What Made You Decide to Home Daycare?

[jillian01520]

Exactly what the title says! And also how long did it take once you decided, to get it up and running?

I have 2 boys ages 6 (and in 1st grade) and an 19 month old. I just feel like my kids would benefit more from me being home then being out of the house until almost 6 at night. My husband is home by 2 and picks the little one up from daycare and gets the older one off the bus, but I just feel like I am missing out on so much.

I have always loved kids and worked at a Center when in high school, but chose a different path after college.

[Crystal]

I decided to open my program because I could not find quality care. I moved my children from 3 programs within 6 months because the providers simply were not providing the level of care I expected for my children.

It took me about 2-3 months to fill all of my spaces, though I know many take 6 months or more to fill up.

If you love children, and your goal is to be home with your own, I say go for it!

[MommyMuffin]

I had a dream one night that I had a daycare. After that for the next few days I kept thinking about it. I started to research online and I bought a few books about it. After a few weeks of praying about it I decided that this was something that I really needed to do. I took some classes and got licensed. It took me 7 months to get ready and I think I made the best decision. I know it will be very hard but I think the rewards are so great.

[DCMom]

Because I wanted to be a sahm but couldn't afford it

Seriously, I started unlicensed doing 'a favor' for cash for two neighborhood families in 1989. It earned me some pocket money and I was able to stay home with my two boys who were two and an infant. After three years, my husband switched jobs and was making more money and I was pregnant with my daughter. Daycare was something I really enjoyed and with my daughter on the way I decided to become serious about it. So we built a bigger house, specifically designed for daycare and I jumped in with both feet.

That was 1993 and my newest daycare baby was just born today so I guess I am not retiring anytime soon, !

[DanceMom]

I knew that I did not have children to send THEM to daycare. I HAD to stay home with my kids - I worked outside of the home for over 20 yrs but when I had my daughter and had to send her to daycare the first day - it was the worst day of my life. I knew then that someday somehow I had to work from home. My mother in law has done inhome daycare for over 30 yrs - so I decided after I was pregnant with my second child that I would too.

[mac60]

If I had to do it over again, I pry wouldn't of done it. It has been 11 years now. I gave up 4 weeks vacation pay. I gave up health insurance benefits and my 401K. I gave up my home to caos, I was not able to attend all my kids school functions/sports activities due to being tied down to my daycare. My other job allowed me to be done at 3:30 and be active in the sports. DC caused me to miss many of their functions because with daycare I don't get done till 5:15. When I went into it, I had no idea my days would be so long and that my house would become more daycare than my home. Why I went into it? I guess because I was no longer happy with my other job, we lost our provider because she treated my kids horribly and it is very hard in our town to find school age care that will let you drop off at 6a.m. Since I was unable to find care for my own young school age kids, I started my business. I have been very very successful at it, and am always full, but after 11 years, I feel it is time to eventually move on.

[SilverSabre25]

It was last year. We were looking at buying a house. I was about to graduate college and was supposed to be heading into the Master's of Education Program to be an elementary school teacher. I realized that if I wasn't working, we wouldn't be able to afford a house. I wanted a house, and I honestly didn't want to spend 5 more quarters (over a year) involved in a high-intensity, full-time (or more) college program, working more than 40 hours a week for no pay, and adding more and more student loan debt. So I changed my mind. We bought the house, I started advertising on Craigslist, and within two months I had my first two daycare clients and it's just gone on from there. I love where I'm at and what I'm doing. I love my job and although I don't want to do this for the rest of eternity, I'm making as much as my husband does, we're to the point where we are living comfortably and paying down debt. I wouldn't trade it for the world.

[kendallina]

I worked as a preschool director before having my first (and only) daughter. Once she was born I stayed home for almost 2 years and then we really needed me to start working again financially. So, after looking for a job for over 6 months and turning down jobs that just didn't pay enough to justify working, I decided to start my preschool. I've only been open for a couple of months, but I absolutely LOVE it and am so grateful that I made this decision.

[laundryduchess@yahoo.com]

8th grade, I took child development classes, 8th and 9th,.. in 9th I was part of a pilot program at our school, we opened a daycare in school for 15 kids. I also provided care after school from 4 pm to 10 for a family in my neighborhood. After graduation I got a job at a daycare while going to college,... 21 years later here I am.

[mrs.meg]

My reasoning is the same as Crystal. I had 2 not so great daycare providers. The first on was WAY too strict, to the point that it was scheduled when they went potty and got a drink of water. The next one was so lenient that there were rabbits and guinea pigs running around the daycare room and the dog would follow them and eat their droppings!!!!! YUCK! Needless to say after seeing this I decided I was kind of in the middle and could babysit myself. I really miss working and being with adults, and am working toward going to nursing school taking classes. I couldn't do this forever! Some people are made for this, and they are special people. The only thing that gets me through the day is knowing it is temporary.

