Re: Childcare costs....shockingly high

blackhole99 · ‎08-22-2013

After reading all the responses to this post it struck me that most of the people responding have professional jobs and 300 dollars is not much money to them. I guess the general consensus is if you can't afford kids don't have them. Again, I can see why the country is so divided.

chrystaltree · ‎05-10-2010

@abbeythe 8th wrote:
What the OP described is the very reason most couples wait to have children. Frequently it is not cost effective to return to work when the majority of one salary goes to daycare.

It is not unusual for young couples to be ships passing in the night so one or the other is home taking care of the children.

@chrystaltree
Don't you have another daughter with a nanny? Is it possible the 2 sisters can share the nanny. Have you considered taking care of your grandchild 1 day a week ?

They don't live close enough to share the nanny. Actually, it was the nanny who suggested it but the distance doesn't allow for that.

NYC Susan · ‎03-13-2010

@blackhole99 wrote:
After reading all the responses to this post it struck me that most of the people responding have professional jobs and 300 dollars is not much money to them. I guess the general consensus is if you can't afford kids don't have them. Again, I can see why the country is so divided.

I disagree. I don't have a professional job, and $300 most certainly IS a lot of money to me. But what some of us are saying is that it's not an unusual amount to pay. Good, reliable childcare is expensive. And people who take on that kind of responsibility deserve to be paid well for it. There are many things that can be bought with $300, but what's more important than the safety and welfare of a child? Peace of mind is extraordinarily important to a working parent, and that doesn't come cheap.

A lot of people can't afford it. But everyone has to make their own decision re returning to work vs. staying home. The OP's daughter has decided to return to work, which means - as she's well aware - that she's going to have to pay a big chunk of money for childcare. But that doesn't mean the amount of money is uncommon or outrageous or not deserved.

It may seem like a lot of money to the person paying, but it does not to the childcare provider, who has a huge amount of responsibility over a long period of time.

(I have no idea what any of this has to do with the country being "divided".)