Daycare near work or near home?

[stephbolt]

DH and I are expecting our first in June, and are starting to look for daycares. We are trying to figure out if we want to find a daycare near our home or near one of our works (most likely mine as my hours are more fixed). We work in opposite directions, both with a commute of anywhere from 30 min - 1 hr based on traffic. We were leaning toward one decision, but after a coworker just strongly recommended the other, I'm curious to hear what has worked well for other parents who have BTDT. So what did you choose and why?

 

[Echidna]

I have no personal experience here but when my good friend went through this process, she and her husband chose a centre close to home. That way, the child was easily accessible to both parents and she could use daycare on days she didn't need to be in the office (we have flexible hours). The centre she chose was literally down the road on the corner though, so she could walk if she needed to.

 

[amc80]

I think it makes more sense to have the kid close to home. What if you're sick one day and don't go to work, but still want the baby to go to daycare (so you can actually sleep)? Or if you have to work late, later than the daycare stays open?

 

[NewEnglandLady]

We chose a childcare option that was closer to home for the following reasons:

1. D and I will have an alternating schedule of who drops off/picks up (likely I'll drop off and he'll pick up), so it was important that the location be convenient for both of us.

2. I'm hoping that I can work from home one day per week long-term. Realistically, I don't think I can watch the baby and still work a full day, so she'll likely still be in daycare on that day. Having childcare close to home makes it easier for me.

3. D and I take a train (commuter rail) into work. I call that time "my half of an hour of sanity". If we were to choose a place near work, we'd likely have to drive in since I don't think taking an infant on public transportation every day is feasible. I would not be a happy camper if I had to drive into the city every day.

I do have several coworkers who have their kids in daycare nearby--and it definitely has its perks. But for us, the decision to choose a place close to our home (and close to the commuter rail station) was easy to make.

 

[stephbolt]

Thanks ladies! We were leaning toward close to home mainly so we could split the work (likely with DH dropping off and me picking up).

AMC, I'm not sure I get what you are saying about working late? I'd have to leave earlier to pick up a child that was in daycare near home vs. one that was in daycare near my work, so if I often had to work late daycare near work would actually be better I think. But luckily I will be able to stick to a strict schedule with regards to leaving work, even if a crisis does come up I can handle it remotely after I get home.

My coworker strongly suggested close to work so that I could be there ASAP if they call because the child is sick. But if that happened even if I could be there within five minutes I'd then have to drive home with a sick child...so not sure if that's much better than having a sick child wait at daycare for 40 minutes until I can get there.

 

[MuffDog]

I think it depends on whether you and/or your husband work regular hours. If you both have slightly unpredictable hours, or traffic can be an issue, I would say by work is better so you don't incur the whole $20 for each minute late you are picking up your kid.

However, if you think that realistically, at least one of you will always be able to get 'home' (and to the daycare close to it) to pick up your kid, then I think that home is best (based on the reasons everyone else has given). PLUS maybe some of the kids/moms at that daycare will end up being friends with your child/you. That could be nice!

So funny though - in Toronto where I am, we also have to start looking for daycare at about 3 months preggo and we generally don't start using it till the kid is 1 year old. Our system is so overloaded here. Supposedly I'm already behind (at 17 weeks) and should be on 20 wait lists by now.

Oops. Bad mom already.

 

[Logan Sapphire]

We have our kids in daycare near our home- about 10 min drive. There are several factors for us:

1. Aside from being very expensive and terribly difficult to get into, daycares downtown have shorter hours than the ones in the 'burbs. We need one with longer hours, unfortunately.

2. Where are your pediatrician and other doctors located? Closer to your house or closer to your workplaces? If your ped is near your work, it might make more sense to keep daycare closer to work, and vice versa for home. Our ped is near our house so it's much easier to take the kids to the dr., then only drive 15 mins back to daycare, versus hauling them back downtown for daycare.

3. As others have said, if you're sick, it's so much easier to only have to take them to daycare a short drive from your house.