[boysx5]

I decided to do after I had my second child I went to school for early childhood and for what they pay I couldn't afford childcare for two children who were only a year apart. I also planned on a large family and I have five sons so me being able to stay home with them and make some money was a no brainer. I do enjoy doing daycare so much more now that all my boys are in school and I can still get my baby fill. Most days I love it but sometimes I miss leaving the house and getting out but I love the money I make.

[newtodaycare22]

Former Teacher

I taught kindergarten for 2 years. Loved the working with kids and actual TEACHING part....but I was so done with all of the "extras". Constant observations from a principal who had 0 early childhood experience. If he walked into a classroom with ANY noise, he said the teacher had no control. Ridiculous. I went to my mom's after a frustrating day (based on an observation where the kids were working in groups...and I got in trouble because the were talking). My brother said "You know, my friend's mom runs a daycare out of their house" It was like a lightbulb went off in my head. My degrees are in psychology and early childhood education. I love kids...so I decided to start an educational daycare for preschoolers (leave the diapers at home please...) A lot of people told me in this economy I'd be struggling...babies are where the money are bla blah.

Well, I hoped on August 16th and I currently have 3 full time kids and 2 part time kids. All 3 or 4 years old...and I'm having a great time teaching them their abcs and 123s

[BentleysBands]

i started caring for children at 11yrs and never stopped...had my first DS at 17yrs old (married as well and still am to the same man ) ..since then i've had 3 other children...its just all i've ever known to be honest. i have no interest in working outside the home. tho i will admit that after 24+yrs i'm tired, but i keep trucking..the $ is great for me.

[AfterSchoolMom]

I was a stay at home Mom. When my children were finally all in school, I started applying for jobs, mostly at DC Centers and Preschools. After interviewing at several places, it occurred to me that I could make more money for less hours if I did childcare on my own, and as an added bonus, I could run things the way I wanted without someone else telling me how to do everything. I've tried different age groups, but since my own are school aged, SA's are the best fit for us right now. I LOVE what I do (even when they're driving me crazy) and can't imagine doing anything else.

Oh, and once I settled on SA's, I put out my first Craigslist ad - I've been full ever since.

[melskids]

i actually have a few reasons.

i've been babysitting since i was 12, and just love kids. we lived in an apartment complex where there were about 50 kids, from infant through highschool, and we all kinda grew up like family. at 12, i would be responsible (in the summer) for about 6-8 kids at any one time. we used to apartment hop... lunch would be at one house, we'd go play at another, and then watch tv and raid the fridge at another. my mom was a SAHM, so she was always around if i needed her. now i look back and think those parents must have been crazy leaving their kids with a 12 yr old all day, my older son still cant handle watching his little brother... but i had one family who were pretty disfunctional, and i tried my hardest to make their days with me the best i could. my mom actually ran into those girls a few years ago, and they told her if it wasnt for me, their childhood would have no happy memories. thats one of the main reasons i do daycare still...i feel there are kids out there who need me. cheesy, i know, but i've had ALOT of those types of families cross my path, and sometimes i think these families are sent to me on purpose.

then at 18, i became pregnant. thank God i had my mom to care for the baby while i worked. but in order to support the baby, i worked ALOT!! i missed alot of his infancy, and alot of it is a blur. i spent the first two years of his life overworked and overtired. when i met my now husband, i told him like it was. no way was i gonna do that to another baby ever. so thats how i started in home daycare. i wasnt licensed, it was more of watching kids here and there to make ends meet.

three years ago we moved to a new town, and my youngest started kindergarden. so i thought maybe it would be time to go back to work. i got a job at a daycare center, and although i loved the kids, the job stunk. the program, the teachers, the director, the whole nine yards. and i hated having to get up and actually go somewhere. there is a provider a few miles down the road, and i would pass her house every morning on my way to work. i would see families getting out of their car on super cold mornings and think how lucky she was to be cozy at home and have the kids come to her. so, i quit my job, and went to get licensed.

ive been licensed for two years now. it was rough at first, because i live on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere, about 10 miles from town. but i got my name out there, and now am full. i have two pregnant moms fighting over the only spot i have left... i love being able to still be home, even though my kids are both in school. they get to come home to me, not a babysitter or have to be latchkey kids. i love sitting in my pj's having a coffee before the kiddos arrive. there are days i get sick of looking at the plastic crap fest that has taken over my home, and listening to srceaching babies has me pulling my hair out, but i wouldnt trade it for the world.

OMG...i just wrote a novel...