STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

mikacat · Coach

nanny vs. daycare

Mia · Kate Spade

Congratulations, Mikacat!! I hope it all works out for you.

As for a nanny - your weekly rate actually seems high to me (unless you want a formally trained nanny)- when you say "nanny" do you mean someone who will be doing childcare only? Or someone who will be helping out with housework as well? I know you can hire a live-in Au Pair (often a European aged 18-25) and the 'pay' consists of basically a weekly allowance, around $100 (this could be off) and room and board. But Au Pairs are generally not as trained as nannies, many of whom have gone to school (for training in childcare). It just depends on what kind of qualifications you want her to have and also what duties she will be responsible for.

Andrea Julia · Coach

Is 400 high? I think that sounds about right. I would think a nanny that lives out would have to at least make $10 an hour and if mikacat works 40 hours, that makes sense. Are you considering a live-in or live-out nanny, mikacat?

Karina · Chanel

i personally rather have my child in a daycare situation - there are more people there watching and witnesses, if God forbid anything happens. There are so many horrible nanny stories, I wouldn't want someone alone with my child in my home for at least 8 hrs a day.

Karina · Chanel

p.s. - good luck on the adoption, sweetheart!! you'll be in my prayers and thoughts

RyanJ · Coach

I had a nanny. My parents paid her around $55,000 a year. It worked out to about 10.00 and hour, but they just paid her a flat fee, and if she worked a little over they would just give her a bonus on the week's check. She lived at our house, so she was pretty much on call 5 days a week and had Saturday and Sunday off. Unless my parents needed her for the weekends. She would help get us up in the moring and help w/ breakfast and the work from around 3:30 till around 6:00 when my parents got off work, but if my Mom was on call @ night then she would make us dinner.
I really liked having a nanny. It was nice to come home form school and not have to change your routine or be at daycare. I can understand be nervous about having someone in your house that you don’t know w/ your kids. It was just the best option for my parents. My mom is a doctor and she would be on call- sometimes she would have to go in at 4:00 the morning.

Maddie · Coach

I had nannys when I was little and I looooooved them. I had two and we're still really close. I was in one of their weddings and we still hang out. They were so wonderful. I was in day care for a while too and the other kids were mean to me cause they were all older. So that's my opinion.

Mia · Kate Spade

There are bad nannies and there are bad daycare providers (and hey - there are bad parents!) - the situation itself doesn't guarantee safety or quality, the people involved do. Whichever you go with - nanny or daycare, just make sure you do a complete background check and actually check all their references thoroughly. I read something recently that said children who went to daycare were better socialized (better at interacting with other children and also adults who weren't in their immediate family) but also tended to get more colds/flus than kids who had nannies or stay at home parents. There are pros and cons to every situation, but if they've got a stable home, most kids do just fine.

I didn't actually do the calcs on the salary and assumed (for some reason, I don't know why) that you were talking about a 20hr/week type deal. I worked as a nanny in London for awhile and it tended to be around 20hrs a week so maybe that's why? For full time then yeah, your estimate sounds reasonable.

sfclinevandy · Coach

I don't have kids but we always had a nanny/housekeeper when we were little. We had one from when I was born until I was 6, then got another one that worked for us for 13 years. They didn't live with us but worked Monday-Friday 9-6 and watched us when my parents were out of town. My mom didn't work but she had 4 kids in 5 years so our house was always a zoo and she appreciated the help.

Farrah · Marc Jacobs

First off mikacat I want to say congrats on starting the proceedings. We all know how much you and your husband want a child:). Good luck with everything.

I don't have any experience with a nanny or daycare because my mom stayed at home until my younger brother started school (I was 11 by then and had an older sister to come home to while mom and dad were at work), but I think you really need to sit down with your hubby and decide the best plan of action for your family. You may find that a nanny is great while the baby is growing, but day care is the answer when he/she starts school. Only you can know what you truly need. Whatever you decide, don't forget to put some money aside in a Dependant Care Spending Account through your work so that you can pay for some of those expenses with pre-tax dollars;).