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In the fast paced, career driven society that we live in, day care centers are all to often considered the only option concerning child care. Of course day care centers are usually the easiest and quickest choice for overwhelmed parents looking for dependable child care. While day care centers generally serve as a dependable source of child care, there are many considerations parents should make in determining if this is the best environment for a young child's development. One of the first considerations concerning day care centers is the child/teacher ratio in each class. This ratio will vary greatly by age and state requirements. Many times the class teacher may be overwhelmed by the number of children they are expected to care for, not allowing them to provide the individual attention that is so essential to a child's development. Another consideration concerning day care centers is the fact that many of the children are continually sick causing parents to miss work to care for their children. A final consideration concerning day care centers might be the cost. Day care centers are often fairly pricey in comparison with other child care options. Of course your ultimate concern in choosing child care should be your child's well being.

The best alternative to day care may be deciding to become a stay at home parent. For many families this is a real option that should be considered. There are many benefits to making the choice to stay home with your children; perhaps most importantly, being able to provide them with a calm, safe environment conducive to raising an intelligent emotionally stable child. The first step in deciding whether or not one parent will be able to stay at home is to review the family's finances Make a list of how much money you will be able to save every month without day care expenses, gas and car maintenance expenses, and additional food expenses to include money spent on dining out and take out when you may be too tired or pressed for time to prepare dinner at home. You may also be surprised to see how little money you actually bring home after all these expenses. If these savings still don't allow you the break you need to afford staying home with your child consider areas of spending that you may be able to cut back on. Some of these areas may include cutting back on your family's entertainment budget and dining out budget. You may also consider dropping extra services on your home and cell phones, cable and Internet services. Making

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