Childcare that Feels Like Home: Laura Hair’s Recipe for Preschool Success | Daycare & Early Childhood Education Series

Intro  

Welcome to another edition of inspired stories where leaders share their experiences so we can learn from their successes, how they’ve overcome adversity, and explore current challenges they’re facing.

Anthony Codispoti
Welcome to another edition of the inspired stories podcast where leaders share their experiences so we can learn from their successes and be inspired by how they’ve overcome adversity. My name is Anthony Cotispodi and today’s guest is Laura Hare, founder of Laura’s Barn Preschool and Child Care Center, a daycare with three locations, one in Seaside, California, and two locations in Salinas, a state subsidized location and another private

They have been helping families raise amazing children for over three decades. They offer a comprehensive curriculum and sign language instruction and put a big emphasis on continuity of care to support infant development. They believe in the importance of consistent routines to help with self -regulation, cleanliness to lower the chance of illnesses, proper nutrition to help with your children’s development, and a healthy dose of outdoor play to foster sensory exploration, motor skills, physical strength, and a positive connection with nature.

and they have a weekly gymnastics instructor who visits, which the kids love. And before we get into all that good stuff, today’s episode is brought to you by my company, Ad Back Benefits Agency, where we offer very specific and unique employee benefits that are both great for your team and fiscally optimized for your bottom line. One recent client was able to add over $900 per employee per year in extra cashflow by implementing one of our proprietary programs. Results vary for each company and some organizations may not be

To find out if your company qualifies, contact us today at addbackbenefitsagency .com. Now back to our guest today, the CEO of Laura’s Barn Preschool and Child Care Center, Laura. I appreciate you making the time to share your story today.

Laura Hair (02:39.502)
Good morning, Anthony. Nice to be here. Thank you for having us.

Anthony Codispoti (02:44.108)
Absolutely. So, Laurie, tell me what was the inspiration behind starting your first daycare center? How did that all come

Laura Hair (02:55.019)
There’s a really bad backstory. mean, an interesting backstory. I was working, I was doing, I was actually kind of working for a company that started online retailing way back when. And then my husband and I decided to split up and I was left with two children struggling really hard with the divorce.

and I didn’t really know how to support them properly. I just knew I needed to be close and with and available to them. Well, the lady that had was babysitting and my daughter while I was working said, you should just open a childcare center so you could be home with the kids. You seem to enjoy, you every time I come there, I was always playing with the kids and stuff. She’s like, you seem to enjoy that. You could be home and available even when they’re at school and those kinds of things. So that’s kind of how it

and it started on this property my parents owned that had a barn and that’s how the whole meme kind of came around. and then and it just I have my original client he comes and sees me often he’s at Alabama studying kinesiology and he’s going to be he’s working on his master’s at Alabama football

So he’s very excited. these clients that I started with, I still know them. They still come back and visit with me. So that’s kind of how I started Laura’s Barn. I didn’t think that was a career for me because I was always supposed to be least likely to have children. Went to an all -girls school. They were like, there’s no way. She didn’t even babysit. But it changes when you have children.

There’s such sponges for information and there’s so many things that you can do to teach them and engage them and just kind of, it doesn’t have to all be A, B, C, D, E, F, G’s. We used to go set up habitats for lizards in our giant sandbox and those kinds of things. it was just a kind of niche that I fell into and it just kept building on itself.

Anthony Codispoti (05:14.346)
And so you started in your home to begin with, and how many students, so many children were you able to accommodate there?

Laura Hair (05:17.633)
Correct.

I accommodated eight at that time. And so, and it was varying ages from infancy up to age. Well, some of them stayed with me till like sixth grade because they could ride the bus to my house and they would come in and do homework and have a snack. And they became part of our family too. My son used to call them my brothers from another mother.

So it was, you know, it was just, it was very, we just, I don’t know. I really enjoyed the teaching part. I missed that part, that component, but, watching my new staff and new teachers and the team do what they’re amazing. They’re holding a graduation today for our preschoolers and they just are phenomenal at, developing that community feeling. And that

Anthony Codispoti (05:49.419)
I like that.

Laura Hair (06:18.145)
because I always thought centers were very cold and I liked the home base. And so that was my goal. My goal was this is not gonna be center -based, it’s gonna be home. These kids walk in, they’re like, they know where their snacks are. They know all the teachers in the program. I mean, it’s just, they’re family, so.

Anthony Codispoti (06:39.456)
And so how did it evolve then from being run out of your home for a long time to then moving into some separate physical centers?

Laura Hair (06:39.573)
That’s how we kind

Laura Hair (06:48.889)
So I met my husband and we got, I got married and I opened another, another house place when we moved to Toro, which is this really nice, area, very, we call it the old fifties type of neighborhood where kids are, you know, running around, kids are playing. So I brought the center of my house, business to that place. I developed, or I, had my garage built out for

the childcare center, I served the eight kids. that was started in 2002 is when I opened. And then in 2017, a childcare business had gone out of business, which is probably like five miles from my house. And so I had families showing up at my door begging me to go and open this center because they were without care that they had signed up for. And this lady just shut down. It’s a small community. So

we kind of everybody knows everybody is just the way Salinas is. So from there we went my I knew I could do the center but I needed support. So I, my sister and I, I brought my sister in as partner. So we’re 5050 partners, she came in, helped with the style, the design work, the things that that’s not what I’m good at. And that’s what she’s really good at. Like, if you looked at our centers, you’d be like, my god, I mean, just

they’re beautiful. We make it a house, like a house style so that children appreciate the things that their environment is. And I think that’s important to teach children that too. So from that location we ended up moving to, was, had a very open, like 12 foot ceiling, so it was very loud and very difficult to have those classroom.

sessions because it was so loud. So we decided after a year being there schlepping propane tanks that we were going to move to something that was a little bit better for our program. And we moved into about a 6 ,500 square foot building on the Monterey County Office of Education’s campus. We’ve actually taken over some of the other rooms. It’s kind

Anthony Codispoti (09:07.016)
And so why were you schlepping?

Laura Hair (09:10.7)
because he wouldn’t provide us heat.

Anthony Codispoti (09:11.721)
Why were you slapping?

