Do you dread it or welcome it?
It’s that time of year, when you have to figure out what to do with your kids for the summer. First of all, you have to decide if your child is old enough and mature enough to stay home alone. In Illinois the legal age to leave a child at home unattended is 14. In the event you leave a child who is under 14 years of age home alone, he or she is considered a neglected minor. Once they are 14, you may leave them home. However, it depend upon their maturity level. I found this out the hard way. I sped to the local grocery store and left my 13 year old daughter home alone. Unfortunately I was going a little fast. The officer asked, why I was hurrying. I told him, I was in a hurry to get back home to my daughter. He asked how old she was.
If you have a child that needs attending to, what do you do? Daycare. home care, summer camps, hire a nanny, babysitting co-op or create a hybrid plan? Now is the time to think about that and to make plans because, options may be limited once school gets out. A good source for kids summer programs is SpringfieldMoms.org