Forest Saplings is a small, nature-based, child-led nanny share for mobile children ages 1-5 years. Based in Colorado Frontrage and Mountain communities. We combine the personal relationships and flexibility of having a nanny with the friendships, adventures, and experience of being a part of a small group.

Forest Saplings was built around a pretty simple belief: children deserve the time to actually be children.

Time to get dirty. Splash in creeks. Climb rocks. Ask a million questions. Make friends. Find bugs. Meet animals. Explore museums. Use their imaginations. Try something that feels hard, discover they can do it, and proudly announce, “I DID IT!”

Most days, we're out exploring from around 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Our classroom might be a forest, creek, museum, library, aquarium, garden, nature center, or wherever that day's adventure happens to take us.

We have plans. We have monthly curriculum themes. We absolutely have intention behind what we do.

But we also leave room for childhood to happen.

Forest saplings isn't a daycare, preschool, or traditional childcare program. We're a small relationship-based nanny share designed around the way young children naturally experience their world.

At Forest Saplings, we're not trying to hurry children toward the next milestone. They'll get there soon enough.

We give them time to wander. Time to wonder. Time to solve problems. Time to build friendships. Time to become independent. Time to stop for the butterfly, investigate the bug, climb one more rock, or spend ten minutes discussing whether that cloud looks more like a dragon or a duck.

Those aren't interruptions to our day.

Those are the moments we're here for.

The hikes, creek days, museums, fairy houses, muddy boots, car naps, and pockets mysteriously filled with rocks are the parts of Forest Saplings you can see.

Behind them is nearly thirty years of experience working with children, education in psychology and early childhood development, and influences from Montessori, Waldorf, and nature-based education.

Every month has a thoughtfully chosen theme that helps guide our books, art, music, activities, conversations, field trips, and adventures.

But there's one very important difference:

The curriculum works for the children. The children don't work for the curriculum.

If we're learning about habitats and a deer walks across the trail, we're stopping.

If we're learning about weather and Colorado gives us sunshine, rain, hail, and a rainbow before lunch, Mother Nature just took over my lesson plan.

And if somebody discovers the world's most fascinating bug?

Apparently we're learning about that now.

The curriculum gives us direction.

The children help shape the journey.

It would be faster if we zipped every jacket, opened every snack, solved every disagreement, and helped every child over every log.

But fast isn't the goal.

Capable is.

Sometimes we help. Sometimes we encourage. Sometimes we ask, “What do you think you could try?”

And sometimes we simply stay close and give a child enough time to figure it out.

That moment when their face changes and they realize...

“I can do this.”

That's the good stuff.

Confidence grows one little victory at a time.

Forest Saplings combines the personal relationship and flexibility of having a nanny with the friendships, adventures, and shared experiences of a small group.

We don't simply want to watch your child.

We want to know them.

We learn what makes them laugh, what they're curious about, what makes them nervous, when they need encouragement, when they need comfort, and when they just need us to step back and let them discover what they're capable of.

Some children charge straight into every adventure.

Some need to watch first.

Some could spend an hour looking for bugs.

Some think bugs should remain several zip codes away.

They're all right. They're all welcome.

Children don't have to fit themselves into Forest Saplings.

Forest Saplings makes room for the child.

The children may think they're just having fun.

While they're counting rocks, following animal tracks, crossing creeks, listening to stories, helping a friend, building fairy houses, watching butterflies, creating art, using baby sign language, or investigating something they've discovered, they're also developing:

Confidence • Communication • Problem-Solving • Independence • Empathy • Resilience • Creativity • Language • Math • Science • Friendship

Learning doesn't always look like learning.

And that's kind of the point.

Choosing someone to care for your child is a big decision.

When your child is with us, we want you to know they're more than supervised.

They're known.

They're encouraged to ask questions, make mistakes, solve problems, build friendships, get muddy, laugh loudly, try hard things, and discover just how capable they really are.

We want them to come home tired, dirty, full of stories, and possibly carrying the greatest stick ever discovered in the history of sticks.

Most importantly, we want them to come home knowing they were safe, respected, encouraged, and loved exactly as they are.

Because childhood isn't a race to the next milestone.

It's an adventure worth taking the scenic route through.

Wonder • Adventure • Childhood