Nursery

Hope Ames Nursery

If this is your first time attending the Hope Ames Nursery, WELCOME! We don’t believe it’s any accident you are here. We have been praying for you and your little ones! While we try not to take ourselves too seriously, we take the care of our littlest church attenders very seriously. 

In the nursery we provide quality childcare for children ages birth to age 3. We offer care during our Sunday services at the Ames City Auditorium and during select classes at The Link. While you attend worship or class, your child will have a safe space to play, read books and sing songs!

Child at nursery

The nursery is available at both the 9:00 and 10:30 am services on Sunday mornings, beginning 15 minutes prior to worship. Childcare is also offered during specific classes and events throughout the year. (Please check class or event details to determine whether childcare is available.) We ask parents to pick up your children immediately following the end of worship and/or classes. 

Child at daycare

What to Know

Checking In 

When attending the nursery for the first time, we will have you fill out a card with your basic information (names, emails, phone numbers, etc.). Once this information is in our system, you will enter your last name or phone number into the computer during future visits. Three tags will print. The tag with your child’s name and your phone numbers goes on your child’s back. The tag without phone numbers goes on your child’s items (coat, diaper bag, etc). The last tag you will bring back when you pick up your child. We will match the code on your tag to the one on your child’s back to ensure safe pickup for each child. 

Illness

If your little one is sick, please keep them home. Little ones often need more love and care when they don’t feel well. As much as we would love to be able to snuggle them and meet their needs, we also have to balance this with the other children attending the nursery.  

Runny noses: Use your best judgement with congestions/colds. Colds impact infants in different ways than they do toddlers. We have plenty of tissues/wipes and are happy to wipe noses as many times as we need to. If your child has a cold and you think they need to stay home, we respect that also! 

If your child has any of the below symptoms, please keep them home: 

  • Fever (above 101) 
  • Vomiting or diarrhea 
  • Severe or uncontrollable coughing/wheezing 

If you have further questions, please reach out to [email protected]

Food

Sunday services: Because the Sunday services are just over an hour, we do not offer food or snacks during the Sunday nursery times.  

Weekly classes: Details about food will be provided based on the scheduled times of each class.  

Bottles: If you have an infant who may be hungry while in the nursery, please talk to the nursery staff at drop-off. We appreciate any details you can provide including, but not limited to, type of milk (breastmilk or formula), preferred feeding positions, how often you stop to burp and how much you typically feed them.  

Personal Items

When you bring your child to the nursery, please label all your child’s personal items. If your child is in diapers, please bring 2-3 diapers and pack of wipes. Many families put a couple of diapers and a pack of wipes in a gallon ziplock with their child’s name on it. They drop this off each week for simplicity. If your child is in underwear or potty training, please bring an extra pair of underwear and pants just in case your child has an accident.  

If this is your child’s first time and you think they may struggle with the transition, a lovey, pacifier or highly preferred item may help sooth them the first couple of weeks. Other than items to help with the transition, please refrain from bringing toys from home with you. We have plenty of toys for your little one to play with while they are in our care. 

Donations

If you have items you would like to donate to the nursery, please reach out to Tayler Smalley at [email protected]. Please include pictures of the items. Tayler will take into consideration current nursery needs as well as space limitations when accepting donated items. We appreciate your generosity!  

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Tayler Smalley 400x400

Tayler Smalley