Laura Hair (09:16.017)
Yeah. So we just decided the whole, maybe that’s why she left. I don’t know, but it was just not a real…

You know, your landlord’s important, but they also need to be just as reciprocating to you as you are to them. And we did a lot of improvements, made it a very, a much nicer place. But when one asked to have some bigger propane tank, a permanent one, it wasn’t received. He was like, no, I’m not, you can do that, but I’m not. I’m like, he’s kind of a basic thing, you know? So we decided that

When we went to MCOE, it was such a different experience. They were so welcoming. They know how important the need is for childcare in this area. So they even put in like a pour and play playground for us. They really helped us because we were, you know, we were just kind of starting out, but they really helped get our facility set up. They put new floors in. They put,

you know, just kinda added a kitchen, cause we needed a kitchen to serve food. So it was all part of the, I mean, granted we’re paying for it, but it was still the, it was a totally different experience. I’m like, is this what it’s supposed to be like? Like you’re fighting for everything. Could we have a hose to water some grass? know, that kind of stuff. Just, so from there, then I decided that,

you know, I’ve been doing this a long time. I wanted to actually go into helping the lower income, really is subsidized should be for everybody because anybody that’s making a living wage now, it’s hard. mean, I know I charge about $2 ,000 a month for care. San Francisco is like $2 ,900 for care. But it’s the fact we have to pay these teachers.

Laura Hair (11:19.453)
a living wage and so that they can stay and stay with these children. So that was, I don’t know how I segued out of that, but the state subsidized program is great because it does help facilitate those things. So it pays for the staff and it pays for the supplies and all the furnishings and things that we need to run a program that these kids are entitled to.

Again, we have a very lovely center on it’s on Hitchcock Road. It’s out in the middle of the country. So you look out, you’re looking across the beautiful fields of lettuce and that’s our community, you know, or it could be strawberries. It just depends on the season. And then we found another program that was for sale in Seaside. So we just bought that last year. So we’re kind of in the process of working on that. We got a grant.

from the state to help because it needs a lot of work. It needs a roof, it needs a playground. We’ve kind of band -aided it, painted it, cleaned it up, put new flooring in, but there’s some real need for some real modifications for that program. That’s going to be our big baby this year. That will be our main focus is getting that one done. But that’s kind of how it

Anthony Codispoti (12:39.752)
So I’m curious about the state subsidized location. How did that actually come about and is that something that’s accessible to other daycare owners to open a location that gets the state subsidies?

Laura Hair (12:43.904)
Yes.

Laura Hair (12:55.617)
So if they’re a center, yes, you can. But there’s family child care networks, which work with, California loves acronyms. They’re like, you you can, I can go, I have a CCTR contract, but I don’t have a CSP contract. I mean, it’s like everything’s an acronym with them, but they’re, they call them AAPPs, which is an alternative payment program. So there’s a company

family child care can go to and say, I’m looking for kids and they’ll be subsidized by the by those programs. Just as a center acquires the money, the APP programs acquire their money and then distribute it out to the providers. So it is something it’s just family child care providers can’t there’s a lot of back work that that’s why I’m actually now in an office because there’s so much paperwork and

tasks, like they task everything. So I’ve kind of just moved into that, you know, with budgets and writing for grants and writing applications to expand my childcare and get more students enrolled, those kinds of things. it’s, and then there’s assessments that you have to have done for children, which are called DRDPs. It’s a developmental.

So they’re following the children from infancy up to third grade and those have to be done twice a year. So there’s a lot of stuff that I think they feel like the family childcare providers might be overwhelmed with all of those details. Knowing how I ran my program, I don’t think it would be a problem. I just think that it might be problematic for some to do those things.

So that’s why they have these support. They have a program called MAOF, which is the Mexican American Opportunity Foundation. They’re big in LA, and they have an office here, and they do the same thing. people call, look for subsidized care, and they have a list of providers that they can send somebody to to see if they like the program as a family child care provider.

Anthony Codispoti (15:10.992)
So tell me about your curriculum and your overall approach to early childhood education.

Laura Hair (15:19.873)
personally, at first when I was learning about the California State DRDPs and then the ECHRs, which is an environmental look at where children are, and then the curriculum. And the curriculum has to follow those two components. But you can also tailor your program to also do other things. So we do science. I like

kids to experience science. We used to have, we had a teacher named Beaker Beatrice and she would go up and we always going, she’s blowing something up in the yard. So, you know, the Mentos and the Coke and the, you know, the volcanoes and sinking your, you know, sinking or floating items. So those kinds of things kids love because it’s very tactile and it’s very, they get to experience those things.

Anthony Codispoti (16:04.815)
Okay.

Laura Hair (16:17.375)
and they all wear their little goggles and their science outfits. And we have a few scientists that actually work for us and they just love it. They think it’s great. So we do, it’s child led. It’s not teacher directed, but it’s child led. So we want them, they have specific daytime tasks that they do. We do a circle time and we do the calendar and we do the

the things that you have to kind of repeat on a daily basis. And we’re open, you know, all year round. So these kids are getting those things daily. We had a student go to take a test for one of the, actually it was this school I went to, all girls school I went to, but it’s coed. And I guess he went in and took the test and he looked at the teacher and he’s like, is that all? It makes me laugh because these kids.

If you feed them the information, they’re just going to keep taking it and start reading. We try to teach them about, you know, the United States. We try to teach them about artists and how to look through a painting and see the history behind the painting and talking to children about the Mona Lisa and saying, you know, back then they didn’t have lights in their house. They didn’t have targets. Where do you think they’re getting their

painting me, know, they’re like, don’t they have paintbrushes? There was no, and so they would come back the next day and the parents were like, okay, they were telling us about how back in the day, there was no carpets in the house, there was no lights and just giving them just introductions to different things that sparks an interest is kind of how we like to do things along with the regular components that

are necessary holding pencils correctly so that they can write their names. But also giving them that. And then we’re trying to get this grant from the USDA, which is going to do, it’s gonna have a, because we are in the heart of the Ag Belt. We are the green curtain is what Salinas is, where we grow everything, lettuce, tomatoes, everything. So we’re getting a grant to build a greenhouse.

