Adventures in Babysitting

When I went back to work after my maternity leave, I never imagined it would be so difficult to find quality child care for Sunshine.

When Spitfire was little, we lived in Tooele. I used a free service called the Child Care Resource and Referral. This service matches you with both day care facilities, and in-home child care in your area, and tells you whether they are licensed or have a certificate. They also tell you whether there are any violations or grievances filed against them. They do not recommend one provider over another, nor do they guarantee the quality. I was really lucky, and was able to find 2 GREAT child care providers for her, whom I felt loved her and gave her the kind of care I wanted her to have.

This time, for Sunshine, my mom was unemployed, and she volunteered to watch her until she got a job. Sure enough, one week before I was to go back to work, she was asked for her references on a job she interviewed for. Aaack!

I logged onto the Child Care Resource & Referral website, and typed in my information. There were only 2 providers listed in my zip code. One was a facility daycare. I was sure I didn't want to take her to a facility daycare, because my fear was that she would be put in crib and ignored all day. I wanted someone to watch her out of their home so she could have some one-on-one attention. That left only one provider.

When I contacted this provider by phone to inquire if she had any openings for a newborn, she said she would have to get back with me. She was waiting to hear if another mother was going to start her baby. While on the phone with her, mid-conversation, she stopped to reprimand a child. "Don't interrupt me when I'm on the phone, you need to wait until I'm finished to talk to me! That's very rude to interrupt me!" she said. To me she said, "I'm not working today, that's one of my neighbor kids." In my head I was thinking, "I don't care whose kid it is, you're reprimanding them while on the phone with me, when I'm interviewing you for CHILD CARE?"

I decided to call her back another day, mostly because she lives so close to my home and it would be convenient for me. She still wasn't sure she had an opening, but asked whether Sunshine had any health problems. I assured her she did not. She then asked me if it was my first baby. "No," I replied, "She's my second. But I have a 10-year-old, so it has been a while." "So she's spoiled then," she said. I was very offended and taken aback by this. How dare she call my child spoiled! Besides which, can you really spoil a newborn baby? They're supposed to be held a lot, not left to cry!!! Needless to say, I wouldn't be using her. I would have to expand my search.

When I expanded my search to include providers in my city, there were 29 providers. Several of these were facility day cares. Many that I called had no openings for newborns. I made appointments to visit 3 family day care providers that were in North Salt Lake and Rose Park.

When it comes to finding a day care provider, it's a jungle out there!

The first lady I visited was Hispanic. She had several hanging spider plants all over the ceiling of her living room, making it look like a jungle on her ceiling. She hung little stuffed animal monkeys from the vines. It was very interesting, but I was trying to keep an open mind. When I asked her if she had any references, she said, "Yes," but then stared at me blankly. It was clear she did not understand what I was asking. I really wanted someone I could communicate with about my child, who could communicate with me.

I was early to my next appointment with another family child care provider. As I was parking in front of the house, I noticed a woman pull up in a van and go