Today's Daycare Crisis: Possible Solutions

Today's daycare dilemma, in Canada, in particular, has reached an unprecedented crisis point. In Toronto alone, with a population of several million, waiting lists for licensed day care facilities grow longer each day, with no end in sight. Parents are now are faced with the wrenching decision of what to do. At the basis of any daycare arrangement is the absolute trust  you give to another person to care for your child. Relinquishing this control is the most difficult challenge of all.

The decision to stay home is not an easy one but where our children are concerned, it is a no-contest. Thirty five years ago, I was a stay-at-home mom to a special needs baby, then two more, in the next two years. With a husband who travelled a lot, back then, the decision was a straight forward, out of necessity one, for our family. Every daycare decision is a personal one and one that is based upon trust. (Finding pet care solutions could also follow a similar plan.)

Some possible day care solutions:

A)... Find a trusted person/family in your neighbourhood, whose environment and family values mesh with yours, as closely as possible. This route has been the most travelled one for parents, for decades, after ruling out trusted family members such as parents, grandparents or sisters. (aunts) Sadly, not all of us have extended family capable of taking care of our young children. Leave nothing to chance. (If something feels wrong, time to move on to another selection. With pets or children, there are no second chances.)


B)... Bartering for services rendered. Instead of paying for 'babysitting', a method of exchanging product for services rendered to eliminate the need for $. You have something the babysitter requires on an ongoing basis (Teaching?, accounting?, sewing?) or you posses a skill such as quilting that would translate into blanket, linens or other products, all to be negotiated, on a per need basis. Anything is possible. Finding someone in your neighbourhood who loves children is the first order of the day.

C)... In the work place, employees have young children and some are expectant parents. A gathering in the conference room for a 'meet and greet' of interested parents, who live in your neighbourhood, to determine if basic criteria can be met as to the suitability of parents to care for each other's children- short term.. ... A rotating schedule of parenting could be devised with employer's input. ... (Companies need to realize, very quickly, that their very existence is dependent upon  people and that these great people have children who need the best people to care for them!.)....Every fourth or fifth week, it could be your turn to care for children- assigned you-in your home- for one week.(No more than 3 per adult caregiver, in this scenario) ... Could this eliminate the babysitting cost for you? Could this help in obtaining day care, so urgently needed? Could there be a skype room for check-ins whenever a parent needed to see what was happening, at that moment, with his child in the employee's home? (Of course, on-site day care might be more preferable)


D)... A Fostering plan could be another way of caring for your child. Meeting older parents whose children are grown, with children of their own. Real life grandparents might love to parent your child, part-time, full-time, on a temporary basis, near your home, while you attend to work or complete your degree. For short duration, finding older, experienced parents might be a great support network for you and your family. To reciprocate you could help them out by taking them shopping on weekends, inviting them on family vacation as you build a new relationship. Loving people simply love.

E)... This is the skype plan. When day care, close to home, is unavailable, it might be time to go beyond the scope of what daycare should be in today's modern times. Would your baby benefit from being left with another family, outside your area, for short periods of time? Skype would be a must-have tool, thus enabling parents to see and talk to their child, on an ongoing basis. A thorough check of the fostering family would be needed, of course, involving your own network of family and friends as support. (Barbecues, dinners and stay-overs would help in determining suitability of families chosen). Today, there are limited opportunities to connect with people who want to give love and support to growing families....


Options to care for society's children should not be left strictly to government. Moms and dads know a thing or two. A broader scope of daycare choices could be the new order for children and pets, too.. ....Next... momsey's daycare scenario, a different kind of day...