Figuring out what to do for childcare can a very stressful thing. Childcare can expensive, requires a lot of time management and sometimes it may seem impossible to figure out. Whether a mom is coming off maternity leave to the families who have already have kids in kindergarten and full time school – it can be a challenge determining which childcare option is the best for your family.
For our family of 3 kids, we had used a few different childcare options to minimize the cost of childcare. For a few years, I worked 3 weekdays/week at my 9-5pm job and I worked 1-2 evenings/weekend shifts to make up the full time hours. This allowed us to send our kids to a dayhome only 3 days a week.
Recently, we have been able to use our neighbor’s help with after school care. We would take their daughter and my kids to the school bus in the morning and then their family would pick up ours at the end of the day. We are fortunate that hubby has the flexibility to work longer days in order to get every second Friday off. Lucky for him he gets the kids on those Fridays 🙂
Of course everyone’s family situation is different. Here I present 12 childcare options to help make this struggle easier.
1. Dayhome
A dayhome is one of the most cost effective external childcare options. It is usually cheaper than a daycare. Finding the right dayhome for your family can be tricky and may take some time to look for one. Take a look at this post: A dayhome guide: how to find the right dayhome
2. Nanny
A nanny can a great option for those families with multiple kids. It’s definitely a bonus to have someone help cook and clean! Finding the right nanny for your family will take some time and effort. Research and plan ahead of time.
3. Daycare
A daycare can be one of the more expensive childcare options. It may be suitable for a family with one kid but not very feasible when you have multiple kids due to cost. Daycares are most likely to be regulated, offer many programs and open year round (minus weekends/holidays).
4. Working different shifts from your partner
If your jobs are flexible in terms of timing – try to arrange to work different shifts to minimize before and after school care when the kids are in school full time. For example, one parent can work an early shift to be able to pick the kids up from school at the end of the day. The other can work the later shift so this parent can take the kids to the bus or school in the mornings. Perhaps one parent can work evenings and weekends.
5. Working from home
If your job allows – working from home is a great childcare option for those families who have kids in full time school. This parent may be flexible enough to do drop-offs and pick ups from school to avoid the need for before and after school care.
6. Staying at home
In this option, the parent is the childcare option. In some situations (especially with multiple kids) the cost of childcare does not make sense for the one parent to go to work. One parent may stay at home with their kids until they are in school. Consider doing a side hustle to bring in some income.
7. Family help
Seek out help from family. See if the grandparents, aunts, cousins, or even a close friend may be available to help out with childcare.
8. Neighbor help
A neighbor may be able to help with before and after school care. There may be neighbors that have kids that go to the same school as yours. See if you can help each other out with the before and after school care.
9. Apply for subsidy
Lower income families may be eligible for some financial assistance to help pay for childcare. A subsidy would be applicable for the daycares and dayhomes. Search for help through the local or provincial government
10. Babysitter
Hire a babysitter for before and after school care. Checkout Facebook groups in your community to find a babysitter in your area.
11. Before and after care at the school
Check to see if there is a childcare program at your kids’ school. A great option if you don’t want your child taking the school bus and kids can continue to socialize with their school friends.
12. Find a new job
Sometimes going back to the same job after maternity does not make sense. You may need to find a new job that pays better and is more flexible to help accommodate your childcare needs.
Planning ahead and researching for which of the childcare options meets your family’s need is crucial. As part of your planning process, be sure to work out a budget for the childcare fees. See “Budgeting 101”. You may need to cut down on some other expenses to be able to fit childcare fees into your budget.
Money may be tight for a few years until the kids get into a full day school. Keeping a foot in the working world can be important to continue on with a career long term, to have benefits and to be able to contribute to a pension/retirement plan.
The summer months can be another challenge for families who have kids in school full time. Plan ahead and budget for the summer months as now you may need full time childcare for your kids during these months. Childcare options include summer camps and taking some vacation time from work.
Whatever your family’s situation may be – consider one of these childcare options for your childcare needs! Good luck with your search!
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[…] Minda is a Pharmacist and Blogger. Her blog Cents and Family focuses on Making family life and finances easier, effective and efficient . Check out her post on 12 Childcare Options for the Working Mom. […]
Very informative article. Thank you v much for writing
I am lucky enough that my husband’s job allows me to stay at home but I do want to go back to work at some point and this list has some great options on what to do when that time comes.
We were lucky enough to choose staying home. Especially when there was no family to watch our daughter, and the in home daycare near us stopped taking babies. Thank you for a list of great options!
This is interesting, as it varies from where I’m currently living in France. I’m from the States, and find that childcare is much more accessible in France, which makes me a little nervous for the day I move back to the States! Thanks for sharing.
I like to think I can be the work-from-home kind so the kids can stay home withe me. Thank you for these options, Minda.
I would like to work from home too! But not the right timing for me … one day!
Childcare is so expensive! Great ideas and this list will get people planning for their future!
Yes expensive and can be stressful to figure out!