So as time gets closer for me to get ready to open my home daycare. I am starting to get anxiety thinking *What if I spent all this time in college and all this money to start a home daycare and I don't get a child?* I mean I know you're not going to get them right away and it may take some time. I am just second guessing my career choice because I feel I won't even get one child. So I was just wondering how long it took you to get started up getting children? and How hard was it to get that 1st child? Thanks for reading and thanks in advance for your replies!!

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I just started mine up at the beginning of the year. I pushed really hard in the beginning and was able to get 2 children fairly soon. One meant that I opened earlier than I originally intended, but I decided that was a good way to get the first client in the door. I also joined a few local provider facebook groups, and was able to use networking to get the 2nd child in the door. I have an interview Friday for a newborn in April that I'm hoping to get. I'm finding it difficult to get an older child, but with my own children counting into the ratio, I will be getting close to capacity. It may take a little time, but eventually I'm really hoping word of mouth will kick in and it will be easier.

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I started advertising 2-3 months in advance of my move here... of course i'm not new to childcare, but this area is different from where I came from & the dynamics changed lol. I had 3 lined up for start and ended up with one... took 3 months to get another in (I can have 4); finally had 4 for a few months (took until October) & 1 quit no notice just last month, so back to trying again - I've been open 14 months

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It's pretty difficult in the very beginning, but if you know that going in, it's a lot less stressful. You'll get kids, it's just a matter of how long it takes before you get them.
I quit my job July 2014, decided in August 2014 that I wanted to do daycare from my home(literally woke up one day and said "I think I'll do this now" NOT how I recommend someone starts, but hindsight is 20/20), so I took the basic classes I needed(CPR etc) and started advertising like crazy! I had a LOT of interviews at first, but I wasn't as ready as I thought as was, and when parents were coming over they were asking questions I couldn't answer or didn't have a solution to, so it was a very slow start for me. I needed to redo my entire house since I don't have any children of my own, adding kid furniture, toys, books, etc. It's still a work in progress and I could still spend $5000 or more redoing it the way I WANT it, but it functions for now. And I needed to educate myself, because as I said, I have none of the formal education that most people here do. I had been babysitting since I was 12, but that was the extent of my childcare knowledge, and I'd certainly never ran a business before. My daycare was a spur of the moment decision basically, and I did everything backwards! So that contributed to my slow start up as well.....I picked up a couple part time kids in this time
First full time kiddo started Oct.2014, and second full time started Dec 15,2014, with a couple full timers in there that quit no notice.

I don't have NEARLY the education or training that you, and a lot of the people on this board have. I don't even have a college degree in anything. If I can do it and make it successful, anyone can!

In the beginning, I offered a lot of "special".......If someone needed weekend care, I offered it. If someone needed to pick up late, or drop off early, I allowed it. Need to wait a couple days to pay me? Sure. But when my first full timer signed on, I started cracking down on some of my rules, and now that I'm "established" as a provider, I'm beginning to enforce ALL of my rules! Being the new kid on the block, I kind of took whatever I could get in the beginning in order to establish myself and get my name out there.

I was very frustrated for a few months, and was considering going back to the job force, but I decided to stick it out for ONE more month(that was December 2014) and by the end of December, I had a full daycare and now I have a waiting list. So, hang in there. Even if its tough in the beginning, you'll get there.

Also, I recommend you start advertising NOW. Just put your official open date in the advertisement, but starting now will get your name out there and will generate interest, which leads to clients!

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At the end of summer, I was at the park, with my toddler and struck up a conversation with another mom about starting my own daycare. She, her sister-in-law, and her friend all needed care. I had been shopping yard sales all summer for toys and baby equipment, so I gave my two-weeks-notice at work, took a week to get ready, and started when the schools went back. This one random contact gave me a house full, and I've been doing it eleven years through word-of-mouth and referrals. Print some business cards and mention to everyone you see that you're starting a daycare!

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I decided in September I was going to start doing inhome again. By my start date in October I had my 5 2-3 year olds and one infant to start the end of this month. I've had the same crew since I opened. I also worked at a center before and when the families heard I was leaving they contacted me to send their children with me.

