The first step of many

Being a teacher in a good area of the city has its advantages, and of course, its drawbacks. The advantages are that you get the inside scoop on many aspects of the area, including good restaurants, and of course good schools. Here, as with any place, what you see is not necessarily what you get, so having inside knowledge of a place, or having good word of mouth, is a good thing. Interestingly, that can have its drawbacks too.

Once my baby turns two, I know where he/she will go to pre-school. There is a school not too far from my work that has an excellent reputation, is NAEYC, and everyone loves it. So for that part of her/his life, I know what I will do, as long as we don't move away.

It's the 3 months to two years that are causing a slight problem for me. Where to send my (okay, our) baby where I will feel as though the staff a) cares, b) is competent, and c) is doing things that are in my child's best interest. I know that that's how a good teacher should be, but I also know that's not always the case.

Not working is not an option. Although B makes a good living, I want to keep working and feeling my own sense of accomplishment. There is empowerment that comes from making your own money, and not having to depend on someone else to say, buy a coffee, if I like. So, I am looking at daycare.

A teacher/friend of mind sends her child to a church across the street. I use the word church lightly, because, in my mind, it is not a church. It's a business. They have staff accountants who make as much as my husband. I just don't picture humble little churches with the ability to pay what they do. In addition, they also have a arena for their church services, large screen TVs for viewing in the wings, in case you can't see anything inside, and oh, a profit-making coffee bar. It makes my 375 year old church look like a shack. This is why I say it's not a church.

There's another problem: despite my grievances about the church itself, the school is actually supposed to be very good. I never wanted to even look at this place because of my opposition to their principles, but upon researching other local daycares, I decided to suck up my principles and pride and make an appointment with them. The girl with whom I spoke sounded very kind and genuine, unlike another lady from another place, who sounded like quite the salesperson.

I never envisioned myself using this "church" for caring for my child, but I do know a few people who have said it's good, so I may just have to bite the bullet and do it. The best part: it's right across the street from where I work, less than a mile away, so if I need to, I can get over there as quickly as possible. Short of actually being able to be at home, I don't think that's too shabby.

Parenthood (as far as I've heard) brings us many opportunities to do many things we never thought we would in a million years, for better or worse. So I just consider this my first step of many where I will have to bite the bullet and suck it up.