[speaker001:] okay um
[speaker002:] I have two children and they're older now but um I found it very difficult to find good child care when I was looking for a place to for stay while I taught school
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] and um I wanted when they were very young when they were babies say till they were about two years old I preferred that they had an individual take care of them in a home and that's what I looked for and I was lucky enough to find one right across from my school and that worked
[speaker001:] well that's good
[speaker002:] yeah that worked out real well but when they got older I wanted them to be in a school type situation three I think they were both three when they started where they could learn to interact with kids and and be around kids their own age because I think that's
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] that that would prepare them for school also it's real important that they do that um that they get that preparation for school
[speaker001:] yeah yeah uh-huh
[speaker002:] so but I had I have switched schools several times because I did I really didn't care for what was going on at that the school I wanted them to learn to play I didn't academics forced on them at an early age
[speaker001:] yeah I um that that's oh oh you mean you switched schools for the kids uh-huh
[speaker002:] yeah for the school for the kids yeah
[speaker001:] well well I'm just recently married so I don't have any children though we plan on having them soon but I think um
[speaker002:] uh-huh okay
[speaker001:] I think um that I that that's probably one of the biggest difficulties uh I think um I'm lucky though that um my wife will probably not have to work while our children are under four or five yeah because because I'm a college professor so and that's also and it's nice for me because um
[speaker002:] wonderful oh great
[speaker001:] most of the time you have so much flexible hours so that I could probably work two or three days a week and then one or two evenings so that if my wife does um does go back to work part time um there probably will be a possibility that I could stay home two days that she would go to work and that I would have to teach at night
[speaker002:] oh that's wonderful
[speaker001:] yeah so it will probably workout real nice for us uh I think we're very lucky because just my job sort of builds in flexible schedules I can even teach on Saturdays and and things like that yeah um I do know that my brother and his wife have a terrible time finding uh child care and one of the things they made in um uh real
[speaker002:] oh great
[speaker001:] they're number one priority was that um they're children didn't have to leave their home so they um um my sister-in-law is a uh
[speaker002:] oh that's wonderful too
[speaker001:] um a clinical speech pathologist so she is also I guess her most recent position after she returned back to work she applied for a director's position and and got it so I guess she's very well qualified for her field I guess and even though she took off two years for um I guess four years all together it would be three years how old's Kayla three yeah I guess she took off three years all together um for because I guess they have a four year old and yeah and my nephew's two almost two so I guess she took off three all together and then when she decided to go back to work um
[speaker002:] uh-huh
[speaker001:] she was able to find good position and pay for somebody to come into their home
[speaker002:] oh that's wonderful
[speaker001:] yeah I think they were really lucky there but I think they've lost this woman she will she will not continue and and she won't do it in the summer because her kids are home from school
[speaker002:] oh dear sure yeah
[speaker001:] so I don't know what they are going to do
[speaker002:] oh you know that's an ideal situation but not many people can afford something like that
[speaker001:] um-hum yeah I think I think they they're both they were both professionals unlike me they're um they'll my they were married my brother's five years younger then she is so she was probably twenty seven when they were married so she already had had gotten bachelors and masters and established herself in a profession in a practice almost um
[speaker002:] sure uh-huh
[speaker001:] um where you know he then they waited a couple years and and he got himself pretty far along I guess they didn't have kids until he was about twenty seven twenty six so by that time she was so well established you know I guess it made it a lot easier but uh I think the longer you wait the easier the easier it is if you have that
[speaker002:] sure oh I do too
[speaker001:] that professional occupation where you can change
[speaker002:] oh yeah but they're they're are just so many people out there that aren't that uh lucky um
[speaker001:] yeah no yeah that's right that's true yeah
[speaker002:] because I'm a single parent and I uh you know my husband and I ex-husband and I got a divorce um when the children were small and so I uh was a teacher I uh still am teacher and it was really difficult to find affordable child care that was that was
[speaker001:] um-hum um-hum
[speaker002:] that was what I wanted where I could have piece of mind and when I taught school and I knew my kids were being taken care of yeah and plus I
[speaker001:] yep yeah definitely we're safe yeah
[speaker002:] I uh wanted them to get something out of it I just didn't want it to be a day where they went and slept and ate cookies and
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] that's it
[speaker001:] yeah that's you know that's so important I um I I guess it's so funny now with schools you know they don't take kid into kindergarten and when I guess when they're five and sometimes they flunk kindergarten now and they don't let them into kindergarten unless they can
[speaker002:] right
[speaker001:] count to ten and they know their ABCs and I think that's so funny because um I don't I don't know if I want school's very important I'm an educator myself and my wife teaches and I it's a very important part of your life and I hope to read with my kids but I don't know if I want my kids to go to school at four or three you know I can see that that when you make that point
