If you’re hiring a babysitter for the summer

[shakinros]

What’s your expectation around what they’ll do with your kid(s)?

DD could sure use a break from us (and us from her) but I’m at a loss as to how having another person in our house is going to help much when there’s still no playgrounds open or places a babysitter could take her to stay engaged. We already spend as much time in our smallish yard as DD can stand.

[waverly]

I will be going into work. I would hesitate to hire someone if I was still in the house because DH is also there. DH is on phone calls all day long.

I expect them to try to keep them off screen time as much as possible, play in the backyard, take them to the park (grassy area is open and only 2 houses down), facilitate board games, puzzles, crafts and lawn games, feed them lunch, and referee fighting. I would also ask her to have the kids do some chores, for example let the dog out to go to the bathroom, recycle items, clean bathrooms, put their laundry away. I might just ask them to do 1 thing a day. But basically we will play it all by ear since this is new to us. She can also watch them while they scooter and bike. 

[sdlaura]

We’re near the beach. It’s currently open for active recreation and I’m hopeful that it fully opens for the summer. So I’m hoping the babysitter and kids could spend a lot of time there. If camps don’t run, maybe I could even try to hire one of the surf camp counselors to teach them to surf. DD knows a little bit from a past surf camp.

Otherwise probably stuff like bike rides and parks to play soccer or have nerf gun battles or something. This would just be with my older kids (6 and almost 8).

[twinmomma]

SIL will play with them outside, supervise neighborhood bike rides and walks, do art projects... Basically all the stuff my kids could in theory do on their own, but they bug the crap out of me while I'm supposed to be working instead of being self sufficient.
My house is small (less than 1,000 square feet) so it's not like it will be this amazing solution that keeps them completely out of my hair. But I will at least be able to close the office door and know my kids aren't watching ridiculous amounts of TV and eating all the snacks unsupervised. Which is how we've been surviving now...

[sandandsea]

I would want some tutoring (2 hours), feeding lunch, and playing outside (soccer, bike rides, water/sand play, etc.). No tv and no iPad would be the goals.

[traveltheworld]

For the past few summers when we had our nanny, for the weeks when the kids had no camps, she did lots of arts and crafts, little science experiments and cooking with them. They also did at least 3 to 4 hours of outdoor time a day - longer bike rides, hikes, just kicking a ball in the field. She also worked with them on their chores (laundry, cleaning up their rooms/bathrooms, dusting, etc.) The expectation is that they'll not be on screens.

[sdlaura]

Agree with others on no screens. Right now our older kids do some screen time on mornings daycare provider is here, but that’s because she’s also watching the 2-year-old. With just the two older kids it will be easy to involve them in the same activities without needing a distraction for anyone.

[hocus2]

If we can hire sitter my hope is that they can walk on the short trail near us with the kids, play in the yard, do projects (I may buy kits to make this easier) and generally keep the kids on a schedule.

Right now e-learning is fairly limited but it does provide some schedule to their day.

[phdmomma]

I'm still on the fence about hiring a summer sitter (waiting to see if DD's daycare will open, and have tentatively signed them both up for a camp which will be running). But it would be to get them out of the house and not have screen time.

[jr009j]

Ours started yesterday. Slightly different than others- were sharing with another family, who we’ve been trading off with for two months (basically a two household quarantine). School is already done here. They’ve been playing outside a lot in the yard and walking to the big park about half a mile away to play in the trees there and run up and down the hill.

We just need to be able to work without distractions. And have someone else to referee and read to the kids.

[shakinros]

That’s helpful. Thanks. We have an only child so the playing is still a challenge. Our usual college-aged sitter could play with her but it’s not the same as having 2 or 3 (or more) kids together.

I’ll continue hoping camp is a go for at least part of the summer!

[k3am]

Our before/aftercare program called and they want me to enroll DD for camp this summer since I qualify as an “essential” worker. I’m not essential, but I work for an essential business. Explained that to the director and apparently they are having trouble finding enough children of essential workers to fill the program.

It does not solve for DS, who is only 4 and actually harder to deal with, but it sounds nice.

[callmekd]

May 19, 2020 19:19:28 GMT -5 shakinros said:

That’s helpful. Thanks. We have an only child so the playing is still a challenge. Our usual college-aged sitter could play with her but it’s not the same as having 2 or 3 (or more) kids together.

I’ll continue hoping camp is a go for at least part of the summer!

Right now we have a nanny coming 10 hours a week to spend time with DD1 (the twins are at daycare). I’m surprised how entertained DD1 is with someone who is focusing on her exclusively for several hours at a time. They’ve been playing games, playing LOLs, making rainbow loom bracelets etc.

[waverly]

May 19, 2020 20:20:24 GMT -5 k3am said:

Our before/aftercare program called and they want me to enroll DD for camp this summer since I qualify as an “essential” worker. I’m not essential, but I work for an essential business. Explained that to the director and apparently they are having trouble finding enough children of essential workers to fill the program.

