Little Bees

Simply put: Desi is the best. 
We have (unfortunately) experienced a handful of daycares due to teacher turnover and inexperienced care and we wish we came across Desi with our first daughter right from the start. We were able to snag a spot with our second daughter with Desi and it was the best decision we could have made for our whole family. She will normally have 4 infants under her care and they are all so well cared for and loved. She is the baby whisperer. We sent our daughter, S, here when she turned one because that’s when a spot opened up and she adjusted to Desi so quickly we were shocked. S is not the easiest toddler and she is very attached to me after being with me for a whole year but Desi is truly magical and quickly woo’d S into her arms. Desi provides meals and snacks and I never worry about S being there or what she does during the day. If you are able to find a spot with Desi don’t hesitate. Just put in your deposit and breathe a sigh of relief. She’s truly a gem and won’t regret it. 

Desi and Emo are wonderful caregivers. Our son started at Little Bees when he was 7 months and stayed until he was 2 years old. From the first time we dropped him off, I never worried about him while he was in their care. He was happy to go each day. In the year and a half that our family was with Little Bees, our child grew and learned so much (for example, how to drink from a cup, a transition we did not initiate ourselves). I really appreciated that there were only 4 kids total in the daycare and the level of attention they all received as a result of that.  It was so hard to leave Little Bees. Our son still asks about Desi, Emo and his friends! We are so glad for the time our child had there and recommend Little Bees wholeheartedly. 

I started reading the other reviews before attempting to write this and I couldn't agree with them more. The care that we believe our daughter and her peers received with Desi at Little Bees was top notch. Desi was attentive and loving. Our child came home clean, happy and well-fed every day. We feel fortunate to have secured a space for our daughter and were also sad when our time ended. If you are able to get into a space at Little Bees I wouldn't hesitate to accept the spot. Thank you Desi and Emil. 

This is such a hard review to write because I'm not sure I can find the words to do justice to how wonderful Desi and her family are. We were scouring BPN for daycare places for when my son was ~9 months old. We visited a handful of other places and loved Desi so much, we waited to start him at 1 y.o. when she'd have a spot open - yup, we were crazy enough to take turns caring for him at home for 3 whole months while both working full time remotely.

But we knew it'd be worth it - our first impression was confirmed 1000 times over while our son was in her care: Desi and her family are incredibly loving, generous, and affectionate. And her home is spotless to boot! Our son instantaneously warmed to her (we visited when he was ~4 months old) and she's such a natural with kids. She clearly adores children, which unfortunately is harder to find than you'd think. Fast forward to his first day - we weren't certain how he'd adjust, but he crawled into her home, and didn't even look back! During his year with her, Desi not only took wonderful care of him - he was always happy, well-fed, and engaged, but in turn took wonderful care of us. She's easygoing and super accommodating when he had a runny nose or wasn't feeling his best, and we realistically couldn't just keep him home for weeks on end as young kids are constantly getting some form of a cold.

To top it all off, Desi makes everything so easy for parents. You drop off a sleep sack, a water bottle, and a change of clothes and you never have to worry about any items again (besides obviously diapers/wipes) - she launders everything, which is just one less thing for you to do. Perhaps the biggest endorsement of how beloved she is is that on weekend walks, our son wanted to go to her home and go in - he simply adores her, her husband, & her adult sons! All in all, it was very emotional to say goodbye as our son aged out but we LOVE Desi and her family and can't wait to send any/all of our future children her way (fingers crossed she'll still have spots open).

We were so pleased that our son went to Little bees! He was there from the age of 9 months. Desi and Emo are an amazing couple who take care of the kids in such a loving way, as though they are their own children. There are only 4 kids and they take them out for walks and to the park every morning, if there are rainy days they even go to the library. In addition, they provide all the food throughout the day and our son absolutely loved the food!
Little bees was our son second home and he was always happy to go there every morning and didn't want to leave at afternoon. Desi gave us peace-of-mind and as a working mom I was calm and confident to send my child there every day.
We highly recommend and we are already waiting to send our next son there, would be happy to speak to anyone about questions.