[speaker002:] I agree with that well the thing is I teach fifth grade and I I can see very readily the kids that didn't never learn socially how to get along with other children and they're the ones that are having problems not only getting along with the other kids but academically because
[speaker001:] yeah uh-huh um-hum
[speaker002:] they were not they're should be there's to many things in their way and so I want my I wanted my children and they did learn to get to get along with other people
[speaker001:] yeah yeah uh-huh that's a really important point
[speaker002:] yeah and I mean I feel a lot of maladjusted adults and I bet if we trace back to their early childhood we could see some
[speaker001:] yeah
[speaker002:] you know times they didn't get to play or be with other kids their own age really learn how do get along with people
[speaker001:] I think that's really that's important I I've seen the same thing I I think you're exactly right because you know I've gone out or before I was married I went out with a girl and you know um boy after you know after about two months I realize this girl really has some deep set emotional problems and I bet and they could be traced back to just not being uh you know being moved between
[speaker002:] uh-huh
[speaker001:] day care centers when she was one and two and three years old and never always being a bit snippy and spiteful I bet you could trace all the way back
[speaker002:] I bet you could too because it you know kids have to learn how to get along with other people and if they don't they just don't turn out to be really you know good adults or
[speaker001:] um-hum that's true
[speaker002:] successful adults I should say you know really
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] but uh it is a big problem and you know I have lot of friends right now that uh have young children and they daily have problems with with whoever is taking care of the child or th ey switch a lot which is not good for the child either
[speaker001:] um-hum yep that's true yeah that's really true uh
[speaker002:] so you need because you need that consistency when they're young like that and it would be ideal like you you hope when you have children your wife gets to stay home I would have have given anything if I would have been able to stay home with my children yeah you are
[speaker001:] um-hum yeah I I think I'm I'm very lucky um because of having you know flexible higher education provides a flexible schedule
[speaker002:] right
[speaker001:] especially I teach a computer classes so it's it's one of things where I'm paid a little bit better then a History or an English professor and I'm also um you know they have vocational type courses on weekends
[speaker002:] oh great um-hum
[speaker001:] almost everywhere and you know you can take you can teach two three hours classes on a Saturday which means that you know whole week's worth of courses so that lets you be available three days during the week
[speaker002:] oh that's wonderful oh that's good
[speaker001:] you know so you be will home with your kids I you know it's really funny is that I I picked this career when I was in college because uh I think with my commitment to family and um wanting to spend more time with my children
[speaker002:] you're very wise
[speaker001:] you know because my dad had very um nine to five type job with uh forty five minute commute into the city and a forty five commute home so by the time he got home he was so tired and he was all rung out from the day and I think he he missed a lot of um our up bringing you know my mother I I came from a family that that my mother stayed home until we started school um
[speaker002:] sure uh-huh
[speaker001:] um and I I don't uh it's funny I don't think she had to work until we started school I think teenagers become much more expensive
[speaker002:] oh don't they though that's what I have right now thirteen and a sixteen year old oh it is they really are expensive yeah
[speaker001:] for it it's probably costing you a fortune  my goodness if if you want them to be able to drive the car the insurance bill the um
[speaker002:] exactly well and they most of the area where we live in most of the kids have cars so
[speaker001:] oh
[speaker002:] you know right now I'm looking for a little truck for my for my son so that you know an older older older truck so I can afford it but you know
[speaker001:] um-hum yeah
[speaker002:] I I just look forward to him helping me out because I I for years just car driven carpools all over the place and
[speaker001:] carpools uh-huh yeah my parents did a lot of that
[speaker002:] and it will be nice just to be able to have him say will you go to the store will you take his sister somewhere or something like that
[speaker001:] that's right yep and just to save you trips to and from you know uh ball games and athletic events and activities at the school yeah isn't that something how you know you think about child care and it lasts along time
[speaker002:] right exactly right that's right it does forever
[speaker001:] it it lasts a long time
[speaker002:] and then when you get through with your own you've got grandchildren so it's not ending is it you think we've talked a long a long enough time
[speaker001:] well normally they come in uh
[speaker002:] oh they come in see this is the first time I've done this
[speaker001:] oh oh cause they'll come in in ten minutes normally and stop us
[speaker002:] oh in ten minutes you have to talk that long
[speaker001:] well you don't have to but they they um you go the length and sometimes if it's a very busy time period you'll go about seven minutes
[speaker002:] uh-huh oh
[speaker001:] depends on how old the tapes are at that time
[speaker002:] I see
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] I see are you from the where are you from
[speaker001:] yeah this is Baltimore Maryland
[speaker002:] oh my gosh I'm from uh Plano Texas which is which is outside of Dallas
[speaker001:] yeah well most of most of the people I talk to are from Texas
[speaker002:] yeah because that's where TI is that makes sense
[speaker001:] uh-huh yeah and I've discussed I've discussed um