I Must Be Doing Something Wrong.....

[Unregistered]

I am a licensed provider in Maryland-just hit my 1 year mark. I have had 5 kids pretty much since I started doing daycare. So I have been happy with my income,there is always room for more though...But I have been checking out other daycare providers homes in my area- and alot of these ladies have HUGE homes-Im talking 5000 sq feet. Now my house is a good size-1600 sq feet. But what am I doing wrong here-it is just funny to me-huge houses-swimming pools-plus size swingsets......My other half makes a good income but evidentally they have husbands who must be bringing in the bank? Just a thought I wanted to share

[Michael]

They all probably work for the government. :: They make on average twice as much as the private sector.

[DancingQueen]

my house is 1008 sq. ft.
so obviously I have nothing to offer

[MyAngels]

I always have said small houses make for close families (literally, sometimes, ), and it's definitely true for us. We moved from a 4,000 square foot house when our kids were small to our current house, which is 1800 square feet. We had rooms we never even used in "the big house."

[Lucy]

my house is 1008 sq. ft.
so obviously I have nothing to offer

How weird. That is exactly the sq footage of my house!

[QualiTcare]

I always have said small houses make for close families (literally, sometimes, ), and it's definitely true for us. We moved from a 4,000 square foot house when our kids were small to our current house, which is 1800 square feet. We had rooms we never even used in "the big house."

that is so true. we rented houses before we got the one we have now which we own. the first house we rented was small and i always complained that there wasn't enough room - so when we moved to a bigger rental (about twice the size) i thought i'd love it. i didn't! for one thing, the power bill was about $500 a month. for another - the entire downstairs was wasted space. i bought furniture for the den and it was never, ever used. it became a dumping ground. my husband used to say he thought we were a lot closer in the small house and i thought he was crazy, but it's true. of course, i'm the mom - so i was the one who wanted SPACE! everyone else wanted to be right on top of me.

our house now is much smaller than that house, but bigger than the small rental. i like it a lot better - although i do threaten to rent an apartment down the street pretty often where i can have a toothpaste bottle with a lid on it and all those luxuries! the grass is always greener u know.

[mac60]

The difference is you can pry pay your bills at the end of the month, and they pry can't. Hence, all the foreclosures that have happened the last 2 years. I have a brother in law that is a flooring installer.He did installations in a housing development in our town that has 3000/4000 sq ft homes......he said that many of the homes did not have furniture in them except for bean bags, that was all they could afford. You're not doing anything wrong, you are being wise. Seriously, why does a family of 4 need a 3000/4000 sq ft home. That is simply rediculous. The American people have become greedy. (Some, not all). Other countries do not live this way, huge houses and lots of stuff.

[melskids]

i cant keep up now....i cant imagine more rooms to clean...

and as far as daycare, it doesnt matter how much space you have , really. ive seen huge centers with all brand new stuff, and sure it looks good, but the program stunk and the teachers were horrible. i may not have all the space in the world, or the newest toys on the block, but i love these kids and take good care of them. in the end, that's all that matters.

[BentleysBands]

i know how u feel! i always thought those with the bigger houses offered more...but have since learned its only the space they can offer more of...i have a small house too (1000sq) and use every bit of my house..tho i hate it and wished i had a larger house, i dont. I have always been full and have never had a problem filling spots. I think its all in your reputation, what u offer, HOW u offer it and how the kids are with you and vs. versus....one thing i wish i had was highchairs...i get so sick of the booster seats LOL

[SilverSabre25]

My house is about 1700 sq ft, which will be perfect once we get the workshop in the back cleared out of the old owners' junk so that we can use it for storage. THEN our house will be just about a perfect size. Even now, it's a great size--we have four bedrooms (one is a naproom, one is our room, one is DD's room, and one downstairs is currently storage), a nice-sized play room upstairs (supposed to be the living room, but who cares?) and a big play area downstairs for indoor large muscle movement. The only thing I would change would be to give us a bigger yard--it's pretty big but I could use more!

I bet all those huge houses are, like PPs said, people who are barely affording their payments or something. More is NOT always better.

[Lilbutterflie]

I agree with everyone's posts. More is NOT always better. Who in their right mind would want to clean a 5,000 sq ft home?? If I moved into a home that big, I would make sure we had room in the budget for a maid!!

I would not want a house any bigger than what I have now, 2100 sq ft. What I envy are those with basements!! I want one!

[misol]

i cant keep up now....i cant imagine more rooms to clean...

and as far as daycare, it doesnt matter how much space you have , really. ive seen huge centers with all brand new stuff, and sure it looks good, but the program stunk and the teachers were horrible. i may not have all the space in the world, or the newest toys on the block, but i love these kids and take good care of them. in the end, that's all that matters.

I'm with you! I can't imagine having to clean a house that big.

And yes, as far as daycares and home size goes - quality over quantity!