Happy Hearts Bilingual Learning Center

When looking for a new daycare for an incoming foster child of mine, I obviously started with online reviews as I work in an industry and relies on their online reputation. I wasn’t very thrilled when I saw Happy Hearts initial reviews but decided to give them a chance anyways.
I initially spoke with Mari who was extremely helpful in answering my questions and we scheduled a time/​date for me to come tour the facilities. When I arrived, she wasn’t there but her mother, Nina was and she toured the entire facility with me. I learned that the reason Mari wasn’t there, was because she was at their new Slaughter location. Immediately, I felt comfortable with both ladies.
Months went by, as we anxiously awaited for our daughter to arrive and when we finally got a date, I immediately called Nina to let her know when we would bring her by. It has now been 6 months since I’ve been taking her there and I couldn’t be happier. Each day when I pick her up, either Nina or one of the teachers will give me a quick update on the daily activities and anything they noticed/​observed throughout the day. It’s very comforting to know that my little girl is taken care of every day. All the ladies at Happy Hearts are amazing. In closing, don’t believe everything you see online, experience it for youself!

WORST DAYCARE EVER!!! I took my son there at 5 months and when I went in to get him he was screaming his head off purple while the owner Mari was on Facebook on her desktop I could not believe it. My son was in the same spot where I left him hours before, he was abandoned he was wet & pooped. I now know why there is not a wait list to happy hearts bilingual on slaughter and hardly any kids. The staff is lazy and does not care about the kids. I do not recommend this daycare for anyone
Plus the daycare consistently ask «what time will you be picking him up today» which doesn’t matter if I’m paying them out of pocket and there hours are till 6 PM!!!

My daughter (1) and boys (8,4) currently attends this day care and I must say they love it. I’ve met Mrs. Mari at least 4 times since my kids have started attending and she is so nice and professional. It makes me feel happy when my kids tell me that Mrs. Mari took them to sonic for slushies or that there was a bully being ugly to my boy and Mrs. Mari took care of it the next day. Kids are kids they fight, they bite, they argue and bicker. As long as no ones beating my kids, my kids enjoy being there and Mrs. Mari enjoys them then I have no problem. I must say that I’m truly satisfied with Happy Hearts and have no complaints. My daughter is learning to listen and talk, but it seems as if she only speaks and understands Spanish now. I’m fine with that. Keep up the good work happy hearts and I definitely recommend this place.

Not happy with this place at all. At my initial meeting with the assistant director she told me they only had 8 kids in the infant room, that each had their own crib and no swings or jumpers would be used. The first day I bring my daughter in I found out this was all a lie. They were crowded with children in a very tiny infant room. In addition the place is very unorganized and does not look clean. I feel bad for the kids that are currently attending that day care. When it comes to be a bilingual day care they don’t incorporate any learning plans for the kids. The only reason they are bilingual is because their staff speaks Spanish but they don’t actively have lesson plans to teach the kids. Not happy. I don’t suggest it at all to any parents that can avoid going.

We brought our daughter here for preschool from 4 – 5 years old. We loved it! Miss Mari is the owner and also teaches, and this center is her life. She knows all of her students, she knows all of the families, and so do the other teachers. They are an extremely dedicated group of women.
It’s important for any prospective families to understand that Mari bought this center in 2011, but didn’t change the name, and things are a lot better than they were under the old management. I also know this from personal experience– my daughter came to the center for a few months as an infant. We brought her back just as Mari was taking over (3 yrs later). It is very very different. Mari is young, energetic, college-​educated and so determined to make the most of this place. We trusted her and Miss Sara so much that we continued to drive across town for it even after we moved up to Jollyville.
The only reason we’re not still there is because we just relocated to Florida. But we miss this place a lot. Last night our daughter was saying that she misses her teachers and wants to go see them when we return to Austin to visit family. And we definitely will.

