Finding a babysitter is hard! As a new mom to a new area, I knew I needed help. I began looking to see where I could find the best babysitter. I found there are two ways
How to Find a Babysitter
Create a family profile and interview potential sitters on your own
Care.com and Sittercity.com are two sites where you find your own sitter. You post your own ‘job’ and read through different profiles. An idea is to meet your potential sitter at a coffee shop to ensure the candidate will be a good fit.
Call the education department of the local colleges. These students are looking to fill their schedules and are eager to work with kiddos.
Check with your church nursery or gym daycares. The staff is often interested in babysitting.
Pay a company to find a babysitter for your family
Iowa Elite Nannies is a company offering a “Sitter Club.” For a fee, they promise to have a babysitter available within 3 hours. Each sitter has had a background check completed, CPR certified, and references checked.
College nannies+sitters matches families with a babysitter. They screen and professionally train their sitters.
Heartland Nanny Agency connects families to a babysitter. They offers a personal placement process to find a sitter that meets your family’s needs.
10 questions to ask a potential babysitter
- What are your experiences with children this age?
- Are you CPR/First aid trained?
- What does your availability look like?
- What do/don’t you like about working with children?
- What are your views on discipline?
- What are your go-to activities to do with kids while babysitting?
- What are two words your friends would use to describe you?
- How do you handle conflict between siblings?
- Are you comfortable with feeding the kids and putting them to bed?
- Do you have any references?
Determining an hourly pay will depend on the babysitter’s qualifications, number of children, and what your family feels comfortable with.
I have had great personal experiences using Care.com. I found three amazing ladies who have been a wonderful addition to our family. It does take time to read through profiles and meet in person, but to me, it was so worth it.
