Thousand Oaks DayCare

Words cannot capture our family's appreciation for Celia. Our daughter started at Celia's at 8 months. Our son started at age 1. The two of them could not be more different, but they both thrived and loved their time at Celia's. Both our kids spent two years at the daycare (with a little extra time for our daughter during the first year of COVID), and we felt it was our privilege for them to attend Thousand Oaks Daycare.

The space is lovely with nice natural light, plenty of books, puzzles (our little girl loves puzzles!), and of course, toys. There is also a wonderful outdoor space for the kids to play and explore and to be entranced by the fruits growing. Which brings me to the food. Delicious and healthy food for the kids. Celia cares so much for the little ones, and it shows in everything.

I still remember the day my partner and I brought our daughter to Celia's, as we were looking at daycares. It was the first visit we made, and we walked out thinking, "We really hope there's a spot for our girl." We visited other places, which were all very good in different ways, but none of them felt as right as Thousand Oaks Daycare. And for all of our positive vibes from the very start, it was even better than we could have imagined. Our kids were lucky to have Celia.

Our daughter attended Thousand Oaks Daycare from the age of 2 to almost 4. Celia is warm, loving, responsive, and wonderfully supportive. The daycare environment she has created is peaceful (even during the height of a toddler tantrum or two!), sunny, and warm, both figuratively and literally. Celia made us and our daughter feel right at home, getting to know her interests and explorations and filling us in on the antics of the day or week. Our little one quickly became attached to Celia and her friends at Thousand Oaks, referring to the daycare as "her other Berkeley house." I loved so much about this place. The indoor/outdoor environment, where the kids can explore, ride trikes, eat strawberries off the plant, play trucks in the gravel pit or pour water at the umbrella-shaded water table, and enjoy freshly baked treats - homemade waffles were a regular occurrence! Speaking of food, my jaw must have dropped open on more than one occasion when I heard what my child ate at Celia's. Beets! So many beets. She loved the beets. I never minded that she wouldn't touch them at home because she was apparently eating all the vegetables off the table at lunch or snack. I also appreciated the mixed age nature of the daycare. Jiya was somewhere in the middle of the group when she joined, and as she grew to be the oldest in the bunch, Celia supported her to be a gentle leader, teaching her to have patience with the littler ones and guiding other "older kids" in the group as they become elder siblings. She was always supportive and welcoming of our elder elementary aged kiddo, as well, making him feel right at home when he joined us on pickups or drop offs, saving little treats for him here and there, and encouraging him to show the little ones how to do various activities. I could go on and on, feel free to DM me with questions about Thousand Oaks daycare, but I can assure you that IF I were going to have another little one, one of my first calls would be to make sure that Celia saves us a spot at Thousand Oaks! 

Like the magical garden that Celia perfectly maintains in and around Thousand Oaks Daycare, our son blossomed under her care. When he started as a 19 month old, he was nurtured and encouraged as one of the youngest. And, as a 3.5 year old and the oldest kiddo of the group, Celia encouraged him to share and lead. Celia understands how kids develop and gives them the emotional safety and opportunity to grow.

As toddler parents it’s normal to stress about what (if anything) your child eats. Celia lovingly prepares organic, healthful and varied foods such that our son was regularly eating broccoli, beets, yogurt, persimmon... and I honestly never stressed about whether he had boxed Mac n cheese for dinner because he got such phenomenal nutrition at Celia’s. I’ve walked in a few mornings recently to Celia making waffles for everyone! The kids are encouraged to explore and try new foods, and mealtime is a communal and supportive experience.

Celia keys into what the kids like playing with and will supplement the toy selection or rearrange furniture to make things accessible or fun. For instance some of the kids were really into playing in the kitchen and she got them some chefs hats and aprons. Or if everyone is really into jumping and physical play she moves the pickler triangle into center of the playroom. There are hundreds of examples like this. They read constantly, and I’m always thankful he learns all the nursery rhymes that I forgot - they clearly have fun singing each day!

Celia is flexible to the need of each child and parent whether that is food allergies, supporting nursing, a longer drop off routine, potty training, doctors appointments... you name it. Truly a master of this age group and the parents in the trenches.

After two years, Celia is like family... and on more than one occasion, speaking with families who’ve inquired about Thousand Oaks daycare over the years, I’ve affirmed: “yes, you hit the daycare jackpot!!”

