Today we’re chatting all about alternative work schedules and the challenges of childcare for work from home or hybrid schedules.
Saying COVID upended the working world would be an understatement. Prior to COVID I knew that if I wanted to keep working full-time, my husband and I needed to work schedules where we could make sure our school-aged kids are picked up at a reasonable time, or even right when school got out.
We also knew we had to have full-time daycare for our (then) six-month-old. There was no part time, every other week, three days a week schedules. No, it was full time, or you didn’t have a spot.
Now that I’m back in the office, I found myself needing childcare every other week due to my new, post-COVID schedule that allows me to work from home part time.
Knowing that childcare facilities rarely allow for part-time schedules, and just the idea of not being able to be home with my kid’s full time anymore, had me more stressed out than the idea of actually returning back to the office.
Hopefully, my struggle in finding childcare that fits my family’s needs can help make yours a little less stressful.
And if you are new to the daycare search, our post The 5 C’s of Choosing a Daycare and Early Help and Early Education: A Guide for Mamas from Birth to 5 are here to help.
XO,
Amanda
Daycare Centers/ After School Care
This may seem a bit daunting being that many in the valley are currently full due to the industry not bouncing back well; but fear not, going in and speaking with the director about your specific needs may in fact help you to get in.
For us, we spoke with the director after reviewing a packet of information that only spoke about part time being from 9-3 every day.
She told us they may be able to accommodate, and by the end of the day she contacted us to advise that our kids could do our part time schedule, and to send her what weeks they would be attending.
At-home Daycare
Our first daycare post-COVID was an in-home daycare, and they were incredibly flexible with us.
Most at-home daycares pay by the day; therefore, allowing the option of part-time to be a more likely option.
Childcare Facebook groups are great in locating one nearby that works with your schedule.
You can find many options for the East Valley (some are city specific or even Arizona wide) that post four or more times a day.
Be sure to post your specific needs: how many kids, how often you need care (or the specific days per week), and the area/city you’re hoping to find care.
Check out my resources below to find additional websites/apps that can assist you in your search.
Nanny Share
A great way to have the perks of a nanny, but keeping costs down is to nanny share with another family.
This may be great if you need a certain schedule and another family’s needs are the opposite of yours. This gives the nanny consistent work, but you’re not feeling the strain of a normal, full-time nanny salary.
Nanny
Having a nanny is great because they typically come to you and work directly with your children.
They also offer additional services like household cleaning, preparing meals, and transporting your kids. Although this may be a more expensive option, it provides the most flexibility due to only working with one person and on an hourly rate basis.
Here’s contributor Kira’s tips on finding a nanny match, if you’re looking for tips on how to navigate the process.
A few larger nanny agencies local to us are: the Nanny Concierge, Trusting Connections and A Perfect Fit.
Additional sites to use as resources for finding care:
Care can help in finding a sitter, nanny, childcare facility, tutor, senior care, and even housekeeping through one of the largest caregiver databases on the internet.
UrbanSitter is a lot like Care in that you can search for varying types of care, including pet sitting. They provide reviews, background checks, caregiver screenings, and even assistance in finding last-minute care. You can find someone, book them, and even pay straight through their app. Their technology uses who you know to help provide trusted providers who are highly recommended across the school, neighborhood, church, or parent groups.
Winnie provides a list of local daycares and preschools, both centers and in-home, that includes descriptions, photos, tuition information, schedules, licensing status and more. You can book straight through their site/app.
Sittercity helps with finding care that you need; in-home, full-time, part-time, after-school, newborns, infants, and even special needs. You post a job that explains your family’s unique needs and you will get responses from caregivers in your area as fast as booking a car with Uber.