My husband and I decided to interview Happy Hearts back in February based on the 5 star review we found here on Unilocal.We thought the same things about the facility as the reviewer did and decided to enroll our baby. We kept in contact with the director — letting her know when our son was born and when we would be bringing him in to start his care there. When it was finally time for me to go back to work, we took our 9 week old baby in to Happy Hearts only to find that the director that we interviewed in February — the one with the degree in early childhood development — had SOLD the place a week previous and had failed to mention it. We were stunned, but thought we should give the new director a try while we look for alternate arrangements.
After one week at Happy Hearts, my baby caught a virus that turned into viral meningitis. He had to be hospitalized for two days and I had to keep him at home for a week after that. When we called the center to let them know what had happened, the director said «well, kids get sick» and still wanted her money for the week he missed due to the crud he caught at her facility.
After my baby recovered from the illness, we brought him back in. I started to notice that wherever the caretakers parked him in the morning was the same exact place he would be when I would come to get him in the afternoon. If they put him in a swing, he would be in that same swing hours later. His mood seemed different too — he’s usually a vibrant, alert, happy baby and when he would get home from school, he would be lethargic and cranky.
But the final nail was when they failed to change his diaper for an entire day. How do I know? It’s simple. I brought him to school in a Pampers diaper, but only had Costco diapers in his bag for the day. When I picked him up SIX HOURS LATER, he was still wearing the Pampers diaper and it was super heavy and full of pee and poop. His poor bottom was red and irritated from being forced to sit in his own waste and he was in a horrible cranky mood. The worst part? They LIED about it on the infant log — said they changed his diaper three times that day. Even worse than that — the usual caretakers weren’t there that day — instead, the director herself and an assistant were in charge of the babies — so, my son was neglected on the director’s watch. So amazingly unacceptable.
Thankfully, we’ve found him a better place to go, so, he will no longer have to suffer at Happy Hearts.

I had to put my son in daycare when he was 6 weeks old. Making that choice was really difficult to make but finding a daycare to not only just «watch» your child but to find one that loves and cares for your child is particularly hard to find. You research, read reviews, get recommendations but nothing is as good as interviewing the director as well as talking directly to the people who will be watching your child.
My husband and I made a huge mistake by placing him in ANOTHER daycare. It was a nightmare. Kids had snot all over their faces and had wet diapers. It was horrific. We stayed there long enough to meet one of the workers there, Fila. She speaks only Spanish, understands a little English but she’s incredibly good at what she does. She warms my little black heart the way she cares and loves the children.
When she (Fila) left that HORRIFIC location (that will be in another review) we then noticed our son’s mood had started to change (he was irritable), he wasn’t eating as much, he’d come home with diaper rashes, a rash on his face from them PROPPING the bottle (i wanted to KILL the people that watched him) dirty clothes, etc. We couldn’t take it any longer and we tracked her down. We found her here, at Happy Hearts.
As soon as we walked in to Happy Hearts it was such a positive experience. The babies start off here from 6 weeks to 5 yrs. The 6 week old children until they are 1 yrs of age will stay in a separate room with the same people for an entire year. That was very important to me because at a lot of day cares move your child from room to room when they hit 6 months, 9 months, 12 months and all with different people. i wanted my son to have a consistent caretaker, not someone who could give two shits about him because they’ve only known him a month or two. I like for the caretaker to be invested in my son.
The babies have a large room with a play area in the center of the room. There they can crawl, sit, play, get on the swings and mingle with each other. Another thing, this place is very clean and well organized. Again, important if you do NOT want your child to be getting sick every other week. A lot of kids share toys and all toys at this age get placed in the mouth. It’s gross. At least here I know that they clean everything all the time.
The director of the daycare has a degree in child psychology and is very compassionate and caring. She’s genuinely concerned about your child’s heath and happiness. When the children get bigger they have some curriculum but most importantly they are on schedules. Important if you want your child to have a consistent schedule at home. The director has her office right in the center of the building so she can see anything and everything going on in the daycare.
I highly recommend this place if you are in the 45 area. Their rates are pretty average for most day cares in the area. This place is bilingual in both Spanish and English.