Looking for Recommendations on Child Care or Nanny in Macomb County

I've worked at 2 child care centers and I've also been a nanny for 3 families.

If I were in this situation with my own child, I would choose a nanny 100%! I could list so many reasons why, but I think stability and consistency are two of the most important. The teacher turnover rate at child care centers is very high. I really feel the next best thing to having a SAHM would be to have a good nanny.

If you would still like your child to be exposed to other children, you can set-up weekly guidelines for your nanny. Have her take your child to a playgroup or class once a week and to the park another day.

If you decide on a nanny make sure to do a background check and check her driving record. Macomb Community College & Rochester College both have Early Childhood Education Programs. These would be a great places to post a nanny position flyer.

Let me know if you are interested, I know the ECH Education director at Macomb CC and I can give you her name.

L.,

The right "daycare" (I call it "babyschool") is not full of germs and the kids are not sick often. My kids, (4.5 and 13 mos) attend a Kindercare. My daughter has not been sick one time. The toys are cleaned DAILY and sick kids are sent home promptly. There is a greater risk of passing germs in an in home center where it is less likely that the toys are properly cleaned on a daily basis.

The girls at our babyschool are wonderful. My daughter loves them (and she doesn't like many people). The pre-school program is also wonderful and my son loves pre-school. You need to visits several places and get a feel for them. The centers do have to follow certain health and safety rules and that may seem unnecessary to you...but they are there for a reason.

My issue with an in home caregiver for an infant is that you never know for sure what is going on. At a center, there are so many other teachers that someone is always watching. Plus, the centers are locked so only parents and authorized persons are allowed in.

My recommendation is to find someplace close to your house so that you and your husband can share pickup and drop off responsibilites.

Good luck.

Do you belong to a church? If so, you might be able to find someone there (another mom) who is looking to watch a child or children in her home. I watched the one year old of a teacher at our church school this year. i give her the same attention and care i give my own daughter, and i am able to make a little money, just by parenting, which i'm doing already.

i also have some friends going through what you are right now. whatever you do, ask a TON of questions, and don't feel bad or weird about asking any of them. make sure whoever is watching your child, they are willing to do (or not do) whatever is important to you!

If you are unable to find or afford an in-home nanny and are still nervous about the large daycare center, you might want to condsider an in-home daycare. I take my kids to one and I love it. I feel like I am taking them to a family members house. It is a smaller group so they get the attention and there is not the turnover rate as with a large daycare. Plus, my kids get to play with kids of all different ages (0-4) and I feel they are really learning from that alone. If you are comfortable with who you leave your kids with, it will make it at least a little easier. And, it does get easier! Good luck!