Laura Hair (18:39.365)
And within that greenhouse, we’re actually going to do vertical growing. So we’re going to get some vertical. So we can. We’re going to teach the kids about vertical growing and then getting them involved in the planting and getting them involved in the harvest and then also doing maybe a sale of their harvest to the families. And then whatever’s, you know, of course, if the family can’t afford it, we’re going to be donating whatever we grow in these particular.

vertical gardens and actually they’re hydroponic vertical gardens. So when I first said that we’re growing hydroponically, everybody was laughing at me. They’re like, what are you going to grow in there? Tomatoes? And I’m like, no, you can grow all kinds of things. So that’s like our next big project that we’re going to do and that will involve parents, children, the staff will all kind of be, it just,

It’s about community and this is how you kind of build your community around your program is by getting things. And we have a lot of support with ag, you know, companies here. I’ve already talked to our there’s a where our garbage goes. They also do the soil and the dirt. It’s not dirt. Sorry. It’s soiled. And they I’ve talked to them and they’re going to donate a bunch of their ready mix planting.

things for us too. So for our ground plants, but we’re also doing the hydroponics. So it should be interesting to see how this is, because kids love to be participants. And I think parents sometimes don’t give their children opportunities to do things because they’re really capable of doing a lot more than some parents may think they can do. I don’t know.

Anthony Codispoti (20:32.868)
So Laura, wanna go back a little bit, because you were voted most likely to not have kids, right? And then you started daycare center in your home. That’s a big jump. And then you move on to opening physical centers. I’m curious, particularly as you went from the home -based center to a standalone center, who you were able to lean

Laura Hair (20:33.202)
I

Laura Hair (20:36.65)
Okay.

Laura Hair (20:41.211)
Right? Yeah.

Anthony Codispoti (21:01.592)
to sort of help you with that transition? Because I’m to guess it’s a different set of organization, it’s a different set of skills, it’s a different set of needs, a different set of managerial aspects that need to come into play. How did you kind of level up in that process?

Laura Hair (21:16.577)
correct.

So that is where the partnership with my sister came in. Additionally, we have a really good team of staff that I would say within the last five years has really taken a run and made us definitely better. And their support and their ideas are always very focused on the

family and whatever. It also focuses on the business. They have ownership in the business because it’s important to them. And if you can find in place like that, it’s wonderful because they are also vested in what we’re doing and they know the process. I had an accounting background because that was kind of what I went to school for. then

My sister, like I said, she really handles this. I’m not allowed to handle HR. The joke is, is if you go in and talk to the lawyer and you’re supposed to get fired, you would get a raise and probably a promotion. So my sister’s like, you’re done with that. I’m like, thank you. I don’t like that part. So having people that can take pieces that you’re not good at.

It’s really important. So yeah, I lean on them. You know, my dad was self -employed. My mom worked for him. And so we have a lot of that self -employed drive and background just from what we’ve done, my sister and I. like I said, she just, we

Laura Hair (23:13.227)
really well to balance, you know, talking about ideas and like she’s gonna, I already told her, said, you’re the project manager today or you’re HR today. I just, you know, and then I kind of do the budgets and the audits and the, the documentation that needs to be done and keeping up with licensing expectations as well as the contract expectations. Cause there, every day there’s something coming out and I’m like, what now?

Anthony Codispoti (23:44.522)
It’s a lot. You know, and this next question might be better for your sister because you said that she handles more the HR stuff. But you you’ve touched on the importance of finding, you know, good staff, good employees, and kind of getting them bought in and, you know, wanting to, you know, play an active role in making the center better. I’m curious, especially, you know, with it being such a hard labor market, what kinds of things have you guys tried and seen have

Laura Hair (23:56.906)
Hmm

Anthony Codispoti (24:14.338)
to recruit and then retain good talent, good

Laura Hair (24:20.161)
So teachers shortage is very difficult and California, the regulations are very high. So anybody coming in to work with an infant has to have a class. It’s an infant development class that you have to take through college. 15 years ago, I wasn’t part of the state funded program. So I could bring in kind of anybody that seemed to be interested in working with children.

As a matter of fact, one of the ladies that I hired over at our first location is still with us and now she’s a director at the center for us. But she didn’t have any education. how, you know, that was, you have to kind of get them started and support them and trying to provide them information on classes that are either paid for, which we’ve done in the past.

or have grants that they’ll reimburse them for in for college courses. We also purchased a slot of from theoretical college was like $10 ,000 and they would get all of our staff that infant toddler class that we just.

because I just said everybody needs to take that class. It’s not an option. Everybody from the bookkeeper to whatever. Because if you need to be in that classroom with a child, you can’t be in there unless you have that class. So they have some very big rules about things like that. So you have to kind of think, okay, how’s that going to affect our program and what should we do to make sure that that is a smooth, like I said, anybody could go into the infant class.

So also we try to do fun things with our staff. And I have a really good site supervisor who they actually want to work for, meaning they like to do the right things for her. She just has a way about her that, and that’s what you need. She motivates them. She doesn’t make them feel bad if they’ve made a mistake or what can we do to change those things?

Laura Hair (26:40.853)
So providing the support, providing the education, getting them the classes. so we try to look at Hartnell College, MBC College, even the high schools, because we don’t have ROPs anymore. We’re trying to, that’s kind of our goal this year is to work with some of the high schools to see if there’s any kids that are maybe interested in this type of work. Like they’re babysitting already. So maybe they would like to come in and actually get, see what it’s like to work in a center.

and would like, you know, they can take classes in high school, in college, if they would like to.

and finding programs that are like eight weeks. That was a big one.

Anthony Codispoti (27:21.588)
Laura, what are you

Anthony Codispoti (27:25.587)
Yeah, I’m curious, what are some of the biggest things you think set you apart from other daycare centers?

