[Agamemnon]

Why have a baby if you’re going to let strangers raise him? ------- donna

We now have second generation day care-raised adults as parents. It is social experiment producing bitter fruits. God help us. ---- polymuser

The oft repeated notion that parents who utilize day care and early ed services are leaving children "in the care of strangers" is simply false.

My wife of 32 years and I had 2 sons and 2 daughters. At the time my wife and I married she was already a skilled scientist and eventually held the position a Director of Research and Development at a well-known food company. I was similarly progressing in my career on the pharmaceutical development side.

Each of our kids went to day care, and none of the persons who cared for them were "strangers." They were professionals whom we selected to care for our kids while we both worked outside the home in our respective professions. Each of the kids subsequently went to pre-school.

Oh sure, as parents we were often judged by plenty of self-righteous family members and church goers, who saw us as parents doing our kids a horrible dis-service but my wife and I - no less Christians than any of them - chose to ignore them all.

The 4 kids are all grown now and out of the house, and none of them hate us for having them in day care when they were tykes.

Our two sons both became Eagle Scouts and served in the US Marine Corps. Both finished college at UCONN; the oldest graduating with his degree in pathobiology, employed in Environmental Health and Safety at the school where I where I did my graduate work in Biochemistry, and the other received his degree from the UCONN School of Business and is an executive recruiter.

The two girls also both graduated from UCONN; one with a degree in History, who did her graduate work at Sotheby's in London and works in art collections management in NYC, and the youngest completed her degree in Animal Science at UCONN and is currently in research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. My daughters share an apartment on the upper East Side.

For those who sat in judgment of my wife and I in our early years it is my hope, if any of them have charity let in their hearts that they might all be blessed even as my wife and family has been.

For those on this board who continue to stand in judgment, I invite you to go ahead and do so.

FReegards!

[polymuser]

I have my reasons for judging, I and family members (one a daycare provider) have seen the other side of this coin. Your story is great and congratulations to you and your offspring. Seems you were an active, participating father in the home; old school. (Btw, if you dislike being judged, why do you so judge others - self righteous, standing in judgement, without charity...?)

[ilovesarah2012]

My oldest daughter didn’t go to day care until she was 2 1/2. She is very smart and is an RN and may pursue nurse practitioner. My twins started day care at 3 months. My daughter has an MBA. My son, different story.

If you choose or can afford to keep them home, great. Most can’t. That’s the realuty.

[donna]

I’ll just say it.

They accomplished all that under the direct supervision of others. Their values and characteristics are those of their caretakers.

It’s nice that it turned out well in your viewpoint.

[left that other site]

Each of our kids went to day care, and none of the persons who cared for them were "strangers." They were professionals whom we selected to care for our kids while we both worked outside the home in our respective professions. Each of the kids subsequently went to pre-school.

And that is what made all the difference.