It started with a backyard full of kids.

Eighteen years later, it's still the warmest, busiest, happiest house on the street.

A welcoming in-home daycare entryway with little cubbies full of tiny coats, boots, and a basket of mittens

Our story

The heart of a home daycare.

Donna Beaulieu opened Small Wonders in 2007 after fifteen years of being the mom every neighbor trusted with their kids. With a degree in early childhood education and four children of her own grown and gone, she turned her Turner home into the warm, busy, happy place it is today.

Donna and her two assistants — both with us for over eight years — believe little ones learn best when they feel safe, loved, and free to get a little muddy. A lot of the kids who started here as babies now wave from the school bus. Some are even bringing their own little ones back.

— Miss Donna

How we care

Loved first, taught second.

Children who feel safe and known are free to be curious. That's the whole idea.

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Play is the work of childhood

We learn letters, numbers, and kindness the way kids learn best — through hands-on play, stories, songs, and a whole lot of pretend.

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Small groups, real attention

With 4:1 ratios and a mixed-age family feel, every child is truly seen, every single day.

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Outdoors, rain or shine

A big fenced backyard and at least two trips outside a day. Fresh air, mud, and movement are part of the curriculum.

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Honest, daily communication

Photos, notes, and a real conversation at pickup. You'll always know how the day went — the good and the hard.

Our team

The same loving faces, year after year.

Stability is everything to a little one. Our caregivers stay — and the kids feel it.

Donna Beaulieu

Owner & lead caregiver. Founded Small Wonders in 2007. Degree in early childhood education, mom of four, and the reason so many Turner families never looked anywhere else.

Miss Karen

Assistant caregiver, 9 years. Our toddler whisperer. Karen runs sensory play and messy art like it's an Olympic sport, and somehow makes clean-up fun too.

Miss Bethany

Assistant caregiver, 8 years. Keeper of the reading nook and the preschool circle. Bethany has read Goodnight Moon more times than anyone alive — and means it every time.

A bright, tidy in-home daycare playroom with low wooden shelves of toys, a soft rug, and plants by a sunny window

Our home

A real house, made for little people.

Small Wonders isn't a brightly-lit institution — it's a home. Sunlit wood floors, low shelves a toddler can reach, a cozy reading nook, and a kitchen where lunch actually gets made each day.

Outside, a big fenced backyard holds a wooden play structure, a sandbox, garden beds, and plenty of room to run. Every space is licensed, inspected, and child-proofed — but it never stops feeling like a place a kid would want to be.

Separate calm sleep space for infants and nappers
Fully fenced backyard with shade and soft ground cover
Home kitchen — meals and snacks made fresh on site
Maine DHHS licensed, inspected, and child-proofed throughout

Come meet us

The best way to know is to visit.

Come see the space, meet Miss Donna and the team, and watch a day in action. No pressure — just a warm welcome and a real look at where your child would spend their days.

Schedule a visit Call (207) 555-0173