Happy Times Child Care

We had a chance to talk to the lady/​owner around Dec 2015. She was rude and sounded indifferent. Did not smile at all throughout our conversation and did not care to ask anything about our baby.
I do not know how people get clients when they do not even have basic customer/​soft skills.
Also we were told that babies are shown TV while eating food. That’s a big no!

My daughter attended Happy Times for about two-​years and it was a great experience for both of us. This is a home daycare, providing nice well-​kept play areas, indoor and out; structured activities with lots of art, story time, and singing; and nutritious home cooked meals. The owner is a bit quirky, but friendly and exceptionally good with the children she cares for. The entire staff, the owner and her «Helpers,» are patient, friendly, and caring. If you commute on BART, the location is fairly close to the Union City station, making it very convenient.
From top to bottom this is an extremely well-​run daycare, I would highly recommend.

Our 2 year old has been coming to Happy Times for almost a year and we couldn’t be happier that we found Lynda and her staff. She enjoys coming here to see her friends. There have been several times where it is even difficult to get her to go home because she loves the atmosphere.
Lynda has a schedule everyday so the kids know what to expect. My daughter paints, draws, sings songs, and listens to stories. Also, there is a nice backyard with a playground and tons of toys. You can tell that Lynda goes over and beyond to really ensure that the kids get what they need in terms of learning and play. She also prepares healthy meals and from scratch with a good balance of protein, fruits and veggies and carbs. There have some dinners that my husband has raved to me about.
My daughter has learned quite a lot from being at Happy Times — her letters, numbers, colors, shapes, she sings songs, and her manners. One of the other things that I really give credit to Lynda and her staff is keeping the place so neat and clean. Though you can’t escape the frequent sicknesses that go throughout little kids, she makes sure to wash those toys that may have been compromised. :)
I can’t say enough positive things about Happy Times. Please give them a try.

Happy Times was the first place I looked when I reworked my custody agreement and was awarded extra time with my children. I immediately liked Lynda (owner), the structure of the children’s days, the emphasis on nutrition, and the general atmosphere the staff gave off. Of course I checked many other day cares after to make sure I found the best place for my two children, but Lynda had the structure and professionalism of a daycare center, with the warm feeling of a home daycare. It was like dropping my children off at my Grandmother’s house back in Kentucky, except Lynda doesn’t chew tobacco like her. Haha. Not only did my kids love it there, but they were really smitten with the staff too. All of Lynda’s staff were well trained and extremely good with the children. My children and I were going through a lot with the after effects of divorce and the distance between their mother and me. Lynda went above and beyond by offering me literature on raising children of divorce and provided guidance and insight from her extensive experience with children. All of my family is back in Kentucky so saying this meant a lot to me is an understatement. I do not have a lot of support out here and she always went out of her way for the kids and me. I recently got a job working for the Air Force again and was able to move back close to my babies in Vacaville. As great as this was, we all miss Lynda and the Happy Times staff very much. It has been months and my kids still ask if we can go back every Sunday night. I highly, highly, highly recommend Happy Times.
PS Lynda also goes big on holidays and birthdays. My kids were always bringing home some swag (including birthday presents and treats). As well as folders full of schoolwork and arts and crafts.

My child attended Lynda’s school a few years ago when they were two years old. It took him a couple of weeks to get adjusted but after that, he LOVED it. The staff is nice and I love the amount of time they put into important things like learning, eating healthy and socialization. I never felt weary of sending my child to her because I know they would be well take care of. I only gave the day care ⁴⁄₅ stars because the owner can be a bit judgmental and rude at times. She definitely speaks her mind and tells you what she thinks may be best for your child. There were a couple times she rubbed me the wrong way or said something rude to me, but at the end of the day, my child loved it there and I could tell she adored him. I would definitely take my other kids there in the future.

It’s difficult to find a good daycare for your child. The fact that you need a place value your values and respect your culture make it even harder. Happy time daycare is a great place were we found great care with respect to our values. It’s clean, save and filled with love. The children love Linda. She is very good with the kids.
My experience with Happy times daycare started year and half ago. When I moved from east cost with my family. I looked for a daycare even before I arrived but I couldn’t find a good one. I even tried one but shortly I found that all what the care about is money. I called Linda to drop a visit and she was nice but she was full at that time a waited for 3 months till a got spot for my kid. After my kid join in 2 months I start noticing development in my child skills and manners. I highly recommend Happy Times day care.

