As we prepare for the addition of Baby Boy 2, we’ve started having serious discussions about what our (my) days will look like with both boys. We know two things:
1- We will not have family here to help for any extended time period. Actually, more than likely it will be exactly like the last time around, 4 grandparents here during the first week or two, and then we are on our own.
2- M is scheduled to be on a surgery rotation. That means he’s going to be gone very long hours.
So we started our discussion by envisioning the situation: Baby Boy 1 will need attention, playing and activities as usual. Baby Boy 2 will probably be nursing and sleeping. I will be nursing and sleep deprived. We will all need to be fed, the laundry will need to be done, the house cleaned, etc. We know from experience, that in those first few weeks I will not be doing any cooking and more than likely the house will be a disaster. Will I be able to take care of both boys? Probably. Plenty of other people have two kids under two and manage it. Will I be at my best? Most definitely not. Since we know that M will probably not be able to help much, we’re looking at either a pretty difficult situation or getting some help, and we’re going to go with the latter.
Here we come to our conundrum- Nanny or Daycare?
Nanny/Housekeeper– We could hire full time, for a reasonable price, knowing that it would probably only be for a few months. We would have her primarily take care of the house, with some light cooking, and take BB1 out to play while I am busy with BB2. The pros: keeping BB1 at home during the transition and while he’s still so young. The cons: somebody in our home every day, and BB1 might miss out on a lot of activities for the first couple of months.
Daycare– More than likely we would only send BB1 part time, but that would provide him some structure and me some time to focus on BB2 and the house. We would probably still get a housekeeper once or twice a week because it would only be a part time solution. The pros: BB1 would get good activity outside of the house. The cons: it would only be a part time solution, and BB1 might bring a lot of germs home.
Where are we now? We don’t know. We’re going to consult with some friends here and make a decision by the end of the calendar year. Meanwhile I’m taking mental notes on local daycare centers (there are too many to count), and trying to come up with a list of responsibilities we would have a housekeeper take care of.
