Switching from nanny to daycare

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:While I strongly believe that nanny care is much more suitable to a child your son's age due to the personal attention and care involved, I also wouldn't want to see you and your husband's savings dwindle down to zero just to keep the nanny.

If you can keep her until the age of two, that is fine, but if it is wearing you both down financially, then it would be better to find a good daycare for him.

At this age, peer interaction is not as important as many parents believe it is. Kids at this age usually play side by side vs. actually engaging with each other.

If they receive all of their care from an adult, that is more than enough. There is plenty of time later on for socializing. Trust me on this.

I don't know - I posted above that we switched to daycare at 15 months and both my kids just seemed so much happier and more engaged. They definitely don't "play" together at this age, but I could see a difference personally. They also started talking right away (though I guess that could have been coincidence, but it happened with both my kids), slept better, and were very curious in the classrooms and bonded with the teachers well.

I don't think it's something that anyone knows for you - you strongly believe that nanny care is more suitable until age two, but my personal experience led me to believe the opposite for my kids. There's no science behind this, which is what makes this decision so difficult - and why you also have to weigh finances, personal situations, and kids' temperaments too.