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honestbaby’s Adventures With Babysitting

A series of tips, hints and guidelines for using babysitters

Part 1- Choose your sitter well
Of course, as with most things in life, common sense is your best guide when choosing a babysitter. The bottom line is you’ll know it when the match is right. If you have a doubt about the new sitter, do not shy away from acting on it. There are plenty of ways to tactfully back out of a sitting situation if things do not feel right.

Aside from family, your closest resource for finding a good sitter is your friends and neighbors. Ask other parents in your circle who their sitters are or if they have recommendations, then set up interviews. Meeting first, even for a short time, will give you that critical opportunity to evaluate the applicant’s personality and temperament. The last thing you want, is to meet your sitter as you’re ready to head out the door, only to realize that you’re not comfortable with leaving your child with this stranger.

Ask your prospective sitters for references and take the time to check them. Make the calls, just as you would if you were hiring a new employee (because you actually are). Genuine feedback from other parents will provide insight that can set your mind at ease or highlight conflicts of style that might make an otherwise suitable candidate someone that you would prefer to pass on.

While there are plenty of exceptions to the rule that age and experience go hand in hand, it is essentially a good guide. The younger your child is, the more experienced you will want your sitter to be and, in this case, that means the older the better. Younger teenagers just might not be up to the task of caring for a toddler especially in the event of a crisis. As your kids grow and become more self sufficient, they will be able to play on their own with minimal supervision. The babysitting experience can become more casual with the neighbor’s young teenager simply providing a presence in the house.

Take care of the details upfront in order to avoid confusion later. While first meeting with the new sitters, discuss fees, hours (including acceptable overage if you need to stay out longer than expected), house rules, directions to your house (if you are not meeting them at home) and any special care instructions. This way there will be no surprises on either side and you are assured that the sitter knows what is expected of them and they can handle it.
While your looking for that perfect sitter, actually try to find a few with which you will be equally comfortable. There is no guarantee that your sitter will be available when you need one, so having a roster of pre-screened alternates will make scheduling your night out a much simpler venture.