1) Traditional Daycare: These may include places at your work if you are lucky. The also include "chains" such as Goddard School, Rainbow Station, KinderCare, and others. There may be some local centers, that often go by the name of "Anytown" Child Development Center. I have found that the chains tend to be a little more expensive, probably due to marketing and franchise fees, and having more set rates. (I am often curious why they don't charge more, since there seems to always be a waiting list.) The advantage to getting into these programs early is that you are then secure in having a spot there when you child gets older. These tend to be good programs, with many of the ones I looked at incorporating sign language and spanish into the curriculum. They all had lesson plans even for the infants. Some varied in terms of whether they provide diapers or food and this may be reflected in the cost, so don't forget to factor that in when comparing costs.

2) Daycare provided at your work. Very convenient and nice as king as it is good care.

3) Stay-At-Home-Moms Mini-Daycares: I was unaware of this until recently, but it doesn't take long looking at craigslist to realize that there is a faction of SAHMs who run mini-daycares out of their homes. They seem to vary greatly in their price, hours and services. (Interestingly, I noticed a man offering childcare services and his rates were much higher than the females... funny that...) I don't really know how much or if there is any regulation on these establishments, and I would be very suspect of them, yet I bet some are fabulous as well.

4) Stay-At-Home-Mom Nannies: Basically nannies who bring their kid/ kids with them to watch your kid. Seems like a good option if your kids is the same age as the nanny's child. Should be cheaper than a nanny without kids. Personally, I would worry that my kid would always be second best to the other kid, kind of the 'stepchild', but I'm sure some are great. There is a new movement of nurses, retired, in school, or otherwise, working full-time, part-time or moonlighting as nannies. Advantages to them include shorter shifts and less stressful jobs. They tend to get paid more than other nannies, but still less than they would in nursing, but better lifestyle.

5) Nanny: There are many options including live-in and live-out, those that will do lots of housework too and those that will do none. You can hire one on your own through ads in the newpaper or internet; use a pay service to advertise or see applicants; or use an agency to find you someone, or use an agency to provide the service (When you do this, you don't have to pay the taxes, since the agency pays the employee and you pay the agency. However, the agency usually charges more to cover this.) When you use an agency such as www.gonannies.com as I used, you can see the applicants but not their contact information before you pay... That's how they getcha! I have had friends who had great success with such services, but mine was not so in that the lady I wanted had just gotten a job with another family when I contacted her. I was looking at another site with some people that interested me, but there was no dates on the information, so I had no idea when these biographies were posted, so didn't know if they were still looking for jobs or not.

6) Wife and Husband arranging alternating work schedules: This can be good and cost effective. It can be great for both parents to have full responsibility at times and forces the father to really step up in terms on childcare at times. However, too often it seems couples are overworking themselves and stretching themselves too thin with this strategy. Ask yourself if you are really being a good parent when you are exhausted and never see your spouse. Then ask yourself if you really need such a new car, or house, cable etc..., or if you can afford to have a little help after working a nightshift so you can sleep and be less irritable with the kids.

7) Extended Family: Can be nice and cheap, but can create stressful dynamic, in that it is harder to change if you are not happy with them and harder to enforce your own rules.

8) Stay-At-Home-Parent: Seems ideal at first, but it is really hard to go from working to staying at home all the time for some people, and this may come as a surprise. (It did for me!) I have often heard SAHM's talk about feeling bad for not having the house clean for their husband because he works all day. Please, spare me. Staying at home parenting is harder work than most jobs. So that needs to be clear if one parent stays home, and this should not be taken for granted, and the other parent should help out and split the responsibility when they are home. None of that "But I've been at work all day" crap... so has the person who stays home.