Childcare Choices, Costs, and How to Make a Plan (and a Backup Plan, Too)

Are you getting a nanny? Are you getting an au pair? Are you getting a daycare center? Is it licensed? There's so many choices.

A lot of times it's like, "Ah, we'll figure it out after maternity leave or paternity leave." Oh, no.

You need to start planning that now.

[upbeat music]

Welcome back to A Better Way to Money.

I'm Jennifer Borgi.

In our last episode, we talked to Neha Rusch about taking a pause from your career to focus more on family.

But we know that's not always possible, or even maybe what you want.

So in this episode, we're diving into the world of childcare for working parents.

According to the Economic Policy Institute, full-time childcare now costs more than college tuition in many parts of the country, anywhere from $15,000 to over $40,000 a year, and that's before the backup scrambles, the career hits, and the mental load that nobody put on the budget spreadsheet.

Today's guest is Christina Eaglin, author of Who's Watching My Baby?, a guidebook she wrote built across 20 years of navigating every childcare arrangement imaginable while building her own career.