Justifying Day Care - Page 10

C-Mac · 03-26-2007, 06:50 PM

http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune....justify_d.html
Justifying day care
"As if I don’t already feel guilty for putting my son in day care at the tender age of three months, a new study shows that the more time children spend in center-based care before kindergarten, the more likely they’ll fight, disobey and argue, according to their 6th grade teachers.

The increase in problem behavior was slight, but studies like this inspire me to look for the silver lining. And I always return to the same thing: "the hygiene hypothesis," or the belief that early exposure to germs helps the immune system develop properly.

While most children get six to eight infections a year, children in day care bring home twice that number, or about one a month. Day-care settings --or petri dishes, as my pediatrician calls them-- have high levels of indoor allergens and have been shown to incubate and spread antibiotic resistant bacteria.

This sounds like a no-brainer: Keep your children at home! But since most of us don't have that option--63 percent of U.S. children under the age of five spend 37 hours a week in child care--I manage to get through the work day by reminding myself my kids might turn out healthier in the long run.

Some research bears this out. A 2005 study in the British Medical Journal showed that children who attended day care in the first few months of life are less likely to develop leukemia than children who do not, most likely because they were protected from exposure to common infections. Similar associations have been reported for Type 1diabetes and allergies and asthma in children.

Still, even if they have stronger immune systems, is it worth sending them to day care if they’re going to have behavioral issues that persist at least until 6th grade? That, according to the research, published in the March/April issue of "Child Development," is up to the parents.

The researchers involved with the longest and most comprehensive study of child care in the U.S. cautioned that parenting quality was a much more important predictor of child development than the type, quantity or quality of child care.

Ultimately, while quality day care is important, a quality home environment matters more."

We had to do without some things obviuosly but the wife and I both agreed that her being at home while the children were young, was far more important than her having a career or us having a new car or house. We now get compliments all the time about our kids and their behavior and I truly feel that this is one of the main reasons why. I do understand that not everyone's situation allows mom to stay home(especially single moms), but I do think that there are many cases that if they just tried to live a little simpler, they could pull it off.

Mr. Plow · 03-27-2007, 02:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KC Kings

Fixed your post. You'll really be pissed now!

Mile High Mania · 03-27-2007, 02:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bogie

Well I had to stop reading the thread. The more I read the more I got pissed. I can't believe how many judgemental people are on here. Just because something works for you, does not mean it works for everyone else.

I got as high as 'one' when counting the judgemental people... how high did you get?

Sully · 03-27-2007, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bogie

Well I had to stop reading the thread. The more I read the more I got pissed. I can't believe how many judgemental people are on here. Just because something works for you, does not mean it works for everyone else.

To be fair, there have been a couple of posters in this thread that have allowed for "different strokes for different folks."
Very few have actually done what you are seeing.

bogie · 03-27-2007, 02:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sully

To be fair, there have been a couple of posters in this thread that have allowed for "different strokes for different folks."
Very few have actually done what you are seeing.

Like I said, I didn't read the entire thread. I'm a firm believer in different strokes for different folks. There are imperfections on both sides.

BucEyedPea · 03-27-2007, 02:59 PM

Quote:

"As if I don’t already feel guilty for putting my son in day care at the tender age of three months, a new study shows that the more time children spend in center-based care before kindergarten, the more likely they’ll fight, disobey and argue, according to their 6th grade teachers.

My personal observation of my own daugther and other's children is this is correct. Including the health care aspect...only I caught everything instead.
As for later academic performance, well we should develop the whole child. Seems to me that those taught reading earlier than others, may be ahead for a period of time but most catch up later.

Anyhow, I was lucky the first two years as I had a former K teacher come in a couple days a week but not 'til after the first year. I was nearby and would work and come out for meals and breaks. My kid loved her.

By age 2, I did use dc but only part-time. No one was home for her to play with. However, I would increase her hours when I had more work and deadlines. Those times, she was out of control. When I lowered my work hours again, she was back to a normal well behaved toddler. But I spent time with her and did things with her.

I definitely noticed the other toddlers who were in the dc facility from 7 AM - 6 PM daily were wild animals or cried a lot more. What I found sad was some of them would reach up to me, to be held...they just wanted and needed more personal attention. I felt sorry for them and would pick them up.

So, I think full-time daycare is a crime.

It costs money to work to and if one adds it up, it's often not even worth it.
I feel many do not really have to work as much as they think. A friend of mine who makes well over $160k used it full-time plus nannies at night. In the early grades of school it was replaced with skating, music, and all kinds of structured activities plus baby-sitters at night. Kid had a schedule that would rival a CEO. Plus she was out-of-control...but brilliant.

