Babysitter update

zyas · October 2013

Some of you may have seen my desperate post a week or 2 ago on FB about needing to find a new sitter. Basically I think what was happening was our sitter was texting the whole time she was looking after Ava and not paying attention to her. Ava was having unusual meltdowns (as in bursting into horrible sobs the moment this sitter walked through the door) which is unlike her. She also wasn't listening to us and let Ava play in the living room when I told her she wasn't allowed to because it wasn't baby proofed. There was more but stuff like that.

So we got rid of her and I signed up with care.com and interviewed like 5 sitters. We tried 3 of them so far and really like this one older lady who is in her 50's. She's a mom (has a 19 year old) and is available anytime which works perfect for us since our schedules are always different. A bonus is that she cleans too!! (our previous sitter wouldn't even wash a spoon if she used it). She cleans houses as a side job as well but she also cleans while she is here! She told us "it's all part of the service". I have to admit it's wonderful coming home to a clean house (has that freshly cleaned smell when we walk in). She cleans the kitchen counters as soon as she walks in the door if Ava is napping. Then she completely cleans the bathroom - she even scrubbed the toilet and cleaned all behind it. She does all the dishes, washes all the toys Ava plays with that day, etc. She's been here 5 or 6 times already and I now am at the point where I am cleaning before she gets here as I feel bad if there are dishes in the sink or anything left on the bathroom counter! I should not be complaining, but the only frustrating thing is that she moves everything around. It took me 2 days to find where she stashed my rice cakes. But everything is moved around - I'm constantly looking for stuff. Tonight I couldn't find one of Ava's wubbanubs and her lovie blanket. I searched EVERYWHERE. I even called her and left a message but haven't heard back. I'm probably freaking out over nothing but I'm leaving at 6am to take Ava to visit my sister for a couple days and I need to take those items with me as Ava is super attached to them. I'm surprised she fell asleep without them tonight but she may wake up in the middle of the night screaming for them. (that happened the first night this sitter was here and I had to tear apart Ava's room at 3am looking for her lovie blanket while she was screaming bloody murder.)

She also takes Ava outside to play every day, gets down on the floor with her and plays the whole time, and brings her new toys to play with. She is sad if Ava is sleeping when she gets here cause she wants to spend time with her. I can tell she really loves her, she is great with her. But then there is the part of me that is wondering if this is too good to be true and I get stressed out. We have had such bad luck lately with people that I'm probably just being overly cautious. So please tell me, am I over reacting? Should I just chill out and realize we found a great sitter?

zyas · October 2013

HuskieFanUW said:

She sounds amazing, I would assume she is just as amazing when you aren't there. I hope she calls back regarding the missing items soon. Have you talked to her about moving stuff around?

No I haven't talked to her about the moving stuff around, I'm not sure what to say without sounding like an ungrateful bitch, haha.

zyas · October 2013

MissMusic said:

Sounds great to me!

FWIW, our last nanny was an older lady who was WONDERFUL with Lillian. She was similar to your sitter: playing on the floor, bringing toys, super excited to see her, etc. We are still in touch with the nanny and she was more than we could have asked for.

I say, enjoy it! Sounds like you dug through the dirt to get to the gold!

Thank you! I hope you're right! I hate being all jaded now

It does make me feel better knowing you had a similar nanny. Maybe getting an older one really was the way to go.

JAck5209 · October 2013

Sounds like you made a great find! I would probably casually mention the misplaced items and hope that it gets better over time. You'll get used to each other and figure out her hiding places. lol

WonderJess · October 2013

She sounds like a dream! I think it is possible to address the moving of stuff tactfully. I might say something like "You've been so fantastic and going above and beyond with the cleaning and picking up... we really appreciate the effort! It feels amazing coming home to a clean house and knowing that Ava is so well cared for. We do have a hectic schedule, though, and I've had some trouble finding things you've put away... can we make sure that items XYZ are always in a specific place?"

SallySunrise · October 2013

I think she sounds wonderful! Maybe take a bit of a jab at yourself when you bring up the moving stuff... "I'm sure after a couple weeks of cleaning up after me you can tell, I'm not the queen of organization... Would you mind letting me know if you move essential items (like wannanub, etc) so that my scatter brain won't flip when I can't find them?"

That's what I'd do anyway. Honestly, even if this problem keeps happening, all her positives are sooooo worth putting up with that one annoyance!

elizdg · October 2013

I like Sally's advice! She sounds really awesome!

aylafsu88 · October 2013

She sounds great. I am sure if you spoke with her about the cleaning/moving stuff around she would make an effort to leave things where she finds them. I am sure it is a subconscious thing on her part and she probably does not remember where something was when she moved it to clean.

ThePinkSuperhero · October 2013

She sounds awesome. Please send her to my house next!

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