The Daycare Diaries: How Did I Get Here?

I care for up to ten children at one time. Three of those are mine. I have a daycare in my home. I am business owner, a childcare provider. I work at least 60 hours each week. I change diapers, wipe noses, and bandage boo-boos. (Yes, I bandage those that aren't real, too.) I provide two meals and two snacks each day. I rock babies, play games, plan activities and comfort children. I am their "second mom".

I never imagined myself as a childcare provider, much less a parent running a childcare program in my own home. In college, I majored in business administration with an emphasis in marketing. After college, I worked in the buying department for a major junior clothing retailer. Then I moved with my soon-to-be husband, a farmer, to a rural area in the midwest. I had a job as an office manager. It seemed I was following my dreams. I was working, paying off my college debt and happily married.

So how did I get here? We had a baby. We needed childcare. The childcare provider that I found didn't fit our scheduling needs. The next provider I found didn't fit our standards. I had another baby. I quit my job to have more time with my children only to find myself working for a childcare center. Eventually, I realized that the only person who met my standards was me. I decided that I would create my own program and offer it to other parents who were looking for quality a childcare program. Three years (and one more baby!) later, I have a waiting list of potential clients.

So here I am. I am a childcare provider.