Daycare vs. nanny while WFH

[u/Cautious_Optimist_]

Perspective needed. My husband and I both WFH. We’re trying to quickly decide on childcare for our first little one who will be 3 months old when we need care to start. We were originally set on finding a nanny to watch our son until he is mobile and verbal, but have pivoted to strongly considering daycare. The high cost of a nanny in our area (at least $750/month more than daycare that could be put towards a 529 or other investment account for our son to use down the road) and the thought of him crying throughout the day in the next room while we work are reasons for the pivot. Both of our jobs can be high stress with days filled with constant meetings and I already struggle hearing him cry in the next room with my husband when I’m not working - having him away from the house so we can focus on work seems more manageable. At the same time, I don’t like the idea of our 3 month old going to daycare with a 5:1 teacher infant ratio and the increased risk of him getting sick, plus some workdays are slower where I love the thought of being able to spend some extra minutes with our little one in between meetings/work tasks. My husband supports whatever I’m comfortable with doing to make sure I don’t have regrets later on. I keep going back and forth on what the right thing to do is, but need to make a decision in the next few weeks. Any perspective on other experiences with this would be very appreciated!

[u/kat_8639]

Daycare was wonderful for us. My children started at around 6 months. We tried 2 nannies (I'm a hybrid remote worker and spouse is 100% remote) but one was a terrible fit and the other was sweet but didn't perform some basic asks. My children were happy at daycare and as a bonus, were basically potty trained there. They also learned basic sign language, how to use utensils, and learned handwashing and putting things away when done. It's great for socialization, too. One of my children had early speech intervention and all of their therapies were done at daycare - I didn't have to arrange and appointments ir schedules.