Problems of caring for young children

Someone once told me that the most difficult part of being a parent is the first five years of a child's life. Surviving emotionally, physically, psychologically, and financially is what stresses out parents. Perhaps this is the problem within the homes where small children are horribly abused or killed. If the parent is young, the immaturity of the parent/s creates one more stressor in an already lengthy list. I, for one, had moments where I needed to walk away and cool off. I had the maturity to know when I was getting overwhelmed; I can only imagine how terrible it is for lower income/those with poor family supports/teenage parents. If the parent is the product of a teenage parent, then problems can be compounded.

Another complication that we face as parents of young children is trying to find affordable daycare. Many families (mine included) must work two jobs to afford mortgages, food, utilities and daycare. My husband works 3rd shirt, comes home and watches the children until the babysitter arrives at 1 pm. I work a full time job and a part time job to afford the babysitter. We need her, and could not afford her, without the part time job, but of course I must pay her more to cover the time I am at the second job. I get home, feed the children, play and then put them to bed. Doing all this extra still only leaves just enough money to meet the bills. I pray that I have no car repairs or unexpected bills until the summer when I will no longer need a sitter. I will of course not be able to do the 2nd job because it is connected to the school year. I will have to apply to teach over the summer so that I will have the money we need  to pay for MM to be in pre-school because my school district does not have it. We will still need a babysitter for BJ, so I will need a babysitter and a pre-school. In this situation it pays to be poor because there is funding out there to pay for daycare, but the wage limit is so ridiculous, the person can not possibly live in decent housing. So daycare is needed to off-set the poor living conditions.

So, we are setting up an entire generation for failure. When do we say that we, as a society, need to embrace all children and provide them with more than just the basics. When we realize that every penny we spend on the care and education of our children is an investment in our future, we will be a better society. I will survive the financial set back. I only have about two years to go and I will be financially better off (car payment paid, MM in kindergarten, and Andy's mortgage paid for the home his mom and brother live in), and I will be able to provide for my children in a way that will be more than basic. But since I see each day what happens when we short-change our children, I know that our future is not as bright as it could be.