About us...
Sweet Pea Childcare, LLC, is a family owned and operated business and is proud to be a part of the local early childhood community in Eliot, Maine! Deb Erickson-Irons and Ashley Irons started designing the plan for Sweet Pea in late 2020, with the vision to create a childcare program that aligned with their values as mothers, nature lovers and passionate advocates for quality education and care for our children. They opened the program to their community in July of 2021 and the rest has been history in the making...
Sweet Pea is continuing to evolve its mission/vision for an inclusive nature based program, enriched with the arts and influenced with the Montessori philosophy of early childhood education. Their mindfully prepared learning environments and qualified team of teachers are exciting to share with you their love for ECE.
Sweet Pea Childcare is also on the state list for Women Owned Businesses;
https://www.mainewomensbusinesslist.com/listing/sweet-pea-childcare-llc/
Ashley Irons, Owner/ Director of Education/Head Teacher
Ashley Irons, Owner/ Director of Education/Head Teacher
Ashley Irons, Owner/ Director of Education/Head Teacher
Ashley, is a Montessori certified preschool teacher and a professionally trained postpartum doula. She holds well over a decade of direct childcare experience, within various learning environments and in-home family care settings. She has previous worked as a nanny, a youth camp counselor, an art teacher, a float teacher, a substitute teacher, an assistant teacher, a head teacher and director of education over the course of her career. She appreciates and values all positions within the childcare field and holds high standards for this professional work.
With her Bachelor’s of Science in Art Education, Ashley loves to share her passions of creativity and the arts with our youth. She cares deeply about the importance of outdoor play and exploration of nature and she is committed to providing a high quality and sensory rich learning environments at Sweet Pea Childcare.
"To assist a child, we must provide him with an environment that allows him to develop freely."
-Maria Montessori
Deb Erickson-Irons, Co-Founder
Ashley Irons, Owner/ Director of Education/Head Teacher
Ashley Irons, Owner/ Director of Education/Head Teacher
“Memere” Deborah, has had a successful and award-winning career in leading community health teams and health care organizations in the Seacoast area. She co-founded Sweet Pea Childcare in 2020 with Ashley and although she has retired as of December 2023, she still plans on being apart of the program, helping when needed and visiting our little sweet peas.
“I offer my expertise, emotion and activism.
I offer my mind, my heart and my hands.”
— Zuzana Caputova,
President of Slovakia and
environmental activist
