![Most glitter is made with plastic, and when it drifts into a landfill or down a drain, it can become a microplastic ...](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/5/k/c/r/image.related.landscape.380x253.gzx2i8.png/1513202233845.jpg)
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'He has gastro but that's okay, right?': sick kid etiquette
We cannot place all children who are sick in a bubble till they recover, but we can give other parents a choice about exposing their kids to them.
![<i></i>](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/q/2/o/y/3/image.related.wideLandscape.460x259.1146mu.gmyb2e.png/1468147607745.jpg)
Working out without worry: tips for using a gym creche
Thinking of joining a gym but unsure about leaving your baby in the care of the crèche? Read a mum's story and five tips for a smooth transition.
![<i></i>](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/3/p/j/n/u/image.related.landscape.120x80.136ru8.gmyb2e.png/1457057323308.jpg)
![Most glitter is made with plastic, and when it drifts into a landfill or down a drain, it can become a microplastic ...](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/5/k/c/r/image.related.landscape.120x80.gzx2i8.png/1513202233845.jpg)
![Childcare for preschool-age children can provide educational benefits.](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/y/e/c/g/m/image.related.landscape.120x80.gz5eer.png/1510893798882.jpg)
![Not all young children want – or are able – to sleep at the same time.](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/y/w/x/p/h/image.related.landscape.120x80.gywwnr.png/1507605911234.jpg)
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!["Plenty will disagree with me."](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/y/g/d/1/3/image.related.landscape.300x200.gygalb.png/1505808128954.jpg)
Mum refuses to send child to daycare with overweight staff
Her stance has been labelled "discriminatory" and "fatist".
![Harry King, 3, has been attending an early education centre since he was one.](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/y/e/c/h/7/image.related.landscape.300x200.gybp2z.png/1505074389837.jpg)
Day care 'double whammy': NSW lags in key education area
Gayle King spends the same on preschool for her three-year-old son Harry as she does on her mortgage, but she said she sees it as an important investment in his education.
![Early childhood educator Kylie Grey says she can't afford the cost of living.](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/r/c/v/p/j/image.related.landscape.300x200.gy9w9f.png/1504496544186.jpg)
Childcare workers to walk off job
Over the past six years Kylie Grey's salary has increased by just $4 an hour.
![Polly Dunning](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/2/7/w/2/image.related.landscape.300x200.gy0f6t.png/1503410115120.jpg)
Childcare costs more than my salary. Don't tell me to work
When childcare costs more than a woman's wage, calls to "just work anyway" don't help, writes Polly Dunning.
![Amber and Rowan Joyce are $14,000 a year better off living in Thirroul than Sydney.](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/x/z/k/p/1/image.related.landscape.300x200.gxxgg3.png/1503040250435.jpg)
How one couple is saving $19,338 a year on childcare
For the Joyce family, one partner being assigned to a project in Wollongong, south of Sydney, set the wheels in motion for a sea change.
![<i></i>](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/x/q/m/v/s/image.related.landscape.300x200.gxqmrk.png/1502073655870.jpg)
Why kids at this daycare nap outside - even in winter
The benefits are surprising.
![Kate Murphy with her son Micheal and daughter Sarah at their home in Oyster Bay.](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/x/n/5/w/g/image.related.landscape.300x200.gxnbv0.png/1501621702870.jpg)
'Working for nothing': Childcare crisis pushes Sydney parents to the brink
Most parents are experiencing substantial difficulties with the financial burden and lack of availability of childcare, as costs have more than doubled for some families in just over a decade.
![Childcare starts to look less expensive when you consider all the financial factors.](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/y/3/6/q/v/image.related.landscape.300x200.gxm3l6.png/1503546145112.jpg)
The two things most parents get wrong about childcare costs
Does it really make more financial sense for one partner to stay home?
![Safety concerns have been raised over babysitting posts on Airtasker.](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/x/7/o/9/n/image.related.landscape.300x200.gx84yx.png/1499766979293.jpg)
'People are auctioning off their children': Airtasker safety concerns
A sharing economy platform is under scrutiny over concerns for child safety.
![<i></i>](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/w/t/u/c/y/image.related.landscape.300x200.gwtubo.png/1497849983779.jpg)
The strange reason this childcare job is 'terrifying'
Applicants must be stoic, brave and not easily frightened.
![Sarah Meier, industrial relations lawyer and President of the Australian Labour and Employment Relations Association, ACT.](http://web.archive.org./web/20180319075239im_/http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/content/dam/images/g/w/9/g/x/z/image.related.landscape.300x200.gw9dot.png/1495507935336.jpg)
Families warned they may risk liability for injuries to au pairs and nannies
Families may be unwittingly exposing themselves to the risk of liability for injuries to au pairs and nannies they hire directly from online jobs platforms.
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