What I Spend On Child Care As A Mom Who Makes Under $30,000 A Year – Huffpost
By Marie Holmes
Ask any American with young children what their No. 1 household expense is, and you’ll hear the same answer almost every time: child care. Each family finds its own way to manage. Some parents are pushed out of the workforce. Others work jobs they wouldn’t take otherwise or hold down multiple jobs in order to meet their families’ needs…
Ida cares for her toddler, Mia, at home, and Ida’s mother and brother care for the child when Ida works remotely 40-50 hours a week. Her partner’s mother, who, like Ida’s mother, is retired, also takes care of Mia sometimes.
“It was a juggling act of myself, my brother, my mom all taking turns picking [Cece] up, taking her places — and if they’re not doing that, they’re helping me with Mia.”
“I currently owe money to the child care that my [older] daughter was at before, the before- and after-school program that she was at. So I’m trying to play catch-up with that,” she continued.
“Right now, even if I wanted to put [Mia] in child care where I am, it’s just so limited. They either have spots, but it’s only for full-time care, or they don’t have anything and it’s just a waitlist.”