Childcare while job hunting, what worked?, insurance claims processor here

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. Is there an emergency option?

Thanks for writing this out. I went through something close to it 4 months ago, and it got easier once I kept a simple log of every call and form.

Our county's childcare assistance took about 20 weeks to approve, but it covered most of the cost.