Home Daycares That Are Unbelievable

[Candy]

Has anyone every seen home daycares that just looks so perfect. I saw one that looked like a real daycare inside and they practically had a school playground in the backyard. Now i feel like my daycare is going to look like crap. Especially after looking at most of yours on the decor page.

[AnneCordelia]

Everyone has different criteria for the daycare they are looking for. Some want a home and family feel of a home and mom. Others want a daycare that feels more like a center or institution. And others want inbetween. :-) Don't be hard on yourself! Make the best of the space yiuve got and it will work out.

[Candy]

Thanks i just wish we had basements in the state that i live in so i can have more space to work with.

[jenn]

I have seen them and think that they are beautiful. That is not what mine looks like. My daycare is in my family room. There are toys and you can tell it is the main play area, but we also use it as our family room. My house is kid friendly and you can tell I run a daycare, but it in no way looks like a preschool or classroom. We have an outside play area, but it does not look like a playground. All parents are looking for something different. Some want a school type feel. Some want a home. There is nothing wrong with either, it is just different approaches and people working with what they have. I advertise my daycare as a "home away from home". I have a home type feel and treat them like family members. That is what some people are looking for and others are probably turned away by that. My theory is just do what is best for you and your family and don't worry about what someone else is doing.

[MissAnn]

Has anyone every seen home daycares that just looks so perfect. I saw one that looked like a real daycare inside and they practically had a school playground in the backyard. Now i feel like my daycare is going to look like crap. Especially after looking at most of yours on the decor page.

Mine does not look perfect but it does not look like anyone lives here!

[MissAnn]

Mine does not look perfect but it does not look like anyone lives here!

Okay I am going to comment on my post. What I mean is that my house is totally daycare. It does not look perfect it looks like a daycare.

[MrsSteinel'sHouse]

OK, here are some pictures to make you feel better. This is my house at the end of today. It was a chaotic friday!


Kitchen table

my dishes didn't get done

playroom

playroom
feel better now??

[Springdaze]

I kind of feel like that sometimes too, but i then remember that 1. I cant afford all that and 2. when I take pics of my school, it is immaculate and does not alway look that way and Im sure theirs doesnt either!

[Candy]

:: yes that does make me feel better

[MrsSteinel'sHouse]

Oh and I didn't mention the twins threw all of their lunch across the floor and I had a cup of spilt milk at snack time. My floor is so sticky!!!

[nanglgrl]

My daycare is finally what I have always wanted it to be but it took 10 years and a lot of money to get here. In my area daycare is competitive and people are willing to spend money and the majority prefer centers. I wanted to change my closing time to 3:30 pm and only take children between 15 months and 5 years (preferably 16 months-3 years). This limited my clientele base so I had to make my daycare nice enough that centers would be competing with me instead of the other way around.
I also saw that parents here weren't as happy with "we do preschool activities" anymore and they wanted to see their children in a setting that looks like a school even if the child was only a year old.
With universal preschool and government regulations I don't think the "grandma that has been watching children for 30 years daycare" or the stay at home mom who just wants to do this for a year or 2 daycare" will be around much longer.
It also helps me to feel like I go to work every day (it's in my basement) and I like that clients never come through my house because the entrance to the daycare is at the top of the stairs. I don't think I would have lasted much longer if I would've kept letting daycare take over my home, but that's just me and everyone is different.

[Evansmom]

Everyone has different criteria for the daycare they are looking for. Some want a home and family feel of a home and mom. Others want a daycare that feels more like a center or institution. And others want inbetween. :-) Don't be hard on yourself! Make the best of the space yiuve got and it will work out.

Mine does not look like a school at all, it looks like a nice home that is very kid friendly and the families I work with like that. They don't want a school look, they want the home away from home experience. That said I make myself competitive by offering a program that isn't like the other home or institutional preschools in my area.

The best thing you can do is find your strengths, what sets you apart from the other schools/daycares and then capitalize on that.

[MrsSteinel'sHouse]

Mine does not look like a school at all, it looks like a nice home that is very kid friendly and the families I work with like that. They don't want a school look, they want the home away from home experience. That said I make myself competitive by offering a program that isn't like the other home or institutional preschools in my area.

The best thing you can do is find your strengths, what sets you apart from the other schools/daycares and then capitalize on that.

exactly this

[nanglgrl]

Mine does not look like a school at all, it looks like a nice home that is very kid friendly and the families I work with like that. They don't want a school look, they want the home away from home experience. That said I make myself competitive by offering a program that isn't like the other home or institutional preschools in my area.

The best thing you can do is find your strengths, what sets you apart from the other schools/daycares and then capitalize on that.

exactly! What are people looking for in your area? I would say the one thing that is paramount to me is cleanliness. Toys on the floor is fine because it should look like children have fun but fingerprints all over the walls and stains in the carpet looks make me think the children run the place.

[just_peachy]

exactly! What are people looking for in your area? I would say the one thing that is paramount to me is cleanliness. Toys on the floor is fine because it should look like children have fun but fingerprints all over the walls and stains in the carpet looks make me think the children run the place.

Ouch, snap. Time to hire that housecleaner we were talking about!