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I've been open almost 10 months. I took 4 months setting everything up so I was well prepared. I read this daycare forum, researched all the potential issues, and made sure I had a really good contract. I also spent quite a bit of money opening because I redid our basement to make it for the daycare only and getting everything I thought I might need. I'm just now at the point where everything is paid off an I'm making money.

The first month I had 3, then I ranged from 4-5 for a few months. Now I have 6 most days (that's my max here) and 5 on 2 days.

As soon as I got the first few, word of mouth travelled fast. I have a mix of full and part-timers, so 9 total.

I also priced myself competitively (without giving away my services). I set myself up like a center and I teach preschool and Spanish, plus i do a lot with multi-cultural education, but I don't charge near what they do. So parents who want a center experience without the large feel of a center, or the huge price tag are interested. Now that I'm more established, my rates will be higher for all new clients, bit still cheaper than centers.

My advice is to find a way to distinguish yourself. Do something different so you stand out.

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Word of mouth is huge, and talking about what you do. I have met dcfs at the playground, dog park and a dance performance. Lots of referrals.

I went from 1 to 8 kids in 6 months. I was not actively advertising or looking, I wasn't sure how many kids I wanted or could handle full time, but felt confident with each addition.

I am lucky in that I am of the having kids age, so I know lots of people who are making babies right now

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Thank you all so much for your replies. I knew it might be hard the 1st few months. Reading all the replies makes me a lil less nervous! haha

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I also don't have kids of my own. I will too have to redo my whole house and make it *child friendly* I am unable to have kids so that's why I picked this as a career and I can work from home and for myself. As far as education I went to PennFoster.edu and went to their career school and got a career diploma for Child Daycare Management and now I am going to AshworthCollege.edu and getting a career diploma for Child Care Provider. I would recommend you looking into them. Its easy to follow and teaches you so much. Another thing i've done to educate myself is just lurking around this forum!! lol When I started school and lurking around this forum I was just like *wow there is SO much to having a daycare I had no idea!* Good Luck with your daycare it sounds like you're doing really well!!

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I currently don't have a daycare yet (I nanny for two families and am looking into legally starting off unlicensed as an approved listed DHS provider). It might help if you start off willing to take assisted pay and also remember to register with your local child care resources and referral agency (CCR&R), they get calls from inquiring parents and refer them to local daycares that fit their criteria.

I'm still in my early 20s and don't have any children of my own yet either (though I am moving in with my boyfriend who has a teenage son from his first marriage). I have 2 AAs one in behavioral and organizational social science and another in multiple subjects with a certificate of achievement in ECE (over 40 units of CD). I also have taken a free classe on edX.org for positive behavioral support in ECE setting (unaccredited but still helpful and there are course verifying options for a fee) and have worked at a large home daycare and freelanced babysitting since high school.

One of my fears is that when I start up, either because of my age or because I don't have children of my own, that some parents might be afraid to take a chance on me because they might think I'm not mature/ responsible/ experienced/ serious enough and that they may be more comfortable with someone who has children of their own; like maybe they think they are more serious about child care because they have children (since most home daycare ads start off 'As a mother myself, I know how hard it is to find quality child care.').

Though there was one post on here a while ago I remember about daycare safety (I think it was about a daycare fire someone heard about on the news and some people were debating on if they would save their own children before the daycare children). I think I remember some providers saying that if they didn't do daycare and did put their child in one (knowing what they know now from expierince) they would prefer a provider who didn't have their own children because they know the provider with a child would most likely put their own child before the daycare children as far as general privileges go (not saying that they wouldn't try to save the daycare children in a crisis).

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Years ago I was full before I opened. We were building a childcare addition on our home and people called before I even advertised.

Fast forward 14 years and I reopened in a different home after working away from child care for that time, same rural area. I had four children the day I opened. I was allowed three related children and three unrelated before I became licensed.

Three were part time and one full time. I had advertised with flyers and in the local newspaper. Two of the children were from word of mouth.

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