4. I get with AMC is saying about staying late. If we had our kids downtown with us and had to unexpectedly stay late, the daycare we were looking at would either not be open or would not allow our kids to stay late b/c it would've exceeded the number of hours they could be there. Fortunately, this really isn't much of a problem for us.

5. Looking (way) ahead, what will your care requirements be once your kid is in elementary school? We will need at least before-care b/c our elementary school doesn't start until 9am, and with an hour commute downtown, makes it impossible. Daycares near us have before/after programs and will drive your child to their school and do pick up too. It's nice to start and stay at a daycare from the beginning, in my opinion.

6. This one really is unique to us, but my sister lives in the same town as we do. In a pinch, she can do pick up or drop off at daycare for us, which wouldn't be possible if daycare were downtown. There have been a few times, like when one kid needed surgery and had to be at the surgical center bright and early, that we've had her do that.

Really, you could drive yourself crazy with all the details...there will always be pros and cons for both...good luck! And keep in mind, that unless you're super unlucky to live in an area where daycare is so competitive (like where I live), you can always change things around if you find they're not working for you.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

Our contingency plan for a sick baby is similar to Logan Sapphire's. If baby is sick and we need somebody to pick her up ASAP, our plan is to have the in-laws pick her up (they are a little farther away, but no more than 20 minutes). Our pediatrician is within 5 minutes of our house (and the babysitter), so hopefully we'd be able to coordinate something with a sick baby easily.

Honestly, one of our issues that we still haven't figured out is how many car seats to buy for this very reason. Right now we only have 1 car seat with 2 bases (one for each of our vehicles). We're trying to decide if the in-laws should have their own car seat or if we can just get away with one more base.

 

[lliang_chi]

We're also doing day care near our home. We live in the city. I work in the city ~1mi away, DH works in the suburbs ~26 miles away. With a daycare near our home, we can split drop off and pick up between us. That way we're only anchored at one end of our day. DH said he'd prefer to do pick up, so I'll do drop off.

For a variety of reasons, (most stated above) this arrangement will work for us. If the baby is sick, one of us can come pick him up. If neither of us can get out in time, in a pinch, I would be able to ask my sister.

NEL, FWIW, my plan is to keep just car seats for my car and the new car DH will drive. If my sis or anyone else needs to pick up the baby, she'll drive to my house, switch to my car and use my car for pick up. Maybe you can do something like that for your ILs.

~LC

 

[Bella_mezzo]

We are doing daycare by our home:

1. About $1000/month cheaper
2. We work a 35-55 minute (me) and 1 hour + commute (DH) in opposite directions and we will be alternating pick-up and drop-off
3. I am starting a new job next week which I am excited about but I am a little jaded from my last job, so in the event that I decided to switch jobs again in the next year or two DS would not need to switch daycares
4. Our pediatrician is a 5 minute drive/15 minute walk from the daycare
5. We have a strong support network in our neighborhood of SAHM and friends who work from home who can pick-up our son in a pinch

 

[amc80]

AMC, I'm not sure I get what you are saying about working late? I'd have to leave earlier to pick up a child that was in daycare near home vs. one that was in daycare near my work, so if I often had to work late daycare near work would actually be better I think. But luckily I will be able to stick to a strict schedule with regards to leaving work, even if a crisis does come up I can handle it remotely after I get home.

Sorry, I meant if you had to work late and the daycare was near your home, your husband could pick up the baby.

 

[Loves Vintage]

Our contingency plan for a sick baby is similar to Logan Sapphire's. If baby is sick and we need somebody to pick her up ASAP, our plan is to have the in-laws pick her up (they are a little farther away, but no more than 20 minutes). Our pediatrician is within 5 minutes of our house (and the babysitter), so hopefully we'd be able to coordinate something with a sick baby easily.

Honestly, one of our issues that we still haven't figured out is how many car seats to buy for this very reason. Right now we only have 1 car seat with 2 bases (one for each of our vehicles). We're trying to decide if the in-laws should have their own car seat or if we can just get away with one more base.