I posted a review last year, which has since disappeared so I’m reposting. My feedback stays the same, which is EXCELLENT.
Anyway, if you are looking for a daycare facility in the Union City/​Newark/​Fremont area (or beyond), you absolutely MUST consider Happy Times Child Care! The tuition is very reasonable and the care is exceptional. My 4-​year old and 2-​year old have each been going to Happy Times Child Care since they were 4-​months old, and we couldn’t have been happier with our decision.
Happy Times is run by Lynda Schwabe, who has years of experience in both managing a daycare and in child development in general. She and her staff have created a loving, supportive environment that enables each child to grow, learn and thrive. From day one, Lynda has helped us with all of the major milestones including: bottle weaning, establishing naptimes and potty-​training. She also has an excellent preschool curriculum that covers all of the necessary subjects such as math/​numbers, reading/​the alphabet, and even culture (which is especially wonderful, given that she has a very diverse clientele). Every day, my children never stop amazing me with all they have learned. For instance, since she was 2 years old, my daughter has started to recognize letters and numbers!
Lynda clearly has a passion for what she does. She is an amazing caregiver who truly loves and cares about each child as an individual and makes it her priority to ensure that their needs are addressed. While my children are only 2 out of her entire bunch, she knows preferences, habits and moods. Ultimately, we cannot imagine any better place for our children to spend the majority of their day.
And finally, we know that finding the right child care facility can be overwhelming due to all of the options. We certainly felt that way when we started researching while I was still pregnant with my firstborn. A Google search brought up a list of facilities that we then narrowed down through a very extensive and thorough outreach that included requesting the records from the state agency that regulates daycare licenses. While this was a pretty daunting process, it was here where Happy Times stood out. This is because Happy Times Child Care was the ONLY one on our list that didn’t have any complaints issued against it – which is extremely impressive given that Lynda has been in operation for years. While this shouldn’t be the only factor when making a decision, we knew it was a pretty good sign!

1 year and 3 daycares later, my kids and I miss Lynda so much. My kids still ask to visit her, so although I’ve relocated out of the area, I sometimes take them to Lynda’s (for date nights and play days). More importantly, I realize now how much my kids learned to socialize, be respectful, eat healthy meals and snacks, and learn age-​appropriate curriculum. IF you think on first impressions that Lynda is not so «warm», give it a chance… the kids love her and she loves them!
I am still one of her references, if you ask her for my number.

I rarely write reviews. But for something as important as childcare, I think it’s important to let other parents know my experience.
I submitted a web inquiry, and I just got a call back from the owner who completely lacked any sense of professionalism and desire to make a good first impression.
After sounding annoyed that her response email to me did not go through, she asked «So…what can I do for you???» Her tone was unkind and short. In that brief 1 minute phone call with her, I knew that I did not need to waste my time setting up a tour of the daycare, as I would never want to leave my child with someone like that.
I replied that I was all set and did not need to schedule a tour. She responded, «Oh…is that right? Uhh, ok, cool.»
What kind of caretaker (and owner, much less) speaks to a potential parent/​customer like that?

My almost 5 year old son has been with Lynda since he’s 9 month old. Lynda has near 20 years of experience of child care, she provides safe, clean, loving environment for kids; which is very comforting to me– a full time mom. more importantly her caring love for kids is priceless. She teaches good values to kids, which I think is very important to me. She also provides freshly made meals for kids daily. I highly recommend her child care service.

I can’t say enough great things about Lynda, her staff and Happy Times. Jobs are forcing us to relocate, and we’ve actually considered commuting instead of moving because we don’t want our son anywhere other than Happy Times.
I am so happy with the care our son receives here. Choosing a daycare provider for our first child was a tough decision, and Lynda and her staff have proven every day that we made the right choice (especially after we tried other providers).
The reasons we’re so happy:
— We are confident that our son is exceptionally well cared for. His every need is tended to, and I reluctantly admit that his diaper is changed even more frequently at daycare than it is at home. Her home is clean, well-​tended and very well equipped. It’s got everything a kid could want.
— He’s learning the skills he’ll need for school. He’s not only learning his letters and numbers at an impressive pace (he’s under 2), he’s also learning the skills he’ll need to succeed in preschool and kindergarten. Things like how to pay attention, how to concentrate on a task, how to follow directions. Basically, he’s learning how to learn, which is even more important. And he has so much fun playing, he has no idea he’s being taught. And he absolutely LOVES washing his hands before meals and after a diaper change. He runs to the sink before being told!
— He absolutely loves Lynda, the staff and other children. When he gets to daycare each day, he runs to hug Lynda, and he talks about her and his friends the whole way home.
— She really, really cares. She really knows each child’s personality and takes the time to provide the care each needs — even though it’s different for every one. As a first time mom, I’ve been clueless on some things and have asked her what her experience has been. She’s always taken the time to either offer advice or just listen, and I’ve never walked away feeling judged.
— He gets to play with older and younger children. He learns so much from the children who are older than he, and has learned to be gentle and kind with the kids who are smaller. Great preparation for future siblings.
— Lynda is very honest. And I can’t stress enough how important this is in a daycare provider. If another child in the daycare has been sick and left early and she suspects they may have had a cold, she tells us to let us know to look out for the symptoms. She reminds us well in advance of parties, holidays, etc. We always hear from her first if our son (a very adventurous kid), scraped his knee jumping off of the porch.
— We always know what to expect. She’s great at communicating, and I feel like from the very beginning there are no surprises. From baby’s schedule to billing to what he’s eating, etc., she lets us know. She’s also proactive in preventing illness from spreading, provides materials to the parents she think might be helpful.

excellent day care. Our daughter went here for almost 2 years since she was 18 months old. Our son is now 16 months and we will be sending him there in a few months. I highly recommend Happy times child care.