Just my observation.

pikesome · 03-27-2007, 03:31 PM

I'll throw me $.02 in here since this is near and dear to me ATM. I stay home with my 2.5 year-old and his 12 year-old brother goes to school. Staying home isn't something you do instead of a job, it is a job. Just like throwing your suit on and doing whatever it is you do. I get "paid" not in hard cash but in a lowered cost of living. I don't have to pay for daycare (it starts at aprox $800/mo in my area), I cook most of our meals so we eat better and cheaper. I also don't pay for a second car since my wife's work is at night and we don't "need" one. Staying home also allows us to work with the hassles that come with my wife's chosen career as a nurse. I work 12 hour days, the youngest gets up about 8 AM and goes down about 8 PM, seven days a week. My wife helps when she can but after 4, 12 hour shifts in a week she's not able to completely take over. I also have far more experience with my kids, I can do any and all child care tasks easier and faster than my wife can.

Even if you completely ignore the "time spent with the kids" factor, it seems like a waste to pay someone for a job I can do better. I'm not "unemployed", I do a job far more important than 90% of people. And I get to play with my kids.

bogie · 03-27-2007, 03:37 PM

We have a family across the street from us with a lazy ass woman that has full time help at home so she can go to her bedroom and sleep or do whatever she wants to do other than raising her child. I have other friends that both work their ass off so they can live in a district that offers an excellent public school. They have one child in school and one preschool age. Their motivation is to stay in this district so both of their children can go to this great public school. Unless they are both working they simply can't afford to live in this area.

bogie · 03-27-2007, 03:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pikesome

I'll throw me $.02 in here since this is near and dear to me ATM. I stay home with my 2.5 year-old and his 12 year-old brother goes to school. Staying home isn't something you do instead of a job, it is a job. Just like throwing your suit on and doing whatever it is you do. I get "paid" not in hard cash but in a lowered cost of living. I don't have to pay for daycare (it starts at aprox $800/mo in my area), I cook most of our meals so we eat better and cheaper. I also don't pay for a second car since my wife's work is at night and we don't "need" one. Staying home also allows us to work with the hassles that come with my wife's chosen career as a nurse. I work 12 hour days, the youngest gets up about 8 AM and goes down about 8 PM, seven days a week. My wife helps when she can but after 4, 12 hour shifts in a week she's not able to completely take over. I also have far more experience with my kids, I can do any and all child care tasks easier and faster than my wife can.

Even if you completely ignore the "time spent with the kids" factor, it seems like a waste to pay someone for a job I can do better. I'm not "unemployed", I do a job far more important than 90% of people. And I get to play with my kids.

I'm very happy this works for you. You're fortunate your wife makes enough $ for this to happen. Not everyone has the same opportunity.

BucEyedPea · 03-27-2007, 03:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pikesome

Staying home isn't something you do instead of a job, it is a job. Just like throwing your suit on and doing whatever it is you do.

Well good for you! I'm really glad you said this because it's the truth. Too often care of a house with young children in it tearing it up 24/7 can be more work than full-time 40-hr-a-week job. This kind of work is so denigrated in today's society as doing nothing. It's easier in some ways to go to work each day dealing with adults than being home with little ones.

Simplex3 · 03-27-2007, 03:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NewChief

Blame that asshole, Simplex3.

I have a disclaimer in my sig for a reason.

pikesome · 03-27-2007, 03:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bogie

I'm very happy this works for you. You're fortunate your wife makes enough $ for this to happen. Not everyone has the same opportunity.

Without painting to board of a stroke here, some people don't try hard enough. I'm with Simplex, kinda, on a lot of this. It is way too complicated of a subject for a definite blueprint but I see many people put their own wants and desires before what is best for the family or the kids.

Simplex3 · 03-27-2007, 03:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eazyb81

For the record, I am in my mid-twenties and have been in a serious relationship for the past few years now. No I don't have kids, but we have talked about it and how we will raise them. Simply ignoring the comments/opinions of anyone that doesn't have kids is highly ignorant, and makes me feel stronger in my beliefs.

Personally, I don't understand why this situation has to be so black and white - can't you have a career AND have normal, well-behaved kids that you see on a fairly regular basis? Some of you act like putting kids in daycare for any amount of time is the first step in raising a degenerate sociopath.

My question to you is this:

What the f**k is so important about a career? What will it ever give you in return that really matters in the long run?

Mr. Plow · 03-27-2007, 03:51 PM

Maybe the ability for your children to go to the best schools? Get the best education? Have the clothes they need? Food? Shelter?

I think a career can give a lot in return.

Simplex3 · 03-27-2007, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pikesome

Without painting to board of a stroke here, some people don't try hard enough. I'm with Simplex, kinda, on a lot of this. It is way too complicated of a subject for a definite blueprint but I see many people put their own wants and desires before what is best for the family or the kids.