Laura Hair (27:35.947)
think it’s just our environment. I think we have really good team and they make people feel important. They make them feel their child’s importance. You know, they care. It’s one thing to sit on a bench like that behind me and try to monitor children versus being actually on the

playing with the kids. kids, parents will tell me they’re saying prayers for so and so at night or, know, they talk about so and so all night long or on the weekends. So they run in the door. We want them to run in the door and not run away. And that takes some very special people, very empathetic and just conscientious.

about their children. you kids don’t go home filthy. That was one of my things. was like, you know, I’ve seen in the past where kids are just like filthy. Like I’m like, did you, would you want to sit in that wet shirt all day long and you have babies that are drooling all the time? No, you wouldn’t, you know, or, you know, they’ve got paint is something different.

has to come off of the bathtub, but I’m just saying like the runny nose or their hair’s not brushed. So our girls will actually take the time and show them, know, this is how we clean our face, let’s brush our hair. And you know, those are important. So that was what I would, I want it for my children. I want my kids to love to go to wherever they went, whether it was school or you know, whatever activity they were involved in because

if you feel like they’re being cared for, that takes that pressure off you. We also have an app that parents are able to see what they’re doing. So every time they have something for lunch, they take a picture of them, they tell them how much they’ve eaten, they get pictures throughout the day. And this is the generation too. So you’ve got your instant feedback is important to this generation that’s coming up and for their children.

Laura Hair (29:55.529)
I think that helps a lot of the families feel connected.

Anthony Codispoti (30:00.161)
sure, yeah I mean as a parent who just a few years ago had kids in daycare, you drop them off, you go to work and all day long you’re just wondering how are they doing? Maybe they were having a hard time this morning during the drop off and are they okay? Have they gotten past that? And so yeah, anytime we would get some sort of an update and you see a picture and they’re smiling and they’re playing with something, it puts your mind and your heart at ease at the same

Laura Hair (30:23.745)
Yes. Yes. Yeah, it is important.

Anthony Codispoti (30:29.903)
I’m curious, Laura, what are some of the most common concerns that parents have when starting their kids in a new school like yours and what can you tell them to help put their minds at ease?

Laura Hair (30:46.911)
believe the app is huge. Because they’re getting information all day long, not just one. So like if you said your son had a hard time dropping off the mom or the dad can message the teacher how how are they doing? And then the teacher can say, you know, they’re still you know, struggling, but we’re you know, we’re working on it. We’re getting some breakfast in him and maybe he’s hungry. And then they also let them know, they’re doing great. Now they’re feeling much better.

and sitting and talking to them. Transitions are really hard for kids, especially the COVID children that were, you know, brought into the system. We were open during COVID, so those kids did fine, but the kids that were sheltered, you know, for two years in their home, it was a huge change for them to come into these big, wide open spaces with teachers and kids, and they’re not used to, so it’s, those kids we do gradually, but.

I always tell the parents we do, we call it the tryout for the team because we want it to be a good fit. I don’t want a child to feel terrorized to be dropped off every day. That’s not what we’re about. So, you know, we’ll do just kind of get to know the child, let the child have a slower introduction where they come for a couple hours and then a couple hours more. And then we try to get them to nap time. And then once they hit nap time, they’re usually good and the parents

Infants, there’s a lot of parents with brand new babies and that breaks my heart because I know how they feel. know, some moms will leave and they’re crying and I’m like, we’re here for you. Your baby is going to be fine. You know, she’s six weeks old, but she’s going to be fine. We’re really here for you to support you. How can we make you feel more comfortable? And that’s really important, I think, for any program

this is, you and then having that schedule so they know what’s happening, you know, usually with infants though at that age that kind of pick their schedule. So we follow their schedule, but yeah, it’s, it breaks my heart when the new moms come and have to leave their kids off because they’re a mess. yeah.

Anthony Codispoti (33:00.798)
And new dads too. And new dads too. I dropped my son off the first day at daycare and it surprised me as I walked out that door, tears just coming down my face. I thought I was looking forward to this. Like, okay, like we can get back to, know, fully focused on work for the day. And it was like, I’m gonna miss that little dude. And this is the first time I’m putting him in a stranger’s hands. Now, fortunately for us, the daycare

Laura Hair (33:12.257)
Yeah

Laura Hair (33:17.237)
Bye.

Laura Hair (33:27.595)
Yes!

Anthony Codispoti (33:29.233)
you know, we chose was, you know, it’s very close in our neighborhood. It had come highly recommended. Friends of ours had taken their kids there. We’d done a tour and met the owner. And so we felt, you know, really good about it. I’m curious though, you know, you probably get a lot of families that they’re looking at multiple centers and trying to figure out like what’s, which one is the best fit for us. How can you sort of coach a parent through making that decision and what should they think

Laura Hair (33:53.217)
correct.

Laura Hair (34:00.267)
I tell parents, we call it mommydar, like radar, mommydar, and go with your gut. If your gut’s telling you something, you’re probably right. So, you know, when you’re visiting at places, you know, and I’ll give them a list of like, these are things you want to make sure they’re licensed, they’ve got their CPR, you know, and then get reference checks and things like that. We always, you know, my,

The families that are there will always offer to give a reference for our program. But it is a very personal choice for families and some families, you know, we aren’t the right center for them and that’s totally okay. You know, there are some families who need more of a family child care setting, a smaller environment. It’s kind of that personal choice is the way I look at it. So I don’t take offense to someone that doesn’t want

attend our program. That’s totally fine. I want them to be happy because that makes their life easy. It’s more about, you know, the kids are going to do great where, you know, in any program, but the parent needs to be just as satisfied and happy to know their child is cared for and safe and nurtured and loved. And they are a family and the little kids in the classroom are, they’re funny.

I’m marrying her, okay.

Anthony Codispoti (35:31.26)
That’s great.

Laura Hair (35:32.769)
So, and I mean, I have kids that went to my program that went to high school together and are still friends. Like it’s really funny to watch that. And it’s always Ms. Laura, Ms. Laura. Yeah, so that’s kind of our feel on it. Our staff is the same way when they do tours. They want the parents to feel very comfortable.

Anthony Codispoti (35:50.117)
That’s great.

Anthony Codispoti (36:02.683)
Can you maybe think of one or two particular success stories of a child who, I don’t know, maybe they were having a little bit of a hard time at first and then came to thrive under your care?

