Many people, leave their kids with their parents or relatives, but we are not so lucky. We don’t live near enough to relatives to get a grandparent to watch the children for a few hours while we go out so. . .we have to hire babysitters. If you are in the same situation, you know that having a great babysitter is a HUGE asset when it comes to parenting. Here is some baby sitter etiquette to keep your good babysitters happy so they’ll want to keep working for you:
#1. Be clear about what you expect a babysitter to do while you‘re gone.
If you want your child to read while you’re gone, make sure you let the baby sitter know. It is okay to set out activities that you’d like the babysitter to do with your child. Clear expectations help her to stay on task as well as make sure that you’re happy with what your child is doing while you’re gone. It is also okay if your baby sitter is creative and comes up with her own stuff too!
#2. Don’t leave a detailed list.
You should absolutely leave your baby sitter an easy reference list that not only includes your phone number but also lists routines that you do with your child as appropriate for the time frame that you‘re leaving. (For example, a bedtime routine, feeding directions etc.) However, if your list is too detailed, she’ll never be able to find the information she needs. Just make a regular list–don’t write a book.
#3. Do back your babysitter up.
If your child misbehaves support your babysitter. If you feel your babysitter is in the wrong–don’t have her back–but don‘t disregard her authority, especially in front of your child. If your child is disrespectful, or disobedient and you don’t teach your child that he or she must respect the authority of the babysitter, you and your kids will quickly get a reputation that you’re not a good family to work for.
#4. Don’t be late coming home.
If you say you’ll be home at 9pm–leave to be home by 8:50pm. It is just plain bad manners to take advantage of a baby sitter by staying later. Furthermore, think about how you’d feel about this babysitter if she showed up 10-15 minutes later than you asked her to get there? Babysitters who do that to me have another name: unemployed!
Coming home late, assumes that her time is not valuable and she has nothing better to do. If something does come up and you are late, call and let her know that you’ll be late and also tip her a little extra to thank her for the extra time.
#5. Pay your babysitters and pay them as well as you can afford.
It is rude to expect someone to baby sit for free or very cheaply. Lots of teenagers are more than willing to baby sit and many don’t really care what they make. They are happy for the responsibility and a little spending cash. Regardless, you should still pay them decently. Consider it training for them for a “real job” some day. It is right that they expect to get paid for their work.
Sometimes, when we offer to pay someone for their work, they don’t want to take the money. That’s o.k. What we usually do is write a thank you note (or have our children write one), and then save some extra money to get a little something for them for Christmas just to let them know we appreciate their thoughtfulness and kind ness towards our family.
What happens if you don’t treat your baby sitter well? You will become the family no one wants to work for. If you don’t really need to go out on a date with your spouse ever–well, that’s okay! However, if you want your kids well cared for, and you need to hire a baby sitter–treat her well and she’ll likely be available for you when you need her!