This is a sponsored post but all opinions are my own
One thing I love is sharing my journey through motherhood. I started blogging with the mindset that other moms are out there need to know that someone else is experiencing something similar to what they experience. I also love sharing the good, bad, and just the in-between times. Today, I’m sharing my journey of finding childcare. This one is close to my heart.
When I had my daughter 4 years ago, I’ll never forget the first daycare I walked into. The price made me think that this was a top daycare near my home. As I walked out of the tour, I had tears in my eyes as I thought “I would never leave my child in there”. This is when I felt the weight of being torn from going back to work and the burden of finding childcare. I knew we were not in a position for me to stay home, so our search continued. I remember saying a prayer as my journey had just begun. I couldn’t imagine what other parents were going through as these prices were outrageous. It was not only hard to find quality childcare, but it was hard to find affordable childcare. We ended up finding one spot for my daughter but later that year, that place became a popular spot and had a 2-year waiting list which I put my son on when I got pregnant with him. Unfortunately, due to staff turn over our spot slipped through the cracks and I had to find a new spot that was more expensive and was 40 minutes away from our home.
Every day, I would leave work early to pick up my daughter at her early childhood program and drive 45 minutes to pick up my son and then drive another 30 minutes to get home. Every single day. My daughters’ school started at 18 months so I did this for a little over a year and it was exhausting. I had flexibility with my job and my husband didn’t and this whole thing rested on my shoulders. We did what we had to do.
When I learned about what CareForAllChildren was doing, my excitement could not be contained. What they didn’t know is that I feel a deep passion and commitment to see a change in this area for mothers. I feel called to help moms and this is a major part of that. Last week I had the honor of speaking on a panel webinar sharing my experience as parent on how putting my child in childcare has been for me and many other families. CareForAllChildren is leading the way on this discussion and here are a few key things parents are dealing with here in America:
● More than 20% of American families are going into debt to pay for childcare and preschool.
● The United States loses $57 billion in revenue, wages, and productivity annually due to the childcare crisis.
● Affordable childcare should cost less than 10% of a household’s income, yet a majority of families are spending 30-50% of their take-home pay on childcare.
● Children with access to quality childcare are healthier, better educated, and happier.
● Families are the building blocks of a productive society. With over two-thirds of children
under the age of five living in households with both parents in the workforce, children are spending more time in childcare and early learning settings. As such, improving equal access to quality early childhood education and care holds the greatest promise to support children, families, and the economy.
● A growing body of research shows that access to quality care and learning in the first years of life is crucial for building a strong foundation that allows children to succeed
● Investing in early childhood education and care can help close the education gap, the income gap, and the gender gap.
So, what can you do? How can you help this become better for families?
1. Sign the petition by going to this link.
2. Share your story and use the hashtag #CareForAllChildren on social media
3. Encourage your family and friends to sign the petition.
Y’all, it’s time for a change. It starts with us.
