You know the poem...
"Mrs. McTwitter, the babysitter,
I think she's a little bit crazy.
She thinks the babysitter
is supposed to sit upon the baby."
-Shel Silverstein
Babysitters are the bane of my existence. I mean, I was an awesome babysitter. I loved doing it, I loved the kids, I played with them, fed them, bathed them, dressed them, put them to bed, cleaned up after them...the whole nine yards.
But now, being a parent hiring babysitters, I'm finding most of them are total duds. I know a lot of my friends only care that their children are alive when they get home. But I really do expect more than that. If I'm going to pay these kids around minimum wage for their work, then they'd better do a good job. If they got a real job and did a crummy job of it, they would not longer have a real job. So I don't want to pay them for doing nothing, even if it meant just keeping my kids alive. I expect more than that from them.
I expect them to take care of my kids and play with them. Follow my instructions, including putting them in pajamas for bed. I expect my kids to be in their room with the light off when I get home. Sure, it'd be great if they were all asleep, but you can't force a kid to sleep. So at least in their room, lights off, jammies on. I expect that if you fed them dinner, clean up dinner. If the kids made a mess, clean it up. If I made the mess, I would LOVE it if you helped with that, but you don't HAVE to. But if you made it, please, clean it up. I expect you to play with my kids and not just plop them in front of a movie the whole time. Especially not 3 movies. And please don't let them consume 64 ounces of juice at dinner. If I say no TV, please don't turn on the TV for them. Please don't finish my Christmas presents for me. Please don't spend the whole time on the phone. Please don't call and ask, on your first time babysitting for me, if you can bring a friend.
That being said, if I come home and find the house a mess, dinner still on the table, and you on the computer or watching TV, I am going to reduce the amount I pay you. And don't look at me like that when you count it in front of me only to find it is less that you hoped. If you want to get paid for work, then actually work.
I know that's harsh, but after going thru dozens of babysitters and only finding 3 that are actually worth paying, I'm tired of searching for a great babysitter. I love it when mom's train their kids. When they really teach their daughters how to babysit. I love those babysitters. But the rest...??
How do you feel about babysitters?
6 comments:
Wow! Did all this stuff really happen? Did they really finish your Christmas presents for you? If that's the case, hire her again, because the ones you gave me turned out great...hardy har har, I know. But YES, GRRR!!! I have a bsitter I love, and she does everything. But really, I can't believe the YW aren't taught to Clean up after themselves, then clean up dinner, do the dishes, all that!!! Where have the values gone? Ironic, though, when we were going to hire the teenaged girl from one family, but then learned she didn't know how to change a diaper, and when her younger brother came instead --long story -- he told us, "I was supposed to do your dishes but your kitchen was already clean, so I washed your sliding door instead." Oh, what an angel. So, really, keep this bsitting story on the back burner to fill in the details later...and I know this isn't about Nathan and you going to the Dr today...
BUT Yes, I am the one that says "I just want my kids alive and happy" when I get home. (glad you disguised me as "your friend") I have HOPES that things will be cleaned up, etc. But I have EXPECTATIONS that they will be happy and alive. I would prefer them to have good memories with the bsitter, good associations with us leaving, be happy and feel cared for from the bsitter, instead of the bsitter feeling pressure to have them in bed lights out so she turns into the wicked witch in order for my perfect world to look perfect when I got home. And, all my bsitters have had them in bed lights out. Yet on those days that a child is having a harder time going to bed without Mommy home, I know that they will be happy and cared for because she's not afraid of my reaction when I get home.
AND, thank you to the DAD of my children who will hire the bsitters...I HATE calling the bsitters...It's just one of those things.
The best babysitter I've found thus far was my 18 year old brother. LOL. Who'd a thunk? He even did my dishes and cleaned my living room. He read the kids stories and had them to bed on time. I love that kid! Missing him a lot right now.
I've definitely had some terrible sitters. Ovens left on. Ice cream cartons left to melt on the counter. Screaming babies left in their cribs :( We're hoping to have better luck here! Wish us luck!
I pay my sitters according to what they do- makes sense to me! I give them a bonus for any bonus work. I had a sitter not feed my children once. I told her the kids weren't quite hungry- yet, but dinner was on the table and ready to be eaten when they were ready. Well, two hours later, they were watching movie #2 and dinner was plenty cold on the table- untouched. We've never had her back. I also have issues around here with the way girls dress. When the sitter shows up with SHORT, SHORT shorts and cleavage hanging out, I don't usually call them back either.
I am very much like you. I have expectations. Brad and I go out half the time so we don't have to do the bedtime routine. When the kids tell us the next morning that they didn't like the sitter because she wouldn't read the story because it was too late, I say HOORAY and call her back again.
Hey, if you've got three you like, that's three weekends of rotation. That's fantastic! We've only got two we like. (They come dressed for the occassion.) :)
Now Cheri, babysitters won't be YOU!
:)
That said, I expect my house clean as I left it and kids in bed, less than that, and we don't ask them again. Movies, we'd prefer not. But hey. Haven't found one that plays AND cleans up.
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