When you become a parent and see your child for the first time there are a lot of thoughts running through your mind. You want to prove your child with the best education, healthcare, and upbringing possible. Having said all of this there are many times in life you must make tough decisions. One of them being the need to send your child to daycare as you need to go out and earn a living. Furthermore, in this article, we will be looking at the benefits of daycare vs stay at home parenting
Daycare
In many modern families, there is sometimes or nearly all the time they need for both parents to work to provide for the family. In addition, this is even more difficult for single moms. There are times we have no choice but to provide a steady income alone. The cost of housing has increased incredibly and the need for extra income has become more and more important. This has resulted in a lot of families going through financial difficulties.
When you think of a daycare center the workers that are provided are employees. Many of these employees or may not even have children. Even though many daycare centers provide qualified staff they do no bring the one to one attention each child needs. This in many cases would only be received from the parent itself.
Many daycare centers can provide an enhancing experience for your child. Some of the upmarket daycare centers provide activities, social interaction, and many more experiences. These experiences your child may not receive from their home environment. However, in order to provide these experiences for your child, there are normally many start-up and material costs involved. This can make daycare quite expensive. Although I could not afford this daycare center I did view an exceptional center that provided a number of activities for children of all ages. There were a number of assistants available to set up activities and due to the increased number of staff to child ratio they could genuinely care for each child personally.
If you have the funds to send your child to a daycare center like the above it’s great for their social skills and interaction. However, if you cannot afford it like me don’t beat yourself up. Sometimes we have no choice and it does not make you a bad parent.
Saying at home
As stated above there’s nothing like providing your child with that one to one bond they require from their parent. Although these daycare care centers can provide a number of activities and attention to your child it’s not the same as a parent’s love and attention. Many of the workers are there to work toward their paychecks.
Although there are a number of financial losses of staying at home, one being the loss of income there are not really that many. If you take my situation for instance I’ve managed to make an income from blogging and some side work and spend time with my daughter which I wouldn’t change for any amount of money.
Read: How To Make Extra Money At A Flea Market Booth and Ways To Get Extra Money To Pay Off Debt.
There are many costs that you’re eliminating from staying at home these are:
- The cost of traveling to work
- Extensive cost of daycare
- Cost of clothing for work
- Eating out costs
- Time and cost of entertaining clients or coworkers
There’s are just some of the costs you can occur while working. You can also eliminate some home costs too. If you have to work late for instance you may have to leave your child with a friend or family member after daycare. There are also many other cost implications. You may spend a lot of money on takeout food or convenient food as you have limited time to cook. As a stay at home parent, you have all the time to cook a good healthy meal for your family.
Daycare vs stay at home parenting- my opinion
When I was growing up I lived in a home where both parents were constantly working. Although this provided me with a good education and lifestyle I used to want more attention especially being a single child. There were times where I would be collected by friends or family members. Then wait for my parents to come home from work. When I was pregnant with my daughter, I decided I would want to spend more time with her. This would be the case no matter how important my financial needs were.
I believe by looking at the two arguments above there are many positives. Putting your career on hold and giving your child the very best care he or she deserves. I find it very rewarding staying at home and watching my daughter grow. Yes, it’s hard work looking after her and working on the side. However, I would regret missing her talking and walking for the first time to pursue my career.
Everyone’s parenting ways are different from others. I do believe daycare centers can provide your child with a lot more than a parent may be able to from home. My friend’s children who are twins have been going to an expensive but good daycare center like the one mentioned above since they were 6 months old. The language skills of these twins have been amazing and more advanced than any other child I’ve seen of their age.
In conclusion- Daycare vs stay at home parenting
Just because you need to put your child in daycare doesn’t mean you cannot give your child the love and amusement they need. My friend for instance will do everything possible to spend the whole weekend with her twins. She will not answer any calls from work or even open her laptop. This still proved them with the love and attention they need.
As you can tell I love staying at home and earning extra income on the side. However, if you love going to work and interacting with others there’s no harm. If you earn enough to put your child in a daycare center that exceeds expectations of any home environment then that would be a great option. Not only will your child learn extra skills but it will enable you to work.
On the other hand, if your on a low income and can only afford a basic daycare center there may not even be any point going to work. Many of the cost implications with work would not be worth it plus the daycare cost. Your child would benefit from a stay at home parenting than a basic daycare center in my opinion.
