to wonder whether I should let my mum do some childcare

[NoArmaniNoPunani]

My baby is due in 8 weeks. At 8 months we'll be needing 2 days a week childcare. We've been looking online at nurseries and found a few we want to look at. My mum told me this week that she'd love to do a day for us. DH and I are really in 2 minds. (Him more so than me, he finds her very odd as he hasn't had 33 years to get used to her as I have)

Pros: she would love him
It would benefit her, she says she's getting bored and lazy in retirement
She's a young 65 and still has lots of energy
Would save money
My nephews both adore her so I'm sure our boy would too.

Cons: she's a bit odd with children, quite suffocating, doesn't like letting them explore their independence. I can imagine her wanting to spoonfeed him if we do BLW for example. I'm not sure how much that'll matter as its only one day.
She can be quite nasty at times, usually aimed at me though. She definitely favours boys and I think she'd be better with him than she would if we were having a girl.
I have heard her using emotional blackmail with nephews (if you do that nanny won't love you type shit)
I wonder if one day a week at nursery might be harder to settle into and less consistent

WWYD?

Excellent plan NoArmani

My PIL are lovely and pretty normal , they had DD for two days a week (and two nights due to transport) when she was a pre-schooler, and we had to have an awkward conversation with them about the high amount of sugar they were giving her resulting in some bowel issues we had to go to hospital to resolve. The conversation with our CM was very easy because we were paying and therefore it was a business relationship rather than a family one.

I also think DD might have taken a few tentative unassisted first steps with our childminder but she never said, just said she was really ready to walk and for me to keep an eye out. DD walked right across our lounge the next day. I think if that had happened with my PIL they wouldn't have been able to contain their excitement at witnessing this first. Not in a nasty way at all, but I would have felt pretty gutted. Our CM was very tactful around working parents who might feel sensitive about 'firsts'.

Going forward, it has also meant that MIL feels she has a bit more say in DD's life that she might otherwise have done, which can cause tension. And it has been hard to break the expectation of them seeing her regularly once she was in school.

This is all with PIL who rate highly for positives.