Lala Land Daycare, Los Angeles

I waited 6 months to write this review because I had multiple friends with children in this school and the director Lisa is so toxic we were all concerned about retaliation, kick their children out or do something equally vindictive. They've all moved on (literally 5 families in as many months) so here we go. 1. IF YOU HAVE TO WORK OR A HAVE JOB THIS IS NOT THE PLACE: They will send your child home if they don't nap, if they have even a sniffle or a slight cough, seasonal allergy symptoms (even with a Dr.'s note) or if they throw toys or exhibit any other normal baby/toddler fussy behavior they will be sent home. One of my friends even had her 6 month old baby sent home repeatedly because she 'wouldn't sleep when the other kids slept'. Um, I'm sorry, isn't that your whole job? They recently changed their hours to be shorter (close at 4:30 instead of 5:00 and even earlier on Fridays) because the assistants 'were tired and needed time to clean'. No refund or discounted price was given, parents just have to deal with shorter hours now. My son was 'allowed' to be in the daycare about half of the time we'd paid for, that's how many times he was sent home in the course of three months, for various reasons. They close the school with no notice for 'cleaning' or 'extra teacher free time'. They change the rules, hours and anything else they like, on whatever whim they choose, whenever they choose. 2. NO POTTY TRAINING ALLOWED: My son went in practically finished with potty training at about 23 months (only wore a diaper to sleep) and came out completely regressed. Unless your baby or toddler (this is 6 month - 3 y/o daycare btw) is 100% potty trained even while sleeping, they are required to wear a diaper the entire time they are there, no exceptions. I was told that the assistants 'don't have time to take kids to the bathroom'. This is with 4-5 adults and 12-14 kids or so. In the contract they outright REFUSE to change your child's clothes if the soil themselves. They will make your child sit in their soiled clothing, in their own mess until you pick are able to pick them up. Again this is stated in their contract. Again, is this not your whole job? Oh, and in the contract that if your child has an accident you will be responsible for getting the entire floor in that room professionally cleaned. 3. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR FEEDING ALL OTHER THE KIDS THERE: Even though you'll pay Venice prices for this daycare you will be required to provide snacks for the whole class, paper towels, cleaning supplies, etc. for the entire class once a month. Now I understand bringing my child's snack and lunch but why are the parents paying for the other kids? And parents are supplying cleaning supplies for the school that you pay thousands of dollars a month for. 4. IF YOU VALUE PRIVACY, DISCRETION AND KINDNESS TO OTHERS: Again, not the place for you if you value these things. Lisa the 'director' is a terrible gossip and extremely toxic personality. She spent a whole chunk of time regaling my husband and I with stories of 'previous parents and kids that were awful'... most of whom she named by name and named their children too. Funny thing Lisa didn't know was... one family she was talking about was my landlord and their child whom we know well. The story was detailed and long. If you think she won't talk about you behind your back and using your actual names, think again. She has told my personal friends who were parents there that they were parenting terribly, that they were doing things wrong, that their kids have medical issues (that they don't) and have seen more than one parent cry because of this awful woman. Lisa also made multiple comments to me about how they had a mom 'like you here once.. such pretty skin color like yours' and asked more than once if I spoke English (I had spoken to her multiple times in person at this time). Sadly for me, it's the only language I speak, despite my 'pretty skin color'. There's so much more I could write but I feel like this sums it all up pretty well. I personally know some of the parents that left the 1 star reviews and beware, a lot of the 5 star ones are from teachers and from people who never had a child attend. Also, like other parents have mentioned, as soon as there is one negative post - positive ones show up immediately. Totally suss. Sad that you don't have to actually have a child there to review it! Hope this helps any prospective parents in making an informed decision on where to place your child.

The list of concerns I have for this facility are endless. While it seems quaint at first glance, one only need look a little longer to notice the problems. Staff names aren't made available, there is a male tenant living in the property who apparently "keeps to himself". The director - an old woman talks inappropriately about staff to the parents, and gossips freely about parents. I have seen care providers not wash the children's hands after diaper changes and the number of infants in the facility is over 4 which is a blatant breach of the license. I would seriously warn against considering this daycare facility.