You f**king jackass bigot f**k. Don't paint me like that.

pikesome · 03-27-2007, 03:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BucEyedPea

Well good for you! I'm really glad you said this because it's the truth. Too often care of a house with young children in it tearing it up 24/7 can be more work than full-time 40-hr-a-week job. This kind of work is so denigrated in today's society as doing nothing. It's easier in some ways to go to work each day dealing with adults than being home with little ones.

This is why my mother hates feminists with a passion. She has always felt like they denigrate her for staying at home and taking care of the kids.

03-26-2007, 06:50 PM
C-Mac Lurker Extraordinaire Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Wally World Casino cash: $-986301	Justifying Day Care http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune....justify_d.html Justifying day care "As if I don’t already feel guilty for putting my son in day care at the tender age of three months, a new study shows that the more time children spend in center-based care before kindergarten, the more likely they’ll fight, disobey and argue, according to their 6th grade teachers. The increase in problem behavior was slight, but studies like this inspire me to look for the silver lining. And I always return to the same thing: "the hygiene hypothesis," or the belief that early exposure to germs helps the immune system develop properly. While most children get six to eight infections a year, children in day care bring home twice that number, or about one a month. Day-care settings --or petri dishes, as my pediatrician calls them-- have high levels of indoor allergens and have been shown to incubate and spread antibiotic resistant bacteria. This sounds like a no-brainer: Keep your children at home! But since most of us don't have that option--63 percent of U.S. children under the age of five spend 37 hours a week in child care--I manage to get through the work day by reminding myself my kids might turn out healthier in the long run. Some research bears this out. A 2005 study in the British Medical Journal showed that children who attended day care in the first few months of life are less likely to develop leukemia than children who do not, most likely because they were protected from exposure to common infections. Similar associations have been reported for Type 1diabetes and allergies and asthma in children. Still, even if they have stronger immune systems, is it worth sending them to day care if they’re going to have behavioral issues that persist at least until 6th grade? That, according to the research, published in the March/April issue of "Child Development," is up to the parents. The researchers involved with the longest and most comprehensive study of child care in the U.S. cautioned that parenting quality was a much more important predictor of child development than the type, quantity or quality of child care. Ultimately, while quality day care is important, a quality home environment matters more." We had to do without some things obviuosly but the wife and I both agreed that her being at home while the children were young, was far more important than her having a career or us having a new car or house. We now get compliments all the time about our kids and their behavior and I truly feel that this is one of the main reasons why. I do understand that not everyone's situation allows mom to stay home(especially single moms), but I do think that there are many cases that if they just tried to live a little simpler, they could pull it off.
Posts: 5,659

03-27-2007, 03:31 PM	#141
pikesome PEW PEW Join Date: May 2005 Casino cash: $10004900	I'll throw me $.02 in here since this is near and dear to me ATM. I stay home with my 2.5 year-old and his 12 year-old brother goes to school. Staying home isn't something you do instead of a job, it is a job. Just like throwing your suit on and doing whatever it is you do. I get "paid" not in hard cash but in a lowered cost of living. I don't have to pay for daycare (it starts at aprox $800/mo in my area), I cook most of our meals so we eat better and cheaper. I also don't pay for a second car since my wife's work is at night and we don't "need" one. Staying home also allows us to work with the hassles that come with my wife's chosen career as a nurse. I work 12 hour days, the youngest gets up about 8 AM and goes down about 8 PM, seven days a week. My wife helps when she can but after 4, 12 hour shifts in a week she's not able to completely take over. I also have far more experience with my kids, I can do any and all child care tasks easier and faster than my wife can. Even if you completely ignore the "time spent with the kids" factor, it seems like a waste to pay someone for a job I can do better. I'm not "unemployed", I do a job far more important than 90% of people. And I get to play with my kids. __________________ 4. Performance enhancing drugs: A) are my ticket to the Hall of Fame. B) would be better if they tasted like fruit and were shaped like various Flintstones characters. C) are not for me, because I find that cocaine aids my performance much more effectively. D) apparently worked for Rodney Harrison.
Posts: 5,191

03-27-2007, 03:37 PM	#142
bogie West Coast Chief Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: california Casino cash: $10004900	We have a family across the street from us with a lazy ass woman that has full time help at home so she can go to her bedroom and sleep or do whatever she wants to do other than raising her child. I have other friends that both work their ass off so they can live in a district that offers an excellent public school. They have one child in school and one preschool age. Their motivation is to stay in this district so both of their children can go to this great public school. Unless they are both working they simply can't afford to live in this area. __________________
Posts: 3,562

03-27-2007, 03:51 PM	#148
Mr. Plow In Search of a Life Join Date: Dec 2005 Casino cash: $-1392609	Maybe the ability for your children to go to the best schools? Get the best education? Have the clothes they need? Food? Shelter? I think a career can give a lot in return.
Posts: 31,686