I can't recommend Thousand Oaks Daycare enough! Our daughter blossomed into toddlerhood under Celia's warm and loving care. Celia went above and beyond during the first few rough weeks to ensure a smooth transition (daughter was home with me until 19 months old and was having separation anxiety), being extra sweet to my daughter and extremely reassuring to me. 

Celia is an absolute gem. She is a blast of energy, able to engage with all the children with sunny disposition and so much enthusiasm. She's nurturing and kind to the kids, and takes the time to narrate mundane activities and explain the world to the children. She's very patient, supportive and encouraging, fostering independence and allowing each kid to fully explore his/her own individual interests (music, certain types of toys, etc.). She's also very firm, providing the necessary rules and guidelines in a stern but gentle manner. 

Her light-filled daycare is welcoming, clean and bright, and the gated outdoor space (side yards) was a great place for the kids to explore nature and get into the elements. The toys are all wooden, high-quality toys, and she has a really good collection of books for circle time.

It's been over six months since our daughter transitioned to preschool and until this day still speaks fondly of Celia and her time at Thousand Oaks. I attribute my daughter's appetite and palette to Celia who taught her to love a variety of vegetables. She's also thriving at her new school due in huge parts to having learned so many skills at Celia's. Echoing other reviews here - Thousand Oaks is a great place for 1s and 2s, and we look forward to enrolling our newest addition when she's old enough for daycare!

Our daughter spent a wonderful year at Celia's warm and loving daycare in North Berkeley. Celia is amazing with the kids--full of fun, with just enough structure and a sunny demeanor. Our daughter has loved going, and we will miss Celia and her wonderful school!

The space is great, and Celia provides good meals and somehow gets the whole bunch down for naps. I could tell when we toured that she had a wonderful way with children, and everything has exceeded our expectations. Our daughter is thriving and comes home with new words and new songs daily.

I couldn't recommend Celia's more highly, especially for 1s and 2s, and also for babies (our daughter started around 10-11 months). Our older son (4) often wished he could stay and join the fun.

Our son started going to Celia’s when he was 1 year old in February 2016 and is now transitioning (easily) to preschool (age 3) in July 2018. Celia is a warm, affectionate figure with whom he has felt comfortable since his very first day. She truly enjoys working with young children and provides them a safe, engaging, and creative environment in which each young child can become their own little true selves.

Her indoor space is sun-lit with accessible activities filling shelves. Her outdoor space is a garden wonderland with nooks and crannies including a beloved gravel play box. She provides a wide variety of tasty foods for snack and lunch – children love her beets and cucumber salad! Special treats are often collected straight from her garden including figs, apricots and tomatoes. Her family is incredibly supportive and kind – they assist when taking the children on exploratory walks around the neighborhood and provide additional hugs.

I am so incredibly grateful for the love and guidance that Celia’s has provided for our son for the last 2 years. I owe her my sanity and sincere thanks for helping me and my husband nurture our little baby into an independent, curious and compassionate toddler.

My 2 year old daughter has been attending Celia's daycare for the past year, and she loves it. She's a relatively shy kid so it's been great to be in a smaller scale environment, and Celia is attentive to her needs and personality. The space is beautiful and light-filled, with lots of toys and books with a sunny outdoor area. My daughter is always happy to arrive, no matter how grumpy she's been with me. Celia is very observant to her development, helping her become a stronger speaker and supportive of potty training. We are very happy we found this daycare and knew as soon as we saw it and met Celia that it would be a great place to send our daughter. 

My son has been at Thousand Oaks Day Care with Celia since he was about 13 months old and he will be heading off to preschool this fall at 3 years old.  Celia's has been perfect for us. Indoors her place is spacious and full of light, and there are many toys and books at floor level for the kids to access themselves.  Outdoors there is a wonderful terraced garden with a water table, a gravel'n'truck pit, a sand table, and all kinds of plants, flowers, and food plants which the kids even get to eat sometimes.  Celia cooks local, organic food for the kids, and the kitchen and kid-size dining table are part of the space so the food culture and habits Celia embodies are very consistent with what we do at home.  Celia takes the kids for walks to playgrounds or the Cheese Board, puts on music and radio for them, gives them gym mats to move and be physical on, to name a few activities.  Most importantly Celia is so experienced and capable, so kind and accepting towards children.  She will work with you and your child to gently guide them towards whatever new skills they are working on; sleeping, food, socializing, potty, etc.  Celia's has been great for us, our son has grown so much and learned so much, and I would highly recommend Thousand Oaks Child Care.