1800. Thank you!

[ADurgavich]

When my third daughter was born, I decided to try the au pair program. It worked really well since I could dictate the schedule every week and I received 45 hours of childcare for $300/week. My older daughters loved it because they felt they had a big sister looking out for them. Anne Durgavich - [e-mail]

[Anonymous]

nanny share mom here - we actually found the other family first - another baby was leaving the share. So the first share-ers had done a lot of the work. For us, it meant watching the nanny interact with DS (and we knew pretty much instantly that she was really really good at what she does) and checking references. We pay within the financial parameters you mentioned (as does the other family).

[Anonymous]

Hi -
FYI I am in Chevy Chase DC and posted something about a nanny share on craigslist, check it out.