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One of us lost five daycare kids in two weeks, four to kindergarten and one who only comes in summer, and almost half her income went with them. Same hours, longer days, smaller paycheck. This episode is what we actually do when that happens.
If you run a home daycare or family child care program, this one is about planning for the next enrollment drop before it lands: saving while you are full, building a three-month emergency fund, cutting the food bill, and filling spots.
CHAPTERS
00:00 Intro: lost five kids, and what to do when it happens to you
01:20 Housekeeping: yes, we talk over each other
02:22 This week: down to five kids, and why five is harder than six
07:21 It was planned. It still hits: almost half the income, same hours
11:39 Ratio math: no under-twos until October, no working alone until January
13:19 Planned vs unplanned: losing four kids at the end of COVID
14:26 Save while you are full: retirement, emergency money, $800 brakes
16:22 Parents, tell your provider early
16:51 Bonus weeks and provider networking for extra income
18:24 Pay housing before food
20:27 Grocery strategy: only what you need, bulk, buy ahead, teenagers
24:12 Garden, CSA pick-your-own, and a farm-to-table grant
28:59 Eat the freezer and cheap vegetarian meals
31:46 Homemade tortillas, pasta, and bread at nap time
34:22 Emergency fund: automated weekly savings, three months minimum, prepay summer
37:22 Budget from what you spend, not what you make
39:29 College apartment heat and rotating streaming subscriptions
44:26 You can make plans, but plans can change
46:05 Filling spots: Facebook groups, location, yard signs
47:53 No panic, just budget conscious (come on, chickens)
51:36 Fewer kids, same work: the food program math
54:44 Parent Aware and grants: not free money
57:38 You need less than you think: the toy purge
58:47 What parents don't see: expenses stay the same
1:01:55 Narrow margins: this is a business, and we deserve nice things too
1:04:41 The truck died, then the battery died
1:06:57 Cheap resources: library, food shelf, phone, internet
1:08:56 Call the voicemail: how are you filling spots?
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Fewer kids does not mean less work. Hours, expenses, and food program paperwork stay the same.
- Save while you are full. Automate a weekly transfer, cover at least three months of what you spend, prepay summer.
- Pay housing first. Food help is easier to find than housing help.
- Cut the food bill: buy only what you need, eat the freezer, cook from scratch at nap time, grow what you can.
- Parents, give notice early. It lets your provider plan.
- Network with nearby providers. Their summer kids can fill your open weeks.
- Filling spots: local Facebook groups worked for a brand-new provider. Results depend on location.
RESOURCES MENTIONED
- Think Small provider grants, Minnesota (regional, start-up, emergency, Parent Aware): https://www.thinksmall.org/providers/
- Parent Aware, Minnesota's early childhood quality rating and improvement system: https://www.parentaware.org/programs/
- Farm-to-table food grant through Think Small: NEEDED grant name and link
WATCH NEXT
- Full Episodes playlist: NEEDED link
- Related episode: NEEDED link
ABOUT THE DAYCARE SISTERS
Brandee and Erin are two sisters, business owners, and home daycare providers with over 30 years of experience between them, parenting nine kids of their own. Isolation is the dirty little secret of home daycare, and nobody should feel alone doing the work they love.
Subscribe for home daycare real talk, provider business tips, and the stuff nobody tells you about running child care from your house.
Website: https://www.TheDaycareSisters.com
Email: [email protected]
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