Childcare while job hunting, what worked? - any advice?

The daycare near me wants more than I can pay. I would rather hear the honest version than the polite one. I looked into subsidies but the forms are long. How long did subsidies take?

I swapped afternoons with another parent. It took some planning and saved us both money.

Our county's childcare assistance took about 24 weeks to approve, but it covered most of the cost.