Summer is, no doubt, the high season for child care. When the kids are out of a regular routine, parents scramble to fill eight to 10 hours a day of child care. That’s a lot of summer sitters, temporary nannies, and summer camp! And it can cost a lot of money, too. Many families spend half of their child care budgets during the long, hot days of summer.

Even stay-at-home moms, moms who work from home, and those with only preschoolers have to plan ahead for the summer months. Right now, you’re probably wondering how you’re going to handle those blocks of time when the weather’s perfect and the little ones start to get stir crazy after a winter of being cooped up indoors.

Check out these tips and ideas for keeping the summer fun coming for your kids—ones that won’t break your budget and also give peace of mind while you’re at work or need to get something accomplished apart from your children.

•       Look for local classes or day camps.
Whether your child loves art, dance, gymnastics, sports, or singing, you can often find classes or a day camp which specialize in their hobbies. Your local library is a great starting point to find these classes. Check their summer calendar to see what’s scheduled (and libraries library programs are usually free, too).

•       Learning is always in season.
Hire an art major from a local college to do a regular class (anything from finger-painting on up), start a gardening group with someone from a local garden center, or bring on an athletic teacher to do a little light-hearted sports training. Many teachers and college students look to earn extra income by offering lessons over the summer, so there are plenty of options out there.

•       Bring on a babysitter (or three)
If you can find a regular sitter who can handle the oddball summer hours and shifting schedules, great! But make sure you have back-up for when she can’t make it (or goes on vacation). Using friends and relatives as caregivers is a great way to save money—just make sure you help them out when they need a sitter, too. Make sure you have a list of just-in-case sitters to stay covered when you need care.

•       Share-A-Sitter
If you’re thinking about hiring a nanny or babysitter for the summer, why not split the cost and share them with another family? This works great especially if you have an only child (more playdates!). And with the economy the way it is, full-time sitters are used to these cost-saving arrangements. Just make sure you’re not overloading her with too many children. Generally speaking, caregivers shouldn’t watch more than three kids under age 6, four kids under age 12, or more than five of any age.

•       Co-operation is key!
Babysitter co-ops are a great way to save money and organize regular playdates for your kids. Care Exchange is a service that helps parents connect with other families looking to share sitter services (for kids AND pets). Other parents at your child's preschool or in your neighborhood might be up for sharing. Send an email around to the parents of your child's friends and see who’s interested in a rotating swap arrangement with families taking turns watching the kids. Five days of the week divided among five families equals only one day of commitment…and four days of free child care!

Many companies are looking out for parents and relaxing corporate policies nowadays to help improve work/life balance. If you are one of those companies, be sure to let your employees know, so they can weigh all their options.

Whatever child care options you choose, we hope you and your family have fun, stay safe, and have a terrific summer!

This article is provided by Care.com.
To find other summer care options, visit Care.com/HRcom.