by Kara Hildreth
Thisweek Newspapers

Almost Home is a drop-in day care open in one woman's home in Farmington.

This child care provider chose to meet a demand she saw from local parents who needed child care and who worked varying schedules. Some parents even needed temporary child care for a short time.

Kathy Scovill, 34, said Almost Home began as she started taking care of a few police officers' children who needed care on a drop-in basis. Now her child care business has expanded to include care for children whose normal day care provider may be on an extended maternity leave, on vacation or who is ill and unable to care for a child.

Looking for a way to stay home with her infant son, Scovill said she turned to working at home as a child care provider.

"I was also facing an imminent layoff from a prominent insurance company, and I knew I had six years of child care experience, not to mention an early childhood minor, under my belt,î she said.

What Scovill did not realize when she secured her family child care license through Dakota County was the Farmington child care market was saturated with in-home care providers. She explained at the time a year ago there were more than 150 licensed day care providers in Farmington.

"In order to stay in business, I have developed a unique program geared toward the ever-changing needs of today's parent,î said Scovill.

Scovill said one Dakota County child care licenser told her not to worry about the demand for child care providers because Farmington is "booming.î

The licenser also told her many middle-income parents chose to live here and so many mothers still need to work outside the home, and will need some amount of day care if they chose to work part-time or full-time.

"The new avenue my business has taken has been both challenging and exciting,î Scovill said. "I feel I'm providing an essential service for parents with alternative work schedules, and offer a peace of mind knowing they have a backup plan in the event their regular provider is unavailable,î said Scovill.

As a mother of a 12-year-old daughter, Scovill said she remembers how in the past as a working mother outside the home she may have needed to take a vacation day or a sick day herself if her child care provider was not available for whatever reason.

"I think the residents of Farmington would find this information valuable, as many are unaware of the options available to them right here in their own community,'' she said.

Working as an assistant teacher at The Children's House day care center for six years at Minnesota State University of Mankato, Scovill said she also has an early childhood education minor from Concordia College in St. Paul. Scovill said she enjoys all the children from infants, toddlers and preschoolers who come to play together.

Since her day is always different from week to week, Scovill said she tries to keep playtime casual and offers a craft or activity each day in the morning time.

Even though Scovill considers her drop-in care available at the last minute, many parents still call ahead to book a date in advance.

"I get calls at the last minute because day care providers are sick or police officers have a court date,î Scovill said, and these parents need care right away. Scovill said she has references and tries to accommodate parents' needs as Almost Home is open from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Licensed through Dakota County, Scovill said she will take a newborn, an infant or a preschooler long-term, but does not want her day care to ever be full because she wants to keep Almost Home small so she can give the children more attention and keep her work enjoyable and relaxing for the children.

"I do not have a huge group and I like it better that way,î she said as she keeps her group at around five children, including her son, Aidan, 20 months old.

"Word of mouth is the best way,î Scovill said, as many parents have given referrals to family and friends. Many providers do not take children on a drop-in basis, Scovill said because most providers need to depend on the regular income.

The fact that Almost Home provides some flexibility for parents' schedules makes her drop-in care convenient, but more importantly, "I want my home to be a warm environment,î she said. "I want all the children to feel welcome and comfortable.î

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