Inside our first national home daycare conference after 30 years as providers

Leave us a voicemail at 651-300-2277. Your question could help thousands of providers. We packed up the podcast and spent four days exhibiting at the NAFCC National Conference in Chicago, our first family child care conference ever. This is the full recap: the sweltering plane, one 30,000-step day of Chicago tourism, and what it was actually like to sit at a booth talking with providers, trainers, and advocates from all over the country. We get into how different licensing, ratios, pay, and benefits look from state to state, why so many providers can afford staff, the debate over whether anyone should say "daycare" anymore, and the stories we cannot stop thinking about, including the daycare families who renovated a provider's basement while she was at the conference. Plus our first pod swap, the best compliment this podcast has ever received, and our giveaway winner announcement. Coming soon: a finance and retirement episode for providers, and a walkthrough of Minnesota's new licensing rules. CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro: never alone, always lonely 00:51 We exhibited at the NAFCC conference in Chicago 01:45 Travel day: the sweltering plane 06:16 One big Chicago day: Skydeck, deep dish, fireworks 11:11 What exhibiting was actually like 12:03 Providers from all over the country 14:39 "You shouldn't call yourselves the Daycare Sisters" 16:55 Provider stories that stuck with us 18:06 Burnout, feeling inadequate, getting re-energized 22:02 Staff, subsidies, and benefits state by state 25:52 The conference app and the chatting chair 30:45 Wildfire smoke and the no-pool hotel 31:49 Meetups, badge scans, and exhibitor exhaustion 39:49 Our first pod swap and the SNL compliment 43:05 What we'd change next time 46:32 What's next on the podcast 47:28 Giveaway winner 48:16 Outro KEY TAKEAWAYS Licensing, ratios, subsidies, and benefits for family child care vary enormously from state to state Providers in states with stronger subsidies or benefit programs are far more likely to afford staff, including homes offering 24/7 care Slower conference traffic meant longer, more meaningful conversations with providers, trainers, and advocacy leaders The field is debating the word "daycare," with some preferring terms like family educator, but we are keeping our name Getting back into the provider community can be a real antidote to burnout RESOURCES MENTIONED NAFCC (National Association for Family Child Care): https://nafcc.org Brightwheel and its curriculum, formerly Mother Goose Time: https://mybrightwheel.com Parent Aware, Minnesota's quality rating system: https://www.parentaware.org The Child Care Directors Chair Podcast with Erica Saccoccio: https://childcaredirectorschair.buzzs... TRAILS, West Virginia's traveling toy and book lending program for providers: http://www.wvdhhr.org/choices/for-pro... ABOUT THE DAYCARE SISTERS Brandee and Erin are two sisters, moms to nine kids between them, and home daycare owners with over 30 years of combined experience. This podcast is the adult conversation providers never get during the day. CONNECT Website: https://www.TheDaycareSisters.com Email: [email protected] Voicemail: 651-300-2277 #daycareprovider #daycarelife #homedaycare #momlife #childcareproviders