Finding Affordable Child Care options is not easy!
Perhaps the biggest obstacle for the stay-at-home business mom or dad is the kids. That screaming toddler is not going to be quiet when you have business calls or take that nap to let you get your work done. This will be the same child who will eat all of your Post-its and stick food into your hard drive. As you are ripping your hair out and getting more and more frustrated you will wonder what the point of working at home was if you were going to still need childcare. You were probably envisioning no more commutes, flexible hours, and lunch with the kids every day.
Your childcare options are flexible as well that is the beauty of being self-employed.
Most common Affordable Child Care options
(1) Childcare Co-op:
Find a group of work-at-home parents and swap off childcare duties. You can keep track of how many hours you watch each child and use the time you accrue when you need it most. The great thing about this is it is free. The downside is that you will have to give up work time to handle other people’s children.
(2) Trading or Mom-swapping
This is the smaller version of the co-op. this will involve you and a good friend trading off childcare days. Make sure you set clear boundaries about when you will take the other child and when they will take yours. You don’t want to be taken advantage of. You will also want to make sure the kids like each other and get along well. If they don’t then this will end up being a bad experience.
(3) Sitter Sharing
Share a sitter with a friend. You can have the sitter watch both kids at the same time and split the cost or use the sitter on alternate days. Make sure that you have a written agreement on how the sitter is used and what you will be paying to avoid any unseen complications.
(4) Barter
Trade your products and services with a neighbor or friend in exchange for childcare. This will keep you from spending money and still pay the person doing the care for you.
(5) Day Care
You will find that the right daycare center will be a rewarding experience for both child and parent. Which daycare is best is entirely up to you and beyond the scope of this article. Costs vary from center to center and from state to state. But, you will find that the return on investment will be worth it because of your greater focus and productivity.
To come up with inexpensive childcare solutions you must be a networking prowess. Spread the word that you are looking for childcare to everyone you know. Think in terms of trading and business opportunities. You are looking for a partner in a business deal. This will help you to get what you need. Some moms are lucky to have businesses that are kid-friendly. They are lucky for sure. Those ladies who have to make endless phone calls or have meetings may find that childcare of some sort is unavoidable. Try your best to get the right childcare for you and not spend an arm and a leg getting it.
Things to remember
Finding Affordable Child Care is never easy especially when you’re a single parent or going through a rough patch in life. Parenting itself is one thing but trying to find child care while you’re working from home or in the office. Be sure to also check out your county resources for help if needed if you’re still finding it hard to get the help and care you need for your child.