Laura Hair (36:15.009)
So we had a little girl, and we’ve had several, but they would come in and she would just be so sad. like that kind of sadness makes us sad too because there’s different patterns to a child’s sadness. It’s I’m mad or I’m not liking this or just a generalized sadness from being separated from mom. And I think most of us understand that. And so we try to really work

parent, like, could you bring us a picture? So when she’s feeling sad, we can look at the picture, or we can, you know, write notes to mom and then give them to her at the end of the day. We can take pictures, we’ll take a picture of you and send it to mom. So she that child’s feeling like, okay, a lot of it is, is she coming back to get me and those kinds of things. And so we would try to give them a timeframe that they could relate to. So we would say, okay, after now,

and after snack, that’s when pickup time starts. So a lot of kids will wake up and they’ll go, it’s nap, I’m gonna have a snack and then it’s pickup time. And so trying to reiterate that so that children understand the day and having visual cards on what we’re doing next. So we’re having breakfast and there’s a table and their kids are sitting at the table and reflecting

to those things that they can understand, I think helps a lot. And so she cried probably, she cried probably about two weeks and we were like, okay, let’s maybe cut her back to half a day. then one day she walked in and was like, good morning. I was like, we’re all like, what happened? It’s like they make that turn. Yeah, it’s just.

Anthony Codispoti (38:03.022)
Nice, she suddenly became comfortable.

Laura Hair (38:08.661)
We’ve had a lot of them do that where you’re like, they walk in and they’re like, are ready for breakfast? And we’re like, okay, I have to recover from that now. So.

Anthony Codispoti (38:23.311)
You know, and I like what you were saying about the sort of helping them with the schedule. I know, you know, in times when we’ve had our kids at home, especially when they were younger, my wife, she’s a speech therapist with young children. And so her brain’s kind of wired to think this way, but she came up with like a Velcro chart with like visual elements on it. So we could, you know, show our youngest son

Laura Hair (38:46.507)
Yes.

Anthony Codispoti (38:48.898)
Okay, we’re gonna have breakfast in the morning, you get a little TV time, then we’re gonna go to the park and kind of make it like a little bit interactive too. like, you know, if maybe they wanted to add something else in there, right, they knew what was coming next and they had a little bit of input. And so it gave them a sense of understanding and maybe a little bit of a sense of control too. And I think that was really helpful for them. Yeah, yeah. And you

Laura Hair (38:59.691)
They know what’s coming out.

Laura Hair (39:10.507)
control. Yeah. I always tell parents that there’s three things a kid can control. Potty, eating and sleeping. That’s the only things that they can literally control. And so when you’re faced with those, you know, when you’re seeing that you’re like, okay, we need to give them some, you know, control over what they, you know, having choices for them to make, even though they’re your choices, you put it in a, you frame it

to help them make those choices.

Anthony Codispoti (39:46.372)
So we talked a little bit about some of the challenges that kids go through in daycare. I’d like to maybe explore either a personal or professional challenge, Laura, that you have gone through and maybe some of the lessons that you learned coming through the other side of

Laura Hair (40:06.529)
Growth is always difficult because you kind of think, I making the right choice for this to grow the business? And then at a certain point you reflect, okay, well, I’m this old, should I? And it’s like, I found my niche in my 50s. Like I realized some of it, cause we just started a nonprofit and

I found these things that I’m like, I’m so excited about and I want to do these things. so things that were hard, would say, you know, it’s always going to be about finances, you know, when you’re finding you’re stretched thin and you’re like, okay, how are we going to accomplish this task and get over this hump?

probably a hard part, but that’s most businesses and you know self -employment is not for the fainted heart at all because it just it is difficult. know banks are looking at you like you’re self -employed well no you can’t have funding and so you have to get very creative and figure out ways to do certain things. Audit was

my audit was my first time this year because we have a state contract we get audited. So we actually had audited financials. So that took about six months to kind of get figured out, changing our GLs and changing the way we categorize things and becoming more, I told my sister, we’re more professional now. We have audited financials, we’re professional.

But it’s, like I said, it’s not for the faint of heart, it’s very, hard. Yeah. So, it’s just, you have to be

Anthony Codispoti (41:50.53)
You’re all grown

Anthony Codispoti (41:56.984)
You mentioned that you started a nonprofit. What was that like? What was behind that decision?

Laura Hair (42:00.383)
Yes. So we want to provide services for families. We want to not just daycare, but finding them housing, finding them jobs, growing our program with maybe some behavioral therapists and some occupational therapists, because there’s a need for that within the program. We also want to have like a parent committee that’s paid.

one person’s paid and they run a parent committee that is involved in our programs to tell us how to be better. So this is just, we’ve just started it. And so we all sit there and we’re whiteboarding all of our ideas, but we’ve kind of tailored it down to two things right now. And that’s going to be a behavioral therapist or an occupational therapist and finding someone that can go into programs and help, not just the student, but the parents and the teacher.

because the teachers often need that support. They don’t understand, you know, they’re trying to figure out why is this child kicking and hitting and those kinds of behaviors. And so those are the hard days. You know, the easy days are you don’t remember, but the hard days you remember for the staff. So we’re trying to make sure that they have tools and families have tools because if you don’t know about it, then you’re never, you won’t be able

Like I never knew about subsidized childcare when I got divorced. I probably qualified for all kinds of things, but you know, not knowing those things kind of makes it hard for families. And so we really want to get information out that there’s services, there’s ways to find help. So that’s kind of that.

Anthony Codispoti: we had a little tech it issues there, folks. But we’re back now. And we were just kinda highlighting. You know what a big deal it is for small businesses, and you know, sort of the struggles that they go through behind the scenes that a lot of people don’t see. You know, you’ve got these beautiful daycare centers, 3 of them. Now. You know, you got lots of people working for you. Lots of lots of customers, lots of happy little kids running around. People.

4
00:00:34.840 –> 00:00:50.979
Anthony Codispoti: you know, probably think it’s just easy, you know, the money just flows in, and they don’t see those struggles and the challenges, and everything that goes on behind closed doors to keep that engine moving, you know, to keep people happy, to keep the doors open to, you know. Fix the furnace that blew out and.

5
00:00:50.980 –> 00:00:51.430
laura Hair: He’s.

