Hellobee Boards

I went through this too. It is SO hard and stressful. DH and I thought we wanted a center but we ended up finding a home daycare that we loved. It's been great so far and I loved that she has an assistant there all day so it wasn't just one person watching a bunch of kids all day.

You will know when you find the right one. Follow your gut instinct. One lady to 4 kids doesn't sound bad at all! The other home ones I looked at were 1:8 ratio. Good luck!

We're in the same boat and it's terrible. I'm having such a hard time with the whole thing

Not to thread jack, but how were you guys able to find home daycare places? I have no idea where to start with searching for those so we've started with the bigger name daycares but my mother in law is not supportive of them and making it even more difficult. She isn't paying for it or anything, but her opinion matters to me and DH.

When we first started looking, we wanted a home daycare and found some great ones, but when it came time for the boys to start, they were all full. So they started in a center daycare and are still in it. I have to say, even though it wasn't our first choice, we are really happy with it. It's definitely more expensive, but I like all the extra regulations that come with center daycares, the longer hours give us flexibility when we need it and they are around other babies their own age.

@walnutems: when I first started looking for home daycares, I would google home daycares with my zip code for starters. You could also try looking through your county's registry list, assuming you're looking for someone who is licensed. I found the most success asking my neighbor, who has three young kids, one of whom is in a home daycare, for the name of her lady. As I met with each one, I would ask them for names of anyone else they know in the area who also did home daycares. I found several who I would never have found otherwise, and some who won't even take kids unless you're referred to them by someone they know.

This is such a hard decision - you really have to go with your gut. We also use an in-home daycare and have had nothing but the best experience. She started out with a 1:4 ratio (two 2-year olds, two infants). She's since hired an assistant who is there part-time and has added another 1-year old - a friend of ours actually after we referred them - and will be having a 2-month old (another referral from one of the mamas).

We found her through the local moms forum that is run by our local newspaper. I was searching for recommendations and reviews on centers and in-home care. She had replied to previous posters with prior availability. I then cross-checked and saw she had a care.com profile and we went from there.
Good luck!

@banana: I also got a some referrals and called them and spoke with the moms on the list. We got her referrals before even meeting with her, and they were very honest and gave me a lot of confidence in her care. I highly recommend asking for some email contacts or phone numbers of parents you can call.

Gut again. And referrals. We have a home daycare we adore. We know two families who have 2 kids each that went there from 4 months through kindergarten. And seeing them compared to every other place was night and day. You'll know!

@lindseykaye: Awesome! Glad they were honest with you, too. It really helped manage some of my expectations. They said that the daycare lady was very warm and affectionate and loved the kids. But she wasn't the best at toilet training. But I was ok with that.

Follow your gut instinct. We went the residential daycare route and it has worked fabulously for us. It's licensed, home cooked meals, 12 children maximum, has a designated daycare area that is completely separate from the home, and is run by a mother-daughter team. Aside from all of that, it's always the same two ladies who love and care for my son.

My 11 year-old, went there for 5 years, and if he's with me when I pick up my little one, he will {unprompted} hug the ladies hello and goodbye. He tells me that he thinks of them as his grandma and aunt!