Do You Ever Hire A Babysitter?

[Changing4Best]

I was wondering, if you hire a babysitter, what do you look for in them? How much do you pay them per hour? What chores other than babysitting do you have them do? Also, how has it gone, do your children like their babysitter? How is the experience in general?

 

[GWhizz]

I have yet to find one I'm happy with! My current one, I thought, was mature (same age as me), she's well qualified (a preschool degree), good references and previous experience. But she has no initiative, wants to be out all day, even if it means my son misses his dinner or nap, feeds him biscuits/snacks all day. All the good work we did getting him to eat well etc has gone down the toilet recently. She also leaves dirty dishes and toys all over the place which I end up having to clean up after work! I'm worn out reminding her what needs to be done. I think she lacks initiative and interest in general. The only reason I'm still using her, is I need her for a few hours the next couple of wks while I go to therapy. After that she's done and I'll be sending him to a crèche at the university I'll be attending from September.

I think it's very hard to find someone you can be 100% satisfied with. At the end of the day, you're putting faith in someone coming into your home and leaving them one to one. You have no idea what they do or don't really do. Yes I have trust issues. But this is my 3rd attempt with childminders/babysitters. I honestly will try get a trusted friend if I need a babysitter in the future!

 

[Truthful_Whispers]

http://www.babysitters.com/

 

[Changing4Best]

@GWhizz Gosh, I am sorry you have had to have all these problems with her. I pray it all works out for you in September at your university.

 

[Changing4Best]

@Whispering_Truth The website will not be useful, as I live way out in the country. The websites cover big cities but are not good for out in the "boonies".

 

[Truthful_Whispers]

The website will not be useful, as I live way out in the country. The websites cover big cities but...

Maybe your local Craigslist or newspaper will have some sitters for hire. Good luck

 

[Changing4Best]

We are not in Craigslist, we are so far off the beaten track. I'll check the local paper, thanks. I don't ever recall having seen an ad for babysitters before though.

 

[illusionist]

I worked as a childminder after finding the advert in a local shop. As well as looking after the kids, do activities with them, take them to activities, cook for them....I also did chores round the house such as hovering, washing, ironing, sewing, cleaning....basically what I did when my own kids were young.

 

[falling_wave]

Care.com is good. Before this job I did childcare for a long time and still babysit. The families I work with have all been really happy with my work. I think they key is finding someone who isn't burned out on kids. If that's all they do (full time nanny) make sure that they are not coming from a better job or have a degree they could be doing a better job. Of course you want someone with experience and intuition over qualified or used to better breeds resentment. Also the way you approach what needs to be done makes all the difference. If you are short or could feel to her like you are micro managing she is likely to resent being there. If you are friendly and offer her meals tips if overtime etc. she will likely respect you and bond with little one making work better. You can always say I'm so tired of dealing with the eating battle here are some ingredients. Do you think you could help me get creative and get him back on track with eating? Shell feel empowered rather than forced. Maybe say it's fine to do outings but just be home for nap time from whenever time. It's in the little things. I think someone younger than you might work better because as old might feel like she knows as much. Also someone you would want to spend time with rather than just employ really helps not that you have to. From my experience I hated working for families that micro managed or families that were inconsistent in scheduling but if they gave me some leway and maintained the hard work I did with the schedule I was perfectly happy to give it my all. It's just a balancing act.

 

[Ronin]

Or if you know a pediatrician, they might be a person to ask for recommendation on babysitting, they'd likely have an idea & be well connected with families with children.

 

[Friday]

Babysitting is expensive as fawk in my region. Bare minimum $10 per hour plus tip. More standard is $15-20 per hour plus tip. No chores outside of childcare. Chores = a different job (mother's helper if I'm on site, maid if I'm not).

Childcare is similarly priced ($1500 a month for before & after school care, $2500 a month for infant/toddler full time care).

Prices vary hugely by region. In the US $10 an hour is fairly average. Some places are as low as $2 an hour, some as high as $25. YMCA subsidized half day in my region (4 hours) is $50, full day is $100 (9 hours), before & after school care is $1000 per month... In others it's less than half that!

***

I used childcare more than babysitting per se. What I personally did was hire Early Childhood Education / Med-Students / Psych students though my university to come over at night after my son was already in bed. $20 + home cooked meal + quiet place to study = a screaming deal for me at $40-$100 a week instead of $500 a week, depending on whether I needed 2 days or 5... And they got food, a little beer money, & a quiet place to study. Win/win. I usually had a "stable" of them, with a few regulars. Everyone's schedule shifts each quarter. That's how I worked (nights) & went to college. I'd use the same pool of college kids for any daytime babysitting needs in event of an emergency, but then I'd pay them the going min rate of $10 an hour plus tip.

Non-emergencies I tended to trade play dates with other parents, use parents-night-out at our local gymnastics place, homeschool teens, other people's nannies & au pairs who wanted some moonlighting pay, etc... But my son is super super social. Babysitters worked best for when I needed care while he was sleeping, when he was awake I tended to take him to group type activities.

The only caveat to all of the above is when he was sick I used a home nursing care service. Ironically, CNAs only make about $9 an hour in my region. It's cheaper to have skilled nursing care than a highschool kid!!! In fact, I hooked a few of my favorite Russians up with nannying gigs... With their medical background they were able to more than triple their CNA salary to $3500 a month, plus a nanny-car, plus paid vacations, & all the other perks families do to keep good nannies... All while working on their American healthcare certs.

& No. I would never leave him with someone he didn't like.

 

[Britt.f7]

We had teens who were friends of the family, and a lady who also had her children in preschool with mine. We had them in daycare while I was working and with that lady friend. The teens on nights out. Which were infrequent. Because of what happened to me by a babysitter, I was very cautious.

Are you looking to babysit? You could put an ad in the paper. That would help get you out there.