When I was younger, I babysat a lot. I had regulars, a job almost, and I was highly recommended. Individuals asked if I could babysit their children around the world and asked if I would essentially be their child’s nanny. I said no to the last two, the first because I didn’t like one of the children, and the second because she wasn’t paying enough.
As an experienced babysitter, I have some thoughts on how to set yourself, your children, and the babysitter up for success for a day of babysitting. It’s stressful, you’re entrusting your children to babysitters who may be barely teenagers or experienced, so definitely ask around your community and see who other similar families recommend.
It starts before the babysitter has even arrived. Talk to your children about expectations. Tell them to listen to the babysitter, tell them that their schedule will be disrupted but that you’ll see them the next morning. Don’t tell them that you’ll see them that night, they will stay awake and wait for you. Instead, if you tell your children you’ll see them in the morning, the babysitter can tell your children that they’ll see you sooner if they go to sleep.
Prepare to put the dog, and other animals, in their kennels. When hiring a babysitter, you should always disclose up front that you have animals and you should understand that you’ll be rejected as a client for having animals. However, even if you are accepted, you should not expect the babysitter to interact with your animals. If you have a dog, I don’t care the size, breed, or temperament, they should be in their kennel. Dogs can get strange with strangers quickly and you don’t want the babysitter to have to make a choice between their safety, the children, and the dog. If you have an attackative cat or other pet, put them in their kennel, or board them. Let the babysitter know where they are and leave them alone. Also, impress upon your children the need to not let out their pet. If the animals is bundle of cuteness, cuddles, and joy, still leave them in their kennel. It is up to the babysitter to decide to let them out, after you’ve left. If you pressure them in the moment, they will leave and not come back.
Prepare an emergency list and ‘tape’ it down. Write, or print, if your handwriting is terrible, a list of people the babysitter can call, including you. Put down the numbers and their relationship to the children. For example, parents – primary contact, Aunt – secondary contact, and friend – third contact. Then tape it down. Don’t expect the babysitter to input all the information correctly as you’re around getting ready to leave and talking to them. Also, don’t put it on a post-it note. Put it on a full piece of paper, with nothing else on it, this is not the time to save paper, and put a weight on it or tape it down to something like the fridge. In the event there is a true emergency, you don’t want them wasting time trying to remember your name or looking for a post it note that was drawn on by your children. Also, make two copies.
Media. Do not expect the babysitter to play in the mud, grass, play soccer, or what have you with your children. If they feel like doing so, that’s great. However, you should expect that the babysitter is going to do their best, and that best might be a calm day of watching movies. So, have a list of movies that the children can watch or the babysitter will use their best judgement. Also, put out the relevant remotes, and remove the rest from the vicinity. Put them in a drawer somewhere. I’ve shown up to houses and they pointed at a pile of remotes and said that one of them controlled the TV.
Bathtime. Although the babysitter may feel okay with your children taking showers, if they have to bathe children that can be a lot of the child is crying about missing their parents and is upset about the change in routine. Also, bathing children requires that monitoring, so no one is watching the other children while one is being bathed. I would have the children already showed, but not in pajamas before the babysitter arrives. If the children get dirty, then have some wipes if they’re young, but realistically, the children will be staying inside and away from paint so I wouldn’t worry about them going to bed without washing just before.
Pajamas and Teeth. Please have your children’s pajamas laid out, and just point them out. No one wants to hunt through piles of maybe clean clothing while a child is crying. However, I’ve found that if you let the child decide what pajamas they want to wear that night, it can go better. Also, please put the toothbrushes and toothpaste out on the counter. The children should be able to let the babysitter know which is theirs but if they’re not on the counter, then the babysitter must start searching your drawers and I never enjoyed that part.
Backstock. Please ensure that you have enough diapers for that day, night, and any accidents. Leaving a babysitter with only 1 spare diaper is not kind to anyone.
Food, drinks, and snacks. Have easily prepared meals, with the best option being pizza that has already been cooked and is staying warm in the oven. The babysitter can give it to everyone once you’ve left, so that they can get to know your children while they’re eating one of their favorite meals. Sandwiches that are easy to make are also a great option, however, salads or meals the children don’t like are not. This is the time to make the babysitter’s job easier, especially if they are younger.
However, before the babysitter has arrived, try to put together some easy drinks, for example, cans of soda, sparkling water, or just have clean dishes so they can get themselves something .Also, please make sure you have snacks your children can eat easily, ex. apple sauce packets, cheese, granola bars, popcorn, etc, and that the babysitter can also partake in. This is very important and I go into more detail on the topic of food, drinks, and snacks in the next post The Babysitter has Arrived.
Clean up your home a bit. The house does not need to be sparkling clean, however, the babysitter should be able to get to each child’s bed. Also, they should be able to find the bed’s bedsheets and blankets. Additionally, have your children pre-select 1-2 short books and put them near their bedside. Also, look at the bathroom with some fresh eyes and maybe give it a quick clean. Remember, a lot of parents are dealing with a lot of forgotten house chores, and that never bothered me until I couldn’t find a clean dish to drink some water from or until I went to use a bathroom. However, I did not return to those homes as they also had other issues, and those all happened exactly once.
Ask them their rate. If it seems ridiculously low, offer $5 or $10 more per hour. Otherwise, accept it. Babysitters know what they’re worth. Near the end, I was only babysitting for $20 an hour, and now, it would be $40 for a friend. I am a great babysitter but I also have many years of it, but even young children can have comparable experience. I was being asked to nanny and travel around the world when I was young, and I could handle whole parties of kids, and there are babysitters who are even better at it than me. Pay them fairly.
How would you approach babysitting someone else’s kids? Put yourselves into their shoes, and see where the pain points in your home could be. A good reliable babysitter is worth their weight in gold. Especially if they like you, like your children, and your children like them. You don’t want to run through too many babysitters because they talk to each other. Put your best foot forward, we understand if it’s covered in spaghetti, and try to treat them how you would want someone to treat your children if they were babysitting. More in the following post The Babysitter has Arrived.
AdultingPrep 
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