Daycare vs. Nanny- what should I do??

Here is my dilemma. Jordana is 6 months old and has been in daycare for 3 months now (which is very expensive). My sister has offerred to share a nanny with us for about 8 hours a week. We would pay the same amount for the nanny that we pay for daycare (or maybe even less) and she would supplement the rest. My sister has a nanny in mind who babysits her daughter and who she loves but she is . What would you do?

PROS OF DAYCARE:
Socialization
She is "in" for preschool if we chose to send her there (which I am not sure about)
Music class is in the daycare, some arts and crafts
Cute group activities like Halloween Party, etc...
I get a report every day about poops, pees, naps, what she did
Tax Deductable
If someone is sick, still open

PROS OF NANNY:
Individual attention
Some socialization (with neice 10 months older)
Someone to come to teh house, pick her up, dress her, etc...
May clean the house

PROS OF THIS NANNY:
She was recommended
My sister trusts her
She loves kids
She teaches my neice new things when she babysits

CONS OF DAYCARE:
She has been getting runny noses a lot- for almost 2 months straight.
They have a lot of rules. She has to be there by 9:30 or she has to come for the afternoon session. I actually got an e-mail telling me DH dropped her off too late on Monday and interrupted the music class
I can't bring my stroller and had to get another one which takes up room in my cluttered apartment
They won't give her fresh milk- I have to freeze BM
Have to bring her there and pick her up- 7 blocks
Lots of vacation days

CONS OF NANNY:
Less socialization.
Relying on 1 person- you never know
If she is sick, then we are stuck

CONS OF THIS NANNY:
She is going to school at night so no flexibility of babysitting at night
There may be someone better out there- who knows?
I don't know if she does any cleaning

What should I do?

Message edited 10/19/2006 11:28:37 AM.

Re: Daycare vs. Nanny- what should I do??

I know it is a hard decision. Sydney is in daycare and loves to be around the other kids. Last week she was with my grandmother and she said that Sydney kept looking around for the others. As far as a nanny, I would love to have one if they helped me get some chores done but otherwise I wouldnt want Sydney to miss out on the activities at daycare.
Good Luck with whatever you decide.

Re: Daycare vs. Nanny- what should I do??

Hmm, hard to make this decision blindly. Have you met the nanny? I think you should meet with her and then see how you feel.

Message edited 10/19/2006 10:28:43 AM.

Re: Daycare vs. Nanny- what should I do??

Re: Daycare vs. Nanny- what should I do??

Gosh, what a hard decision... I think a lot of it is personal preference - for myself and Alex, I grappled with the idea of a nanny or au-pair vs. daycare and daycare ruled in our case. I just love that she has a group of friends (5 little girls make up her class!) she sees and interacts with everyday (she's starting to say some of their names!) and that she bonds with a variety of adults at her school. It's done amazing things for her socialization, and on top of that, with her new class there's a significant amount of structure and activity, that I don't know a nanny would provide. As for the illness element - it's true, it's a pain in the butt. But, after about the 8-9 month, Alex's immunity system built itself up fairly well, and I haven't had to stay home with her due to illness in (knock on wood) about 4 months, whereas in the beginning it was every other week. I hear you about the rigid rules though and that's my biggest pet peeve about daycare, but the pluses of it outweigh the annoying minuses for me.

Have you thought about looking into a different daycare situation? We have Alex in a local Synogague and it's just wonderful. At the same time the teachers are speaking hebrew to her, which is an immeasurable PLUS in our book.

Re: Daycare vs. Nanny- what should I do??

Re: Daycare vs. Nanny- what should I do??

xxxxxxx

Message edited 2/9/2007 4:22:36 PM.

Re: Daycare vs. Nanny- what should I do??

I vote for nanny particularly if it is the same amount of $$.

I have a nanny and I am so grateful I have her. Yes, she is a lot of money but I think she is totally worth it.

I don't have to worry about getting my DS dressed and ready in the morning and she does some chores. I was worried about the socialization thing but my nanny is involved in organized play groups with SAHMs in the area and I take DS to a music class on Monday afternoons if my schedule permits. Also, I don't have to worry about my DS getting sick as much (in fact, he is 9 months and has never been sick!) Also, she is flexible if me and my husband have to work late. My nanny also meets me at work every Thursday for lunch so that I can spend some more time with my son.

I think the hardest part of getting a nanny is finding one, though. I interviewed over a dozen before I found her!! (I got her through enannysource.com, btw.) So, if your sister has one she's happy with, that is great!!

Good luck!

Re: Daycare vs. Nanny- what should I do??

Your daycare is way out there, which is why I think this decision is weighing on you. I drop Bella off anywhere from 8 am to 11 am sometimes and they are fine with that...um, I AM paying them a ton of money to watch that baby whether she is there or not, so I cannot imagine them telling me when to drop her off...
And the fresh milk thing boggles my mind...

Being a daycare mommy, I have seen Bella develop relationships with her teachers and she is in the same class with kids since she was 4 months old. One girl, Jenna, was in her crib for a nap and flipped out excited when Bella and I walked into the room because she wanted to play with her.

She sings (well, not with words) but she hums recognizable songs like ABC's and the Barney song...and she knows how to do Itsy-Bitsy Spider. They have music on a lot during the day and it's was amazing that when I started to sing Itsy-Bitsy Spider one night a few weeks ago, she sang along!

The nanny thing can go just as well if she is interactive with the kids and takes them on playdates and such...it can be just as good an experience...

I would look into other daycares too, mine starts as young as 6 weeks...

Good Luck, it sounds like a tough decision, but if she is gonna be in daycare at 18 months no matter what and the cons for daycare far outweigh the cons with a nanny, maybe that's the way to go for you...

Re: Daycare vs. Nanny- what should I do??

I have been obsessing about this all day! I think that if we can make it work, we will go with the nanny. There are really no daycares (other than the ones I already looked at) in my neighborhood that take kids as young as Jordana. I called a few, and they start at 18 months.

The daycare is just too rigid and I think the 1 on 1 time will be good for her. I found an amazing place for her when she is 18 months which is bilingual (Hebrew and English). So we will be looking at the nanny thing for just 1 year.

I just feel so bad about taking her out of daycare. I don't want to mess with her routine. But there isn't anything so great about this daycare, especially for what I pay. I just wish we would have gone this way in the first place.

Message edited 10/19/2006 3:58:32 PM.