I inferred souprock’s initial comments as daycare costs being too high due to government regulations requiring excessive labor for childcare, and my comments are to show that the regulations are not excessive, or at least not anything out of the norm compared to parents who stayed home (I don’t know anyone who can handle 4 infants by themselves).

And balancing the budget also includes the present value of future income that can be earned by a parent that stays home during toddler years versus one that continues to work and pays for daycare. Clearly, many people are betting that even the high costs of daycare are worth paying in exchange for the (increased) security of future cash flow from working.