Shannon Choe, Premier Baby Concierge
For Traditional Medicinals

So, you love your baby to pieces, but you’ve decided it’s time to reconnect with your spouse on “date night,” attend a wedding without baby “in tow” or even go back to work.  Great!… Now where to start?  Whether you’re looking for the occasional night out or a full time nanny, setting out to find someone you feel comfortable leaving your little one(s) with can be daunting.  Of course you need someone responsible and reliable, but how do find that special someone that your baby likes and you feel so good about that you’re not spending your “me” time stressing about what’s going on at home?  Here are some tips to help you find a great caregiver: 

Start early.  If you know you have a wedding to attend two months from now, or you’ll go back to work in three months- start looking for your sitter or nanny today.  Quality nannies and sitters often know their availability well in advance.  Also, all of the time you spend moving through this process will help you to adjust to the idea of having someone on board.  If you look early, you can “ease in;” meet with your top candidate several times, which will help you feel comfortable and allow time for your baby to develop a relationship with them so when the big day arrives, everyone is ready!

Be open-minded.  While referrals are best, they are hard to come by!  Moms usually love to spread the word when they find something they love like a pediatrician or a product that makes life easier, but they are often tight-lipped when it comes to sharing their babysitter’s phone number!  So you have to be open and creative in your search for candidates.  In fact, nannies and babysitters are all around you!  Like dating, you may find that special someone when you’re not even looking… or in an unlikely place!  Of course, there are online sitter networks, and those are a place to start, but also keep your ears open at the park or library.  You may hear that a sitter is looking for more hours.  You may also post on community boards or call local universities to reach Education majors.

Don’t just meet; Interview!  Although you’ll be in your home, treat the interview as you would for any job.  Carve out time free of distractions to meet each sitter; Ask candidates to bring a resume and references.  If possible, interview several candidates in the same day so they are fresh in your mind and it’s easier to compare/contrast.

Paint a picture.  Ask key questions beyond the obvious (experience, salary) that give you a chance to really get to know what you could expect of this sitter.  Situational questions allow you to get an idea how they’d deal with an issue that typically comes up at your house.  For example, how do you handle a cranky baby when you can’t get them to nap?  Ask what their favorite activities to do with kids and how they handled any challenges or emergencies in the past.  Ask questions about their discipline practices to make sure they are in line with your philosophy.

Try them on.  Invite your top candidates back for a “trial.”  This creates an opportunity for you to observe the sitter interacting with your children and to chat further.

Ask for references and call them all.  Don’t assume because the sitter seems nice, that they’ll be a great employee.  Speaking with families that a sitter candidate has worked for in the past, even if they have a different lifestyle or philosophy, may make you feel more confident about hiring them or raise questions to address before moving forward.  Some suggestions to get the conversation started:  What age children do you feel the sitter is most suited for?  How well did they communicate with you, the parents? Children?  How well did they take direction? Do you consider them to be a good role model (their character, appearance)?  Were they reliable?

Ask for clearances and/or run a background check.  Some sitters who are also teachers or work with kids in other settings may have clearances that they can provide you.  If not, consider running a background check. 

Leaving your kids with someone new is a milestone whether it happens when your child is an infant or bigger kid that has been cared for by family until now.  Approaching this change with a plan, time to adjust, and also some flexibility helps most parents make it as smooth of a transition as possible.