If you’re a mom, there will be times when you’ll need a babysitter. Perhaps it’s way past time you and your spouse or partner went on a date. Maybe you have a workplace emergency, and you need to handle it.
Whatever the case may be, you will want to locate a dependable babysitter. Here are a few tips to get you started as you attempt to find one you can use for the foreseeable future.
Make Sure to Check Their Background
It pays to be careful these days. If someone tells you about a sitter they use, you shouldn’t just call them without doing some digging. You’ll want to look for:
- Prior drug arrests
- Any sexually-based offenses
If someone has a sexually-based criminal background, they will have a hard time concealing it. In Arizona, for instance, anyone who the law hits with a child molestation charge will receive a minimum ten-year prison term. They can’t wipe that from their record, and it should be easy for you to find out about it.
It’s sad that you need to do this kind of digging, but it’s necessary. You’d like to trust everyone, but there are predators out there, and you owe it to your kids to screen for them as much as you can.
Ask About Their Prior Experience
You could hire someone your neighbor recommends, or you might go through an agency. Either way, you should ask the prospective sitter some pointed questions when you meet them. You should ask:
- How many years they’ve been in the business
- Whether they have experience with children the same age as yours
Maybe you encounter a sitter who has babysat for teenagers many times, but they have never cared for an infant before. You should ask them about whether they’re okay changing diapers, preparing baby formula, etc.
Judge Their Demeanor
You should also definitely spend a bit of time with the sitter before deciding whether they’re suitable for the job. They might have sparkling credentials, but they could have a stern demeanor.
If they seem like a drill sergeant, they might not be the best choice. On the other side of the spectrum, you probably don’t want to hire a doormat who will do whatever your kids tell them. You’ll come home to find they haven’t done their homework, and they’ll have had cookies and ice cream for dinner.
If you can get someone who has child care degrees, that’s helpful. Different universities give them various names, but you can look for something like an Early Childhood Management degree, Residential Child Care, or Child Care and Development.
Ask Them What Extras They Bring to the Table
Some babysitters will also do more for you besides taking care of the kids. They might cook for the children if you give them the raw materials to do it. They may be willing to clean up the house once the kids are in bed.
If you can get someone who’s able to dust, vacuum, do the laundry, or take care of other chores on top of the basic child care tasks, you might go with them over another candidate. You’ll probably be willing to pay them a little extra as well.
You also might look for a sitter who has their own transportation if you need them to pick the kids up at school or take them to or from an activity. If so, make sure to check whether they have a valid driver’s license.
Check Their References
If you go through an agency, you know that they have probably screened their babysitters to some degree. That’s because the quality of sitters they send out will reflect on them, so you know they’ve done some background work already.
If you find someone without an agency, you should ask them for at least two references, if not three. You should also check up on them. Call those numbers they gave you and ask for a detailed explanation of the work this sitter did for these other individuals or families in the past.
Spend time with the sitter and your kids to see how they interact. If they seem genuinely warm, and they appear to like children, that should set your mind at ease to some degree.
If a sitter doesn’t like children, you can usually tell it. You want someone willing to play with your kids and entertain them, but who is also an authoritative adult who the kids will not walk all over.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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