I know that those of you with young children may find it impossible to imagine, but the day will come when you will no longer need a babysitter. As a single parent, we often spend a great deal of our energy and income trying to arrange for quality childcare for our children when we are working or during the summer months. That is why I think when the day comes that the babysitter is no longer needed, we really need to celebrate!
To be honest, I am still celebrating and still counting my blessings and acknowledging appreciation every time I can leave the house without arranging a sitter or taking my children with me and my kids have been sans sitter for a few years. I cannot help but feel a wave of gratitude each time June rolls around and I do not have to be so attentive to setting up summer structure and activities. While my teenagers can still get into trouble and there may be times when I WISH I could still tie them to a sitter or day care program, those days really are gone.
Some inevitable child rearing milestones can be quite painful or even a little bittersweet. For me, getting to a point when I could make dinner arrangements with a friend or spontaneous plans that did not require calling around for a babysitter was life changing! Of course, I still keep in close contact with my kids and we let each other know what we are up to, but I no longer have to book and pay the babysitter and that is definitely a family milestone worth celebrating! (All that money I have saved in the past couple years of not paying sitters and child care programs can go directly into the college funds!)