6
00:00:51.430 –> 00:01:05.609
Anthony Codispoti: All that stuff. And so I you know, I think it’s it’s a moment to sort of, you know. Take a step back, and you know, pat yourself on the back for being able to, you know for so many years now, how how many years have you had your centers, including the the home base.

7
00:01:05.610 –> 00:01:07.890
laura Hair: So since 2,008,

8
00:01:08.150 –> 00:01:11.949
laura Hair: 2,002, I can’t remember a long time. Yeah.

9
00:01:11.950 –> 00:01:20.359
Anthony Codispoti: Okay, we’ll say about 20 years. You know all the all, the you know, the the sacrifices that you’ve had to to endure to make it work. Up to this point.

10
00:01:21.170 –> 00:01:34.155
laura Hair: Yeah, I would say that you know the hard part is of self employment that a lot of people don’t realize. It’s hard to buy a house. It’s hard to buy a car. They don’t like self employed people.

11
00:01:34.820 –> 00:01:38.501
laura Hair: Banks, don’t you know. So you you have to really

12
00:01:40.435 –> 00:01:45.039
laura Hair: registering with, you know, the the government, the

13
00:01:45.630 –> 00:02:02.790
laura Hair: sos what we call it sos state, we’re certified as like a woman’s own business. And you think that you know you could be generating all this cash, but I can honestly say half of it, if not a little more than half goes directly back to the employees.

14
00:02:02.940 –> 00:02:19.519
laura Hair: It’s the, and then the rest of it. You know you’re paying your rent, your your finances, and you’re trying to take care of making sure you’ve got diapers on site, and you know, food on site. So it’s it’s definitely not for the faint of heart. I don’t think any

15
00:02:19.550 –> 00:02:28.153
laura Hair: small business, you know, is anybody that’s just rolling in it. You’re all everybody struggles and

16
00:02:28.730 –> 00:02:32.830
laura Hair: We were fortunate during Covid. We stayed open because we were supporting all the

17
00:02:34.110 –> 00:02:44.321
laura Hair: 1st respond, not 1st responders, but the doctors and the police officers, the firemen. Anybody that had to be at work we were providing child care for

18
00:02:44.780 –> 00:02:47.120
laura Hair: So yeah, it’s it’s

19
00:02:47.320 –> 00:02:58.929
laura Hair: it takes a long time before you feel like you can breathe. But even then you’re still not gonna be able to breath because there’s something comes up. Oh, we need a playground, you know, and the costs of you know, child

20
00:02:59.870 –> 00:03:03.717
laura Hair: furnishings is astronomical. So

21
00:03:05.370 –> 00:03:11.230
Anthony Codispoti: You know, as a business owner, obviously, a lot of what we’re trying to do. We’re always looking at that bottom line right.

22
00:03:11.230 –> 00:03:12.110
laura Hair: You know.

23
00:03:12.110 –> 00:03:29.049
Anthony Codispoti: And how do we grow? How do we keep the doors open, you know, and there’s 2 big levers that we can pull. You can put them in 2 different buckets. Right? It’s like, how do we increase sales? And and how do we, you know, decrease expenses as you think about those 2 levers? What are some creative things that you’ve tried and found success with.

24
00:03:30.100 –> 00:03:43.839
laura Hair: So we used to send people to the store to go to Costco and get our supplies. But then we were, you know, we would be down that staff person because it takes a lot of time to do that. So we found Instacart. We loved Instacart.

25
00:03:44.538 –> 00:03:59.639
laura Hair: We could order 10, you know, cases of diapers 20, you know, 20 cases of diapers. Problem was this person that was going to deliver and add to sometimes make 2 trips because, Blanco, we order 20 cases a month that go through them that fast.

26
00:03:59.710 –> 00:04:25.630
laura Hair: So finding supply chains that will deliver that helped quite a bit, because it took away from me having to go, or Evelyn having to go, or a staff person having to go and then it would be brought to us. So that was one thing. The software programs that we use help, you know, from bookkeeping quick books to procure. Those are 2

27
00:04:25.880 –> 00:04:32.462
laura Hair: platforms that you know have helped kind of streamline things for us as well. It’s just finding

28
00:04:34.380 –> 00:04:51.970
laura Hair: AI, we’re just starting to use AI for a lot of things for like answering services so that we can keep track of who’s calling and and meeting care, and then they drop into like a their an application, or set up a time to come in and tour.

29
00:04:52.400 –> 00:04:53.480
laura Hair: Excuse me,

30
00:04:54.780 –> 00:05:06.135
laura Hair: shifting the shift work was kinda hard to do manage because you always need a closer, and you need an opener. And that opener you’re like, are they? Gonna come in on time?

31
00:05:06.640 –> 00:05:12.180
laura Hair: you know, is the closer. Gonna make sure that you know everything’s closed up and locked up. So

32
00:05:12.490 –> 00:05:20.851
laura Hair: it it sounds like a small problem. But it’s big problem in that. You wanna make sure. That’s that’s really running smoothly. There’s just

33
00:05:23.830 –> 00:05:25.609
laura Hair: keeping your team happy

34
00:05:25.760 –> 00:05:30.169
laura Hair: that you know, keeping employees happy. I think that’s that’s where

35
00:05:30.610 –> 00:05:34.350
laura Hair: I kind of come in as okay. My job is to not

36
00:05:35.180 –> 00:05:43.451
laura Hair: over see what you’re doing, but rather support what you’re doing. So what things do you need to make to be able to do your job.

37
00:05:43.860 –> 00:05:54.630
laura Hair: I don’t like micromanagement, that’s not who we are would never be like that. But we do expect it. And actually it’s not even me. So much is the team. They’re like.

38
00:05:54.830 –> 00:05:58.040
laura Hair: That person’s lazy. They’re not. Gonna they can’t, though

39
00:05:58.130 –> 00:06:07.010
laura Hair: they’re like. They know what the expectations are. And they expect that from each other. So.

40
00:06:07.010 –> 00:06:17.290
Anthony Codispoti: That’s tremendous. I mean that says a lot about the culture that you’ve built there is that there’s so much buy in from some of the employees to where they’re gonna call out the other ones who are not.