We are so thankful to have found Little Bees daycare! Our son was there for about nine months and we were thrilled with Desi's care the entire time. I second everything said below: wonderful, diverse and healthy food every day;  creative crafts and outings to the park, library, etc.; music time (with no screens); and always a loving and nurturing positive environment. Our son was always so happy to see Desi and we loved the small group of kids (only 4, all under age 2). We toured a few other daycares before finding Little Bees and they all had more kids with wider age ranges. It was great knowing our son was interacting with other kids of roughly the same physical development as him and that he wouldn't get trampled underfoot by a much larger child playing. I wholeheartedly recommend Little Bees and would be happy to message or speak with anyone who has any questions about Little Bees. It's definitely a hidden treasure!!

We are so lucky to have had our son cared for at Little Bees! He went there from 5 months until 2 (age limit) and we truly wish we could stay longer!! Desi and her husband are very loving people. They take the little ones to parks every day and provide nutritious meals/snacks. The place is always perfectly clean and organized. We felt 4 babies in total was a great environment and my son loved his buddies so much. He was always happy going there even after a 2-week break which you would expect tears and refusal from a baby! I think that explains how much he loved them. We highly recommend!

Desi cared for our daughter from when she was 4 months old until about two years when she aged out.  We couldn't be happier with the experience!  Echoing what others have said: Desi and her family are very loving caregivers -- our daughter came home with a smile every day, talking about Desi, Desi's husband, and the other kids.  We appreciated all they did: home-cooked meals, daily trips to the park, etc.  Desi is communicative and responsive, sending photos and videos regularly, which is great peace of mind especially in those early weeks.  She works hard, always doing her best to accommodate families.  2020 was a tough year: playgrounds were closed, the library was closed, and smoke made going outside hard some days, but Desi handled it all smoothly.  We'd absolutely recommend her -- and we very much look forward to sending our second child to her in a few months!

As first time parent's, we were nervous about sending our 4-month-old to any daycare once I had to go back to work. When we met Desi and her husband, we felt immediately that this was the right place for our daughter. Unfortunately we had to end our time there early because we moved out of town, and we wish we could have brought Little Bees daycare with us!

Our daughter was at Desi's for almost a year, and loved going every day. We know she was well-cared for - she ate well, slept great, was always happy to be dropped off, and in a great mood when we picked her up. We loved the small daycare environment, it provided for great interaction with the other kids, as well as close individual attention.

Desi was always very flexible with us, great to communicate with, and as mentioned in other reviews - her house is very clean! We will all miss everyone at Little Bees, and feel so lucky to have found it when we did. Without a doubt, we would recommend this daycare!!

Our daughter started at Little Bees when she was 4 months old, and stayed until her 2nd birthday. We are so sad to go, we would honestly keep our daughter there longer if we could! Desi is an amazing caregiver and has had such a positive impact on our daughter. She provides a loving and nurturing, environment, and always has the children's interests in mind.  Our daughter still asks for Desi, her husband, and the other kids because she misses them. She was always happy to go to daycare and would run into Desi's home with big hugs.

From the first week there we knew that we had made the right choice. Desi was able to help get our daughter on a great routine, and even helped us overcome issues with her rejecting her bottle. Desi is very understanding, easy-going, and attentive to our wishes.  She makes sure that the kids get out to parks to play daily, and takes them to the library weekly for book reading and socialization.

Lastly, Desi and her family would provide amazing healthy home-cooked meals. Our daughter isn't a picky eater, probably partly because of all of the great food and variety that Desi would provide.

We only have good things to say about Desi and Little Bees, and would 100% recommend to anyone looking for a great home-based daycare for their child.

My son was with Desi from 10 months to 24 months and we had the best experience ever! Desi and her husband run an incredible daycare. They provide love, patience and routine to the kids. The small number of children gives the kids a lot so of 1:1 time. My son was always so excited to go to see Desi and still asks for her daily. Her house is spotless and she is trustworthy and flexible. I could not have asked for a better first time daycare experience and we all cried (husband included) when we left. Desi gave our child love and patience, and gave us peace-of-mind which is everything to a working mom. 
 

Recommend 10/10 !!

My son stayed with Desi for a year and absolutely loved her and the entire family.

All 4 kids who she takes care of were like family! He was happy to go every day and I felt that he was in good, loving and caring hands.

Desi and her husband take the kids outside every day (park, library, etc) and the kids get healthy fresh food.

We are very sad to leave this place! would definitely recommend to everyone who seeks for a cozy, intimate home-based daycare. 

This review is long overdue, my son left Little Bees 6 months ago but we still miss Desi and her family!  My son was at Little Bees from the time he was about 7 months old until age 2.  He was very happy with their little crew (usually 3 other children) and their daily walks to the park or library.  

Desi provides a clean and loving environment for the children that she cares for.  Her home was spotless and toys were clean and well cared for.

She cooks incredible fresh organic foods and often my son would eat things for her that he would not try at home.  

Desi's sons and husband would also help care for the kids and they were all very joyful people.  My son always ran to them with open arms and seemed so comfortable in their presence. 

Little Bees is a very special place, and for us it was a fantastic find when the rest of life seemed pretty stressful. I will always hold a special place in my heart for Desi and her family, and the wonderful care they gave.  If you have more specific questions, please feel free to contact me privately!

I'm so grateful we found Desi, and so sad that my daughter turns 2 yrs old this week and has to move on to another daycare. Desi had just opened her home-based daycare when we met her. A coworker of mine highly recommended Desi based on her 7 years at Vovo's Daycare in Berkeley. Our daughter started at six months old. 

Reasons why we love Desi and her daycare:

1) Her house is crazy clean. I would eat off her floor (which is good, because let's be real... toddlers have a 30 second rule not a 5 second rule).

2) She's incredibly loving and attentive to my daughter. Lots of hugs and kisses. She's always cheerful when we drop off and pickup Linnea and even though I know she has to have the occasional tough day, she greets us with a smile.

3) Her family is extremely kind and warm. She's raised two polite boys who are now in their teens and love playing with the kids. Desi's husband helps out during the day, especially during mealtimes.

4) Desi is attentive to our wishes such as organic milk, sunscreen application, and not a lot of sugar.

5) They get out of the house every day and go to the park. They also go to song and sing once a week at the library.

6) This isn't one of those daycares where if you're late by 5 minutes they charge you $15. We always are respectful of Desi's time, but she's understanding if occasionally there's a BART delay or traffic jam and we need an extra few minutes. 

I'd highly recommend Desi's daycare and I'm happy to provide a reference.

Our daughter has been with Desi for a few months now, and she started when she was 6 months old.  Our previous care was a nanny-share.  Hands down, Desi's beautiful home daycare is a much better fit for us.  Desi is highly energetic, very kind and, most importantly, the children very much love her.  Her home is always very clean, bright and safe.  Our daughter comes home happy and well fed.  When the weather cooperates, they visit the nearby playground and are constantly amused by the neighbourhood turkeys. 

You will meet Desi's husband and her two sons.  The entire family is always very warm and when they do interact with the children, the children appear to adore them as well!

I'm happy to provide a reference for Desi and Little Bees.  Feel free to send me a private message and we can exchange phone numbers.

Our son has been with Desi for over a year (since he was 6 months) and we could not be happier. Desi has all of the qualities you would expect as a parent. She is energetic, kind, always has a smile, and a positive attitude.  My son LOVES going there everyday.  She is a professional with years of experience. Her home is impecable and in a safe neighborhood. She prepares healthy meals and snacks, and takes the children out to nearby parks or the library.  Desi has been very accommodating, respectful of our preferences, and great communicating with us.  Above all, we have seen how she has cared and loved for our son as if he were her own.  Without hesitation, our family gladly recommends Little Bees. Desi is the best! =)