Greenhouse Childcare

Greenhouse Childcare is an absolute gem! Andre and Coco create such a clam, peaceful and supportive environment for the little ones to learn and grow. We wish we'd known about it sooner so we could have also sent our olderchild there when he was younger.  Our family couldn't recommend it more!

It's hard to capture just how special of a place Greenhouse Childcare is. There are not many spaces where you'll find a bunch of toddlers playing peacefully and freely with an atmosphere of joyful calm. That's the vibe at André's house on most days.

André, along with his daughter Coco, have created a magical in-home, mixed-age daycare where children are free to let their curiosity guide them while also learning to relate with others. Our son started at GHC when he was ~20 months old and with the help of André and Coco this past year his language flourished, he started napping on is own, got potty trained, strengthened his patience, learned a bunch of cool things (alphabets/counting/puzzles/riding scooters), explored to his heart's content (so much water fun!), made some great friends and just had the BEST time. He'd literally talk about Andre and his friends ALL the time, and "André's house" was his most common answer during our family's evening gratitude practice. What I would do to be a fly on the wall at André's house! 

André is also just an amazing human. He is always calm and grounded, and can bring humor and levity to any situation. He knows how to enter a child's world, gently encourage their curiosity, and sees/respects/reinforces the unique essence of each child he cares for. For us parents, he's been so flexible, optimistic, and easygoing - whether it was when our schedules were changing and we needed more sporadic care, when we were in the thick of potty training, when we were navigating the uncertainties of preschool, or when I was running late for pick up. I looked forward to the daily pick up/drop off rituals, as a chance to enjoy Andre's calming presence and the kids' peaceful silliness. 

I'll also add that our son adjusted immediately when starting at Greenhouse - no tears, all excitement. In fact our biggest challenge at that time was that he didn't want to nap because he was having so much fun. Of course André handled it all masterfully. I'll also never forget the first time our son didn't come to me when needing comfort. In that moment of having some big feelings, he specifically wanted André to carry him and buckle him into his car seat. My heart melted.  

Of the many transitions our family has gone through, leaving André's house has been the saddest and most tear-filled for me. I think it's a testament to just how wonderful André and Greenhouse Childcare are. We will never forget our time here.

If you're reading this, you've found your daycare!  My wife and I were incredibly lucky to discover Andre's amazing Greenhouse.  Our daughter just "graduated" after two years to move on to preschool.  Greenhouse was a formative experience for her, and truly special.  A written review really can't do justice to the kind of care that Andre and his adult daughter Coco provide to the children.  I would suggest you meet with Andre and see for yourself.  I can provide no better recommendation than to note that our younger daughter will be starting at Greenhouse in the new year; we simply couldn't imagine sending her anywhere else.

The best decision we have ever made was choosing Andre and Coco to take care of our son Lochlan. We are from the UK, where childcare is quite different and when we moved to the Bay Area, we chose Greenhouse and it totally changed the trajectory of our son's developmen and life completed. In the UK, Lochlan screamed every day leaving us, seemed totally overwhelmed by daycare and we felt at sea. Instead, within days at Greenhouse, Lochlan fell in love with the setting and was literally pulling my arm out of our door every morning "I want to go to Andre and Coco's house!!!".

As the other reviews will attest to, Andre is a incredibly special man who almost has an amazing connection with the children he cares for. The pace and flow of the days at Greenhouse have a wonderful balance of a loose structure but oodles of free and child-led play. For example, one day at drop off Lochlan picked up a toy car, pressed the button and said "It's broken". Instead of saying "I'm sorry it's broken! "or lets' find another car" or something similar, Andre asked Lochlan if he had any ideas about what to do.This turned into a whole group fun activity with three other children where they made a plan together to "fix the car" which included the children clearing a space, Andre finding new batteries, each child taking a turn at helping and then all taking turns to play with it together. It's a small thing, but a good example of how Andre supports the children in whatever they are curious in, lets them take the lead and they learn through this- in this example Lochlan learned problem solving skills, communication skills, planning and team work skils. 

Each time I am in the setting, I observe Andre and Coco being loving, caring and attentive to the children and they truly understand the "quirks" of each child. Andre's patience is unmatched and he has a special talent of being able to help the kids learn how to express themselves and learn how to communicate with others, in good times and bad. Our son has developed so much confidence and social skills from being with Andre and Coco from 2-4 and we are just so sad that now he is going on to "big school" we have to say goodbye. 

I would highly recommend Greenhouse for anyone looking for a wonderfully caring environment where your child's personality will flourish. 

BEST DAYCARE EVER. 

Both my children (my son, now 5, and daughter now 3.5) attended Greenhouse from Ages ~1.5-3.5. The friend who recommended Greenhouse said "Choosing Greenhouse was the best parenting decision I ever made. I wish I could just be a fly on the wall and witness Andre in action/absorb his expertise."  We couldn't agree more. 

Andre is well-known as a "toddler whisperer", and with the help of his amazing daughter Coco (who both my kids fell in love with), created a magical mixed-age community that fosters social-emotional development (confidence, potty training, scooter riding, sharing/caring for others, joy/happiness are just a handful of skills they learned). Greenhouse made both my kids 100% ready and thriving in preschool/kindergarten. My husband and I (and other Greenhouse parents) often marvel out how Andre is able to foster such a calm community of toddlers, (when it was so challenging for us to manage just 1-2 of our deep-feeling/high energy kiddos). Our children both miss Greenhouse as graduates and speak about it fondly. They remain siblings-level close to their Greenhouse friends. 

We miss it too (drop-offs/pick-ups have a calming-centering effect on adults as well)! I've recommended several families to Greenhouse and they all thank me profusely. It's truly the ideal way to start in a community childcare setting. Look out for that crib on wheels roaming the streets of Albany and you can see the magic for yourself!

I wish he ran a similar operation for adults :) 

Our kid attended greenhouse from ages ~1y/o-3.5. (2022-2024) The feeling of leaving your kid in kind, caring and welcoming arms is immeasurable. To see Andre's skill in attuning to each individual kid is profound, and helped us on our own parenting journey. The environment is cozy, warm and open. The kids are free to play and explore in a safe place, with plenty of outdoor time.  Andre and Coco have seen it all and nothing seems to phase their calm and cool vibe. We feel so grateful that our kid was able to experience all that Greenhouse gave to us, and they will always have a special place in our hearts. Highly recommend! 

Andre really supported our daughter in becoming more self-sufficient and adventurous. We also grew a lot in our parenting style by learning from him. We definitely recommend Greenhouse!