41
00:06:17.290 –> 00:06:17.730
laura Hair: Oh, yeah.

42
00:06:17.730 –> 00:06:18.870
Anthony Codispoti: That’s standard. Yeah.

43
00:06:20.040 –> 00:06:26.919
laura Hair: And and it’s an important job. So we want that. You know, these kids are important to us.

44
00:06:28.040 –> 00:06:42.710
Anthony Codispoti: You mentioned a couple of new things that you’re gonna be offering. You’re gonna have a behavioral therapist and an occupational therapist come in, you know, and I don’t think people realize the margins in a daycare center are pretty tight. You know. How. How are you able to to make that.

45
00:06:42.710 –> 00:06:55.120
laura Hair: We’re gonna get a grant. We’re gonna write some grants for that to be able to do that. But it’s it’s just I think it’s so needed. Not just for this. I think I need it for the staff.

46
00:06:55.120 –> 00:07:16.519
laura Hair: because that grows their abilities as well. So they’re going to learn from a professional. This is, you know, this is just normal behavior. This is how you can work with it, or, you know, providing some guidance even to the parent to like, you know. My child won’t sleep at night, my child, you know, every time I try to do something they won’t do these things, and

47
00:07:16.590 –> 00:07:30.159
laura Hair: having some, just some suggestions. And and some people with experience in that area in those fields, I think, can really make the difference between just a simple shift

48
00:07:30.430 –> 00:07:37.880
laura Hair: to, you know, even doing a larger shift. But it makes a difference for the families. And again, it’s about the families and

49
00:07:39.380 –> 00:07:41.819
laura Hair: you know getting them. You know.

50
00:07:42.430 –> 00:07:51.169
laura Hair: They have expectations of us, too. So the especially our private program. It’s it’s there’s a lot of professional people that work

51
00:07:51.180 –> 00:08:15.890
laura Hair: and have their children with us doctors, nurses, all, you know, and so they want their children to be on that advanced end of learning, and not because when you go to kindergarten. If you’ve got the basics from opening a lunchbox and eating out of it. People don’t even think about those things putting on a sweater when you’re cold or taking it off when you’re hot.

52
00:08:16.160 –> 00:08:30.639
laura Hair: Those are all things that we try to really coach these children on before they go to those programs. They’re all academically, they’re all fine. So really, they’re adjusting to the bigger class size, you know, 25 kids in a classroom versus 8 to 12.

53
00:08:31.087 –> 00:08:42.909
laura Hair: Those adjustments. But those are a little bit smaller than having to do everything, you know, and changing schools and all these kids. And you know not your buddies going to school with and.

54
00:08:43.650 –> 00:08:44.370
Anthony Codispoti: Now go.

55
00:08:44.550 –> 00:08:47.900
Anthony Codispoti: Laura. What’s a fun fact that most people wouldn’t know about you.

56
00:08:48.940 –> 00:08:49.770
laura Hair: And that.

57
00:08:51.650 –> 00:08:52.810
Anthony Codispoti: Interesting fact.

58
00:08:52.810 –> 00:08:55.844
laura Hair: An interesting fact. I don’t know.

59
00:08:56.350 –> 00:08:57.950
Anthony Codispoti: Just an open book, right?

60
00:08:57.950 –> 00:09:06.517
laura Hair: I am. I am that person. We laugh, and my sister’s the opposite, so I’m like, oh, no! Here it all is.

61
00:09:06.890 –> 00:09:18.790
Anthony Codispoti: This is all out there. Okay? Well, then, let me do a different one. Then are there specific, maybe mentors or books that have helped you in your personal development or your professional career.

62
00:09:19.743 –> 00:09:30.650
laura Hair: I think therapy is important. Mental health and therapy is important, whatever it is. If it’s just to go and talk to somebody and go. Am I losing my mind?

63
00:09:32.220 –> 00:09:43.499
laura Hair: You know I have a really great husband. I’m I’m very blessed by that. And he I always tell him you just think you’d be better. I I don’t know why, but I always feel like I’m

64
00:09:44.580 –> 00:09:47.180
laura Hair: I’m gonna be better because of you and

65
00:09:47.909 –> 00:09:52.700
laura Hair: we have kids in our family that are doing phenomenal things. And I’m just like.

66
00:09:52.740 –> 00:10:08.660
laura Hair: you know, I look at them and they’re growing up to be coaches, you know, like my sister’s kids. They’re definitely going to be coaches, they are. They just have that. I have. My kids are more the entrepreneur side. So

67
00:10:09.080 –> 00:10:20.419
laura Hair: yeah, it’s just, I think you pull from the resources that are closest to you that you feel like have strived and done really well. And you know those that’s going to support you, too.

68
00:10:20.770 –> 00:10:30.834
laura Hair: as well, cause they’ve got great ideas. I mean, we’ve had Jeffrey do, which is nice, my nephew, he writes up our question and answer quizzes for the teachers.

69
00:10:31.200 –> 00:10:41.729
laura Hair: and it’s it’s great like I’m like, Oh, my! Gosh, she’s got a sociology major. Maybe that’s but he just he thinks like a coach, you know. He’s been playing football through college, and he’s

70
00:10:41.780 –> 00:10:44.842
laura Hair: let his last years this year, and

71
00:10:45.500 –> 00:10:54.480
laura Hair: I can just see him. You know, he’s gonna be that person. He motivates people. And that’s really what you gotta do to is be able to motivate people that

72
00:10:54.620 –> 00:11:03.579
laura Hair: you know at times. It’s hard to motivate people when they’re, you know, but you have to be there for them, too, when they’re feeling sad, or they need support. Or you know.

73
00:11:03.970 –> 00:11:05.150
laura Hair: that’s my job.

74
00:11:06.250 –> 00:11:13.169
Anthony Codispoti: Well, I think you paid the ultimate compliment to your husband. I how did you put it to you? You make me want to be better, or you help me be better.

75
00:11:13.170 –> 00:11:14.500
laura Hair: Yeah, yeah.

76
00:11:14.500 –> 00:11:23.019
Anthony Codispoti: That’s a really nice thing to say. And the fact that your your kids, your your you know your your sister’s kids are are growing up to, you know.

