OMG Help Me!!! DCP Decision

[marymud]

OMG Help Me!!! I worked for one university in Atlanta GA and recently transferred to a different university (which I love my new job). My LO is still at the daycare at the other university. I have been on the waiting list for the daycare at the new university I am at and they have a slot available for me. My LO is now 15 months old and loves her daycare and friends. The new daycare is part of a chain (Bright Horizons) but on campus about 1.5 blocks from my office. The downside is that it cost more and the student teacher ration is not as good. At my old university they had an early childhood education program so the students worked in the daycare in addition to the teachers. For example, my LOs class had 12 kids with 3 teachers and 4 student assistants. The new daycare has 12 kids and 2 teachers with 1 floater (that is shared between 2 rooms).

New Daycare Pros:
Close to me
Better commute – less time in car
Better meals (veggie option)

New Daycare Cons:
Cost ($2,000/year more)
Teacher student ratio not as good

Both have a LONG waiting list so if we hate it we can not go back to the other one and they are giving us 24 hours to decide.

Any suggestions??

Mary

[buttrfli777]

Only my personal opinion - stay where you are. If she is happy there that is what matters most. You just have no idea what you are gonna get when you switch (as far as her and your satifaction is concerned). You can always get back on the list (I assume) if you find the commute is just too much to bear.

[Carpenterwoman]

See, I would want my baby close where I could check on him. A few blocks away, and 2K more for peace of mind is fair to me. She will make new friends, and her mama will be close by if there is ever a problem.

[marymud]

Well, here is what we decided...We are starting the new daycare on Monday as a trial run for a month. We will still pay for the other day care for 1 month to keep our slot. If we see that she likes it we will stay with the new place and if it is horrible we will return her to the old one. I can not believe we are paying for 2 day cares at the same time for a month (like most famlies - money is not abundant these days) but DH agreed it was the only way we could do it and know for sure. This was after me not sleeping for 2 days b/c I was sooo worried about choosing the right one for her. I guess he decided it was worth the extra money to keep a sane wife and happy little girl. Wish us luck!!

[marymud]

It has been a while but I found my old post so I am adding a new twist...

I need advice. Sorry this is long but...I live about 40 miles from my work but the commute is anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half one way. When my first daughter was born I could not bear to have her that far away so we put her in daycare at my work. We love the day care but it is very expensive and she has to spend 2-3 hours in the car every day (which I hate for her). We have a private school near my house (2 blocks away) that we really love and plan to send her there for school.

Now I am pregnant with a second and I have a couple of questions:
1) Do I move my daughter now so she can go to daycare some of the time while I am out on maternity leave (I can't imagine driving all the way into the city with a newborn just to take her to school). I would be ok with her out here by our house b/c she is older now. [there is not an option of having her at the new private school for the 3 months I am on maternity leave and then returning to my work daycare as both have waiting list and if we give up the space at my work it is for good.]

2) The even harder question...Do I put my new baby at my work daycare so she/he is closer to me and I can nurse her at lunch time (downside the baby will be in the car 2-3 hours a day) or do I put her in the new private school by my house.

My current thoughts are to Put my first in the preschool near my house and take the new baby to my work daycare for the first year or two and then move her to the pre-school but I need advice on pros and cons! I know 2 moms that have their LO near their homes and they can not nurse at lunch and they both have supply issues (which last time I had tons of milk).

Advice, comments, suggestions?!?!