It does not solve for DS, who is only 4 and actually harder to deal with, but it sounds nice.

Would they take a 4 year old? Our before and aftercare does for summer camp because they also have a preschool and they support the school district preschool also.

[k3am]

May 19, 2020 20:29:14 GMT -5 waverly said:

May 19, 2020 20:20:24 GMT -5 k3am said:

Our before/aftercare program called and they want me to enroll DD for camp this summer since I qualify as an “essential” worker. I’m not essential, but I work for an essential business. Explained that to the director and apparently they are having trouble finding enough children of essential workers to fill the program.

It does not solve for DS, who is only 4 and actually harder to deal with, but it sounds nice.

Would they take a 4 year old? Our before and aftercare does for summer camp because they also have a preschool and they support the school district preschool also.

When I brought up that it doesn’t solve for him, she didn’t suggest it, so I assume no.

[mellym]

Our Y has a preschool camp and a school age camp. The preschool camp kids are housed in the 4K room which is located on one end of the building but there is no public access. I found out it's actually run with the daycare operations. The other camp is part of the actual Y facility and has access to everything. We found out the pool is opening to the public June 15th but they haven't said if the camp kids will be able to use it yet.

We talked about hiring a nanny but since camps are going and DD1 talks non stop about spending the summer with her besties, we are going to send them. Based on the past couple of months, I think they would be really bored here at home all summer. We still need a spot for DD3 at daycare too.

[sdlaura]

mellym for the reasons you noted, I’ll definitely be sending my kids to camp if they open vs getting a babysitter. I’m willing to take on what I believe is a small risk for them to get to interact with other kids and have a structure put in place without me having to come up with it. Besides I’d rather not manage someone if I can help it.

[waverly]

I wish our camps could open. I think the pool question and the masks is throwing them. I emailed our aftercare and nothing (as back up care), so presumably they are also closed. Other than those 2 camps we only have 2 daycares that are open.

[sdlaura]

So when it became clear that schools were probably not going back this year, I booked a ‘critter camp’ at the humane society in the next town over for the week of June 8th (school doesn’t end here till June 19th). I thought it would probably be one of the first camps to cancel since it’s in a ridiculously wealthy town where people don’t usually really need childcare and it’s not the organization’s core mission to provide summer camps. I was ready for the email to say they’re going virtual.

So I was really surprised to just get an email that they’re planning to open on schedule. But the modifications include only running 8-11 each day, and it’s 20 minutes away. Now we know that my parents will still be in town that week and I think daycare provider will still be able to take my kids 8:30-12:30 on the other days, so I’ll probably cancel it. But I’m excited that it might indicate that our ymca day camps could open the following week.

[phdmomma]

What is the going rate where you are for summer nannies? I was looking here, and it seems to be around $15 per hour.

[librarychica]

May 21, 2020 9:29:26 GMT -5 phdmomma said:

What is the going rate where you are for summer nannies? I was looking here, and it seems to be around $15 per hour.

$15-18

[waverly]

$15. We are doing 3-4 days a week. It might be more like 4 days a week. Camp is typically $450 a week, so 4 days a week is not too much more. 5 days a week would be a budget stretch for us.

[sandandsea]

Nannies are $25+ per hour here. I think we’d be looking at 4 days a week or some kind of part time schedule if we go the nanny route. Also I really don’t want to deal with nanny taxes so that’s a huge deterrent. Ugh.

[k3am]

Would anyone here consider hiring their boss’s kid as a summer nanny?

I’m not sure if I’m crazy for considering it or not.

[callmekd]

We offered $15/hour to watch two 7 year olds.

[shakinros]

k3am I would not. Maybe as a fill-in babysitter but for me, too risky for that kid to be a full-time nanny.

[twinmomma]

k3am, Nope, too much crazy overlap that I wouldn't want to deal with.

[waverly]

May 21, 2020 19:57:29 GMT -5 k3am said:

Would anyone here consider hiring their boss’s kid as a summer nanny?

I’m not sure if I’m crazy for considering it or not.

My co-worker did this with her boss, but it was more aftercare from camp. I think the set up was they all dropped off (or walked) to camp, then the 14 year old walked the child back to their house for aftercare.

I’m not sure about a full time situation, but I guess part time maybe in a pinch (which a pandemic is). I don’t think it’s crazy. I can see pitfalls but it’s not like we have a ton of childcare choices.

[k3am]

I'm still considering it. My boss and I have a pretty good relationship. If we can get them into camps or daycare, we will 100% do that, but if not, she would be our only option for a couple hours a day of kid entertainment.

[librarychica]

May 22, 2020 11:35:06 GMT -5 k3am said:

I'm still considering it. My boss and I have a pretty good relationship. If we can get them into camps or daycare, we will 100% do that, but if not, she would be our only option for a couple hours a day of kid entertainment.

I was very close to my former boss and her daughter (who had worked summers in a daycare in high school and college) babysat for us a few times. In this situation I would hire her. I think it’s a “be cautious” situation but not flat crazy.