77
00:11:23.020 –> 00:11:23.390
laura Hair: Yeah.

78
00:11:23.624 –> 00:11:27.849
Anthony Codispoti: Position themselves so well for success, I think, says a lot about how they were raised. So you.

79
00:11:27.850 –> 00:11:28.270
laura Hair: Yeah.

80
00:11:28.270 –> 00:11:28.950
Anthony Codispoti: But it’s to you.

81
00:11:28.950 –> 00:11:30.600
laura Hair: Certainly. Yeah.

82
00:11:30.600 –> 00:11:46.010
Anthony Codispoti: Laura. I’ve just got one more question for you before I ask it. I want to do 2 things. If you’re listening today and you like today’s content. Please hit the like, subscribe or share button on your favorite podcast app. I also want to tell people the best way to get in touch with you, Laura. How would that be?

83
00:11:47.115 –> 00:11:59.264
laura Hair: Usually email is easiest, and it’s just Laura’s barn@outlook.com. We have a website. You can also connect through Laura’s barn.com on our website.

84
00:12:00.063 –> 00:12:18.646
laura Hair: So those are that, you know, texting me is always good because I don’t hear we get so many spam phone calls that I don’t even look anymore. I’m just like I’ll check. And I know who’s supposed to be calling me. So I always say, Text me, if you need to get in touch with me, cause that’s always the best way. It’s most efficient. Anyways.

85
00:12:18.920 –> 00:12:28.920
Anthony Codispoti: Okay? Great. Well, last question for you, Laura, I’m curious. How do you see your industry evolving in the next 5 years? What are some of the big changes that are coming.

86
00:12:31.040 –> 00:12:56.179
laura Hair: There’s some big changes, and a lot of it have to do with Tk, universal pre-k. Some of the schools weren’t really prepared to have this younger set of children, and really they’re not my opinion they are so not ready to go into a kindergarten classroom. You know we have 3 year olds 4 year olds that are could now be accepted to these universal pre-k’s or Tk programs. But

87
00:12:56.260 –> 00:12:59.739
laura Hair: some of them are silly diapers. Well, you know, teachers aren’t gonna have

88
00:12:59.790 –> 00:13:04.329
laura Hair: want to do that. Their class sizes are 24, you know.

89
00:13:04.360 –> 00:13:21.360
laura Hair: students per teacher where we have that smaller ratio. We laugh as child care providers when they’re like, Oh, yeah, the teacher just has them walk out of the classroom and go across the way and go to the bathroom by theirselves, and we’re all like, oh, we would be fined.

90
00:13:21.620 –> 00:13:26.570
laura Hair: That doesn’t happen in a childcare setting. It’s very controlled and

91
00:13:26.962 –> 00:13:35.867
laura Hair: and they’re little, you know, and there’s a big age difference between 4 year old and a 6 year old that’s out on the playground. And

92
00:13:36.450 –> 00:13:41.300
laura Hair: I don’t know. I just I this is that’s gonna be the the

93
00:13:41.410 –> 00:13:42.800
laura Hair: the upcoming.

94
00:13:43.150 –> 00:13:45.290
laura Hair: at least in California. I don’t know what

95
00:13:45.310 –> 00:13:59.589
laura Hair: that’s going on in other States, but schools aren’t really set up for that. They’re not set up to have all bathrooms inside their classrooms, because that’s what’s needed. When you’ve got a younger child or smaller group sizes.

96
00:13:59.670 –> 00:14:08.490
laura Hair: you know, they prefer those big group sizes which is smaller group size. You’re gonna get a lot more education for the children, too.

97
00:14:08.570 –> 00:14:23.469
laura Hair: and they’re still they need to play, you know. Play to learn. It’s not a bad word as was it, Mister Rogers said. Play is not a bad word. It’s a good word, you know. That’s how they learn is through experiences.

98
00:14:24.210 –> 00:14:35.180
Anthony Codispoti: Do you see having to alter your business plan or business structure at all? Do you think that you’re gonna be losing more kids to those, you know, free programs and.

99
00:14:35.180 –> 00:14:45.323
laura Hair: We’ve seen that. But then there’s parents who want 365 days a year coverage, basically a year of coverage, not have summers off and having to deal with that

100
00:14:46.581 –> 00:15:14.049
laura Hair: and we’ve seen a lot that end up pulling out for preschool and go off to other schools. But the infants is also been kind of our niche for our business, so I would say, we probably have more infant care than we do preschool care just because it’s just slowly. Kinda but then there’s parents that just want that. I have parents this year that don’t want their kids in Tk, and so they’ll stay

101
00:15:14.425 –> 00:15:21.725
laura Hair: with us, so they can actually stay till 13 as part of that Cctr. Contract. Not that they would, but

102
00:15:22.761 –> 00:15:36.170
laura Hair: but the lady said, You know I’ve got an infant coming. I’ve got another infant, and then my daughter’s in Pre K. And I. Just it’s so much easier if I just can go one place to pick up, and she’s a single parent, you know.

103
00:15:36.180 –> 00:15:40.589
laura Hair: and I understand that, you know it’s the convenience part

104
00:15:41.160 –> 00:15:50.489
laura Hair: to the whole thing, too, and and just as much as keeping your children young while you can, because once they enter that big, wide world of school.

105
00:15:50.540 –> 00:15:53.810
laura Hair: things change. There’s not a lot of controls. And

106
00:15:54.236 –> 00:15:57.709
laura Hair: you know, I think giving them a good foundation

107
00:15:57.910 –> 00:15:59.660
laura Hair: is really important.

108
00:16:00.270 –> 00:16:01.090
Anthony Codispoti: Terrific.

109
00:16:01.340 –> 00:16:06.443
Anthony Codispoti: Hey, Laura, I want to be the 1st one to thank you for sharing both your time and your story with us today. I really appreciate.

110
00:16:06.640 –> 00:16:10.419
laura Hair: Anthony. I appreciate being here. It was nice surprise.

111
00:16:11.020 –> 00:16:16.359
Anthony Codispoti: Folks. That’s a wrap on another episode of the inspired stories. Podcast thanks for learning. With us today.