cmerrywe

Hello!

My husband has been promoted and this involves a move for the family to the US! We're anticipating to find somewhere to live close to Naperville, Il. we're very excited but also apprehensive at such a big move! We currently live in the UK (South West) and happy to help anyone who may be relocating here.

I'm fairly clueless on what things I need to consider and be planning for our move. One thing I know for sure, is that we need immediate childcare for when we arrive (anticipated in November). We have 16 month old boy / girl twins (who often run in the opposite direction!)

I'm hoping that someone will have some suggestions on where to start in my search for a reliable / reputable childminder.

Look forward to networking and meeting people who have been through similar experiences.

Bye for now!

Claire

BunnyGirl

Which visa?

Pulaski

State regulations vary a little, and I have not lived in IL, but typically there are two tiers of child care available: those in a purpose built/ converted facility, with class rooms and "teachers" for each room, usually split by year, like a school, and as the children get older it prepares them well to transition easily into kindergarten (the first grade of the public school system). Then there is "in home" day care, which is literally in someone's home, and is less tightly regulated, and a good bit cheaper. If you know the person then it might be acceptable, but some can be quite iffy.

If you can afford it I would recommend the purpose built facility type, some are independent, but many operate under a franchise brand such as Bright Horizons, Kids R Kids, Petite Academy, etc. Little Miss P went to one of the franchise ones from age two, and learned a lot there, Mrs P and I always called it "school", and little Miss P's transition into school was smooth, seamless and trouble free.

rebs

What difference would the visa make to childcare options?

Pulaski

If she isn't able to work she might not need child care.

cmerrywe

Thanks for your reply.

I guess I'm looking for some help at home along the lines of a nanny or au pair rather than educational at this stage. Although, it won't be long before I need to think about this, so thank you, your advice is very useful.

Pulaski

Go with an agency. Google is your friend.

GeoffM

We've had mixed results:
1. Independent childcare facility in Victorville - great
2. Franchise childcare facility in Walnut - terrible
3. Agency nanny in Walnut - terrible (lied on application; clockwatcher; turned organic vegan while living with us )
4. Friend-of-a-friend live-in nanny in Walnut - great (did loads of housework too)
5. Independent childcare facility in Apple Valley - great

I have therefore come to the conclusion that franchises and agencies do not necessarily equate to quality!

Pulaski

Agreed, you have to do your own due diligence and interviews, however franchises and agencies (should) do background checks, and have training requirements and liability insurance, whereas "the lady just down the road" probably doesn't.

GeoffM

Background checks (ie criminal), yes. Employment checks, no, at least not in this case. If you want to use an agency, you need to do your homework on the agency as well, since what they actually check and provide varies a lot!

Agreed that friends-of-friends probably won't have been through the checks or training so it's a toss up whether they're professionally any good. In this case we got lucky and she proved much better than the one supplied by the agency. There's only so much you can learn from an interview.

The better one wanted to pay taxes; the agency one wanted cash under the table.

Gillymonkey

I think you are being a bit harsh to in home daycares! It is up to the parent to do due diligence.

My LO goes to an in home family daycare. He has been there since he was 5 months old (he is now almost 1). We looked at one of the corporate nurseries but the care and attention is not a patch on what he gets with his daycare provider. I also hated the flourescent light environment and felt that he needed a home away from home.

That being said, I think we are really extremely lucky. His carer runs the daycare with the assistance of her parents. So the adult: child ratio is 3:7. All the adults have been background checked, all have infant CPR tranining and the main carer also has some early years qualifications. She is also enrolled in a nutritional programme (she provides all the food for the kids when they are there) which promotes a healthy balanced diet and involves spot checks from a nutritionist. We are in California, I think the daycare requirements may be slightly tougher here than elsewhere. At the end of the day the beaming smiles from M when I drop him off and the way he leaps out of my arms to play with the other kids lets me know we definetly made the right choice for him.

cmerrywe

I'm not keen on using an agency as I believe their costs can be quite high. I'd much prefer to find the 'lady down the street' and do my own checks but it will be difficult to source someone from a distance. I've also read that it's advisable to go on recommendations which, until we know exactly where we'll be living, will prove difficult! I do also like the idea of an independent facility as I think the interaction with other children is important and consistent with what they're used to in the UK.

What sort of fees can we expect from an independent facility?

GeoffM

Costs depend on location, age of children, number of children, how many sessions per week, and whether half day or full day. The difference between 3 half sessions and 5 full sessions may be miniscule.

Back in Walnut with the franchised centre, with an 18mo and 5yo we were paying over $2000 per month; here with the independent centre we were paying $880 per month with a 2yo and 6yo, though DS has gone back to school now so it's just DD. We found that most places won't give prices unless you actually visit the place.

You could look on Craigslist for a rough idea of in-home costs in the area you're looking at.

kins

Agencies are v expensive IME.

Look at sittercity.com. Nannies will advertise on there, and you can run background checks on anyone who you are interested in (generally once you've interviewed them).

If you are just looking for some help at home then also look locally for a 'mothers' help'. My 13yo does this and only charges $5 an hour for one child. She plays with the child so that the mother can do what she needs to be doing. Obviously during the school year they'd only be available after school but as school finishes here at 2.30pm that might work out for you if you're just looking for someone to help ease the load. Once you know where you're living, ask around locally for a mother's help.

If you're looking for an au pair, what I recall is that in the US they can work 40 hours a week (unlike the UK where it's 25 hours) but there are a lot of costs associated with it. You have to go through one of the au pair agencies to find one.

Owen778

There's some good advice here. We used a local Montessori pre-school for our kids, though the youngest is going into kindergarten this year.

To be honest though, you are unlikely to be able to work when you first arrive, unless you're a US citizen, so I'd recommend you concentrate on other things right now, for example:
- What visa will your husband be on, and so will you be able to work at all?
- What information does the company immigration attorney need to quickly complete the visa application?
- What relocation package is being offered, and can you negotiate?
- Will the company sponsor your family's green cards? Get this in writing if you want it.
- What salary and benefits are they offering, in particular, what are the details of the company healthcare scheme?
- Will you receive assistance with tax filing?