As much as we would like the nursery to be a year round business, here in the foothills and mountains the winter time causes most people to stop most gardening activities. I suspect most garden centers are that way, unless they are in a urban location where walk in traffic is greater. This time of year is when the money made in spring starts to dwindle away. This year even more so. So rather than get a second job we decided to create a new job. "Miss Monica's" Garden Valley Preschool is coming along nicely. We heard from the state that they may be out to do the inspection in January. Once the inspection is complete we will be open for business. I know that spring will come again. The nursery will once again be busy and winter soon forgotten. Yet, I am much more enthusiastic about the daycare right now. We have been hearing from so many people just how much this was needed. We are confident that the daycare will be a success!  The daycare, unlike retail has a steady income stream once you have the numbers. This is the exact opposite of the nursery, where you have tremendous ups in spring, and lows in winter. Of course this year who knows what next year brings.

I enjoy working on the child care. It lifts your spirits when you walk in and see the colors we are working with. It's most likely the only type of business that could get away with using these colors. Monica has used her talents to create a mural for the kids to hang their artwork. We have been building cubbies for toy storage as well as the kids cubbies. They are all being painted different colors.

What's great about the location is it allows us to work in the daycare, while being able to see if anyone enters the garden center. Of course once the daycare is up and running I won't get to hang out there much, but until then I enjoy the warmth and colors during this rainy, and cold time of year. We have also set up a swing set in the playground which is right next to the garden center. We also put a gate in where Monica will be able to take the kids into the garden center directly from the playground.

The lesson I have learned from our project is to open your mind to the possibilities. Don't fail to see the big picture. As nursery people we sometimes see the world from only the perceptive of being a nursery person. There may be other business and personal opportunities around you that you fail to notice because of a narrow perspective. We had wanted to build a daycare in this area 10 years ago, but got caught up in the nursery business. The nursery business is a wonderful career, yet it's not all there is. Maybe there is something that can compliment your garden center business. Maybe it has nothing to do with a garden center. We need to supply our community with what it want's. The nursery is one part of the equation, and now the children's nursery is another part. Today with it being cold and snowy, I think I'll enjoy working with the second part of the equation, which is warmer and drier.