So last Friday night was the first time that we left Lexi in the care of someone outside of family. My cousin got married, so everyone who normally watches her for us, was to be in attendance at the adult only reception. So we enlisted the teenager down the street. She and her sister came by last Sunday morning to meet Lexi and so that we could answer any questions they had and we could ask questions. Mind you, these girls are 15 and 12...so we weren't expecting professional answers. Their mom is a nurse...and they live 3 houses down from us.
Anyway, I thought that just the older one was coming...but her sister showed up as well. I had only taken enough cash out of the ATM to pay one girl...so my first question is...should I have paid BOTH girls? Like I said, I only thought one girl was coming.
Secondly, they asked if Lexi should get a bath...I told them she didn't need one, that she wasn't dirty. Well, they must have given her a bath...because last night at bath time, I noticed a dirty diaper (wet) still on the floor in the bathroom, and none of her bath toys were where I had left them before. Now, I didn't specifically tell them they couldn't give her a bath...but they also didn't mention it when we came home. What would you think about that?
Finally, when we came home...we saw that they had "cleaned". All of Lexi's toys were put away. Which was really nice...except the cleaning didn't stop there. Things that were previously on our counters were now in the cabinets...even if they didn't belong there necessarily. Now, I know they would have no idea where things went...which I why I can't understand why they felt the need to do it. Part of me thinks they were trying to make a really good impression so that we'll use them again...but part of me thinks one of them is just OCD (Lexi's books were stood up in a line organized by height and thickness). What would you think?
Regardless, Lexi obviously survived unscathed...and nothing was missing. Is it just my territorial side coming out?
Oh, and we had a great time at the wedding...
5 comments:
I wouldnt think too much of it. Their mother probably said make sure you clean up and they did! They probably thought it would be fun to give her a bath... maybe the mom came over later? I wouldnt worry about it. Maybe ask if they bathed her next time you talk to them. Glad you had fun at the wedding!
I've never used sitters that young, so I'm not sure about some of this. First, I would say that you only need to pay the child you hired, and if you use her/them again, I would just make it clear that the pay is for the big sister or for "them." Since they are a little younger (I say that, but I did tons of babysitting then, too), I would be explicit in what should and should not happen. They may have decided a bath would be a fun activity and didn't see it as a big deal, but if you feel unsafe with them doing it, then just tell them not to. The "cleaning" I would chalk up to the age & wanting to impress. They feel like they're doing a good job, so I wouldn't read anything into it. Congrats on your first night out with new sitters!
Go with your gut on this one. I am sure you can always get a recommendation for another. Although, if you trust them, don't mind getting your house "cleaned", be specific next time about baths, etc. I definitely don't think you needed to pay both.
It is so hard letting someone else take over.
I have no idea on the sitter questions, luckily for us we've never had a situation where one of the grandmas couldn't sit. But I did want to thank you for the kind comment you left on my blog. Thanks for stopping by.
Well, I'm probably a bad point of view here, but I think any babysitter that doesn't do anything bad to your child or blow up your house is AWESOME. We really struggle to find someone to watch our girl, outside of 1 set of grandparents we trust. I think this set up sounds AWESOME with a parent who is a nurse that is so close and I am sure they did great with Lexi. If I were you, I'd tell them specifically what they did that you prefer they don't do again and give it another try. Sometimes these relationships just take a bit of finesse, but if you can make that work? You have a bit of gold in your pocket!!
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