NEL - I always used to bring S into the daycare in her infant seat and then leave the seat there. Either DH or I would put her in her seat at pick-up, then pop it in the base. The bigger issue will come up when your baby is ready for a convertible seat. Baby goes in and out of car, seat stays in, so in your case, you might wind up with three convertible seats. I'd get a third base for the infant seat. I don't see a need for a second seat. FWIW, I have seen some parents use one convertible seat and drop it off with the kid for the SO to pick up later. I've read that frequent moving of the seat can result in improper installation of the seat. They aren't really meant to be popped in and out, unlike the infant seats which easily and safely pop in and out of the base.

Stephb0lt - I vote whichever daycare you are happier with! My daycare is sort of really out of the way, though it is closer to home than work. I looked at two places that were a lot more convenient, but the place we chose is really appealing for a variety or reasons, none of which are related to distance from home or work.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

NEL, FWIW, my plan is to keep just car seats for my car and the new car DH will drive. If my sis or anyone else needs to pick up the baby, she'll drive to my house, switch to my car and use my car for pick up. Maybe you can do something like that for your ILs.

~LC

LC, the downside for us is that both of our vehicles would be parked at the commuter rail station, so it would be a slight detour for the in-laws. Our plan is to do what Love Vintage did and leave the car seat with the childcare person during the day so that whomever picked her up would have it right there (and we would all have bases). Also, I like the idea of not having to take Katie out of the car seat in the mornings if she's sleeping. Once we graduate to the convertible seat, we'll have to re-address.

I also agree with Loves Vintage about choosing the place you love the most. I had originally put together a first-tier list based on location, but the woman we ended up choosing was slightly outside of the area I was focusing on. Part of that was because there were wait lists for nearly all the places I had focused on, but I also really liked the woman we chose, so it worked out.

 

[lliang_chi]

NEL, ah, that makes sense that your cars will be at the commuter stations. I agree with LV then, getting a 3rd base and just snapping the baby seat into the IL's car works. When the baby needs a big-kid car seat, you're probably looking at 3 car seats then. Fortunately there are some very safe, relatively inexpensive, but just not as plush and cushy seats on the market. For a "in a pinch" pick up, I think a quick ride in a not so cushy seat will be alright.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

We struggled with the same question when I was pregnant with Aidan. We both worked 30-60 minutes from home. In the end, we chose closer to home. The reasons were many but some of the core reasons were:
1. The cost of daycare in our town was less than it is where we work (close to the city).
2. Commuting is bad enough alone, neither of us wanted to be sitting in bad traffic for an hour with a baby/toddler.
3. We live in the northeast, where we can have bad snow storms. Again, commuting in that is bad enough alone, we don't need to have Aidan out in it as well.
4. In the event A is sick and needs to go home from daycare, I would rather have him stay where he's comfortable while I drive to pick him up vs having to be uncomfortable in a car for an hour.
5. Our pediatrician is close to home so we wanted to have daycare close to the doctor's to make drop offs after doctor's appointments quick and easy.
6. He gets to play and learn longer than if we had a long commute to get to daycare.

And congrats Steph, I'm so happy for you and DH!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Also, we managed the drop off and pick up with 2 snap in bases, one in each car. DH would drop off in the morning and I'd pick up in the afternoon. It worked really well for us.

 

[stephbolt]

Thanks everyone for your input! It really helped confirm our instinct to go with a daycare closer to our home. We visited our first option today and really liked it, and have a few more lined up to look at as well.

 

[MustangGal]

We've been doing daycare for 3 years now, and picked one close to home for the same reasons everyone else mentioned. It's worked well with me dropping off and DH picking up. We're switching to a preschool in a few months, and also picked one close to home. He'll be able to stay at that center through elementry school also, they do before/after care and take the kids to the school my neighborhood goes to.

NEL - check your infant seat, many of them can be safely installed without a base (you use the seatbelt over the foot type part of teh seat). We did it a few times with our Baby Trend infant seat, and I believe the Gracos can be done that way too. Then you wouldn't need to get an extra base for the grandparents. When you switch to a convertable, a spare Cosco Scenera is a good extra seat that doesn't cost much.