- [Child] Four!
♪ Four little monkies swinging in a tree ♪
♪ Teasing Mister Alligator ♪
♪ Can't catch me ♪
- [Leesa] I've always had a love for children,
but that's kind of where I found my passion, my calling.
♪ Mister Alligator, quiet as can be ♪
- [Leesa] Hey, hold on,
oh that sun is right there on Mrs. Leesa.
My name is Leesa Rodriguez and I run a licensed home
childcare and the Del valley community.
I've been working in childcare for over 25 years.
I think that the kind of care that I provide the children is
age appropriate and developmentally appropriate.
And so we spend a lot of our time outdoors if we're able to,
if the weather allows us to,
because the most memories you're going to make are outdoors.
And there's so much learning that you can do outside.
A lot of our learning is outside because we're pretty much
like a messy play it's hands-on. Because I feel like,
you know, if it's not in their hands,
then it can't be in your mind.
So once they can touch it and feel it,
it doesn't matter how nasty or dirty once they experience it
themselves, then they get to, you know,
they'll learn it through, through the play process.
(Leesa and the children playing)
- [Leesa] So the difference
between a licensed home and a childcare
center is that the childcare is operated inside of a home.
The owner of the home has to be the main provider and you
can't have no more than 12.
OK, ready? We're going to go inside.
What are we do when we go inside?
Wash our hands first, OK?
(Leesa and the children singing)
♪ Skidamarink a dink a dink ♪
♪ Skidamarink a doo ♪
♪ I love you ♪
- [Leesa] There's another lady here in our community
that's registered home, and I believe we're
the only ones that are in this community.
I'm allowed to have 12 children based on their ratios.
So I'm limited, no matter what.
And there's more than 12 families out here.
- Did it rain this morning?
- Yeah!
- [Leesa] It's a childcare desert out here.
So when we go outside we might get dirty,
it happens sometimes. Okay?
(children mumbling)
(children laughing)
- [Leesa] It's really hard for me to turn people away
because I know that's a need that they have.
I don't want to make childcare a hindrance on families
because you know, majority of people work now,
even a family
needs two incomes to survive,
especially here in our city.
(Leesa humming)
The average cost for childcare right now is about $1,100.
If you don't have a high paying job,
how are you going to afford?
That's more than a mortgage sometimes.
And that's a car payment and that's, for places that only
accept at 18 months, don't provide meals.
And I'm like...
about $300 less than them.
- [Leesa] Oh yay! Oh yay! Oh yay! Give me five!
I'm here for the community, you know, I'm here for them.
I'm not here to like make money or get rich
off of it or anything.
I'm just here to really give back to my community.
If there's resources here that I know of,
then I'm going to do whatever I can to help them out.
- [Woman] See you tomorrow!
- It's really hard to trust somebody unless it's family or
someone, you know, you know,
that will take care of your child. And I want to be here,
you know, to know that that people don't have to struggle
in that way, that there is someone out here
that can care for your child.
Yeah, the kids trust me, their families trust me.
I'm like Nana to them, some of them call me Nana.
That's my name for my grandchildren.
And so I try to make sure that it's a safe place
where they can trust me.
So if I can just make a little mark with a couple of kids,
one family at a time.
(cheerful music playing)
- Oh, you're gonna eat them?
(children playing)