Since I was a young girl, it’s been my dream to open a day care. A daycare out of my home. Not a center or anything. My first “real” job was working in a day care/summer camp progam for the summers. I worked there for 3 years and decided that I wasn’t making enough money, so I left and started working for a school in the area. I worked as an aide. I jumped from class to class in the beginning, working with children of all ages and all sorts of mental and physical disabilities. I was then placed with an 8th grader who had seizers out of nowhere. Nobody could figure out why she was having them. She was molested by a janitor in her younger years, but the doctors did tests upon tests on her and couldn’t figure it out. She needed an aide to walk around with her and go to class with her. A just in case kinda thing. Which actually it worked out that I was there for her, because every other day if not every day I would have to help her through her seizure and make sure she didn’t harm herself. I worked with her for 2 years, until her family decided that maybe it was the school and switched schools for her. It actually worked out for the best for her though. I guess she is ok now days.
Anyway, those 2 years that I worked for her gave me the best gratification that I had ever felt in my lifetime. Her mother would always praise me. She thought that I was building this little girls self esteem and just working wonders for her. This girl had changed her life since I started working with her. She went from someone that wasn’t that popular to someone that was into what everyone was doing and EVERYONE loved her in school. They all seemed to want to be her friend. It felt great on my end as well as on her end and the family’s end. The more she go into the “in” crowd, the less seizures she would have and so on and so fourth. Unfotunatly it wasn’t something that was going to stop them forever. So they decided to try the school switch.
Anyway, I left that job and got a job out in the corporate world. Working with computers and reservations and stuff. I worked my way up to a supervisor in customer service. After 5 years, I decided that I still wasn’t making enough money so I quit and worked for an ins. company for 3 days and then quite, cause the guy was a complete DOUCH! My friend got me working with her Mortgage company as a Loan officer. I worked there for 6 or 7 months and quit because I just couldn’t do it. I hated lying to people and I just plain wasn’t good at it. When I quit there I started working were I am now. I am an inventory control specialist/logistics specialist at a company that is all over the world now and only 4 minutes from my home. I have a great job, I do love it. However, it’s not what I want to do for the rest of my life.
Back to my dream. I want to have a day care. I have been thinking about it so much lately, but can’t seem to find a way to do it. I live in a 2 fam. house right now taking care of my gramps. I can’t buy a house cause I can’t leave him high and dry. Then it hit me. During lunch today. My husband was home from work. I said, why don’t we buy a house, live where we are living now and use the house as a daycare. That way we have our house, in case we decide that we want out of where we are now, plus we are living my dream of having a day care. Adam thought about it, but wasn’t too excited. Then I said that it would be even better if he and I ran the day care together. His eyes lit up and he was all excited. He told me to start lookin’.
Well, even though I think the idea is fantastic, I’m not completely sure that it is “legal” to be doing this. I’m not sure if it’s as good of an idea as it sounds to me right now. I mean, both of us quitting our jobs to start up our own business. Sure it sounds and looks great on paper $$$$$$$$$, but is it realistic?
Who knows. I’m going to do some research and see what I can find. I’m not sure if it’s ok to have a house and not live in it, but run a day care out of it. I’m not sure about a lot of things. The only thing I am sure of is thatI.WANT.A.DAY.CARE. and I want it now. I want it so badly. The more I research the less information I find. then I start from scratch and I have to call people and the first thing they tell me is that I have to get certified. YA well DUH! I know that, but I don’t want to waist my time and money on getting certified if it’s something that isn’t going to work out for us in the long run.
This is taking a gamble people. A.HUGE.GAMBLE.
If anyone has any other input or ideas, please let me know. I’m dying to get this started, but really am scared and not sure if I’m doing the right thing.
P.S. I always doubt myself though. That’s what sucks. I doubt myself then someone else does it and is successull. WTF!!! I need to get off my ass and get to work.
2 Comments
October 5, 2006 at 7:12 pm
Well isn’t that amazing how your dreams start to slowly turn into realities. Ialso had the same dream of having a day care, It’s what I love It’s my passion….children. My children are the most wonderful thing that has happened to both my husband and I. But let me give you a little advise… I would try to hold out for a few years the first few years of your childs life are so precious and they go buy so quickly, you want to devot your love and attention to your children befor taking on others. Please call me so we can talk further about this. I brought other children into my home when Kassidy was about 2 and I have alot of feelings on this issue. But I also want you to follow your dreams. call me!! I luv u
October 9, 2006 at 4:26 pm
I have to concur with Colleen’s comment about waiting to open the daycare. You may very well regret not being able to give your full attention to this baby because you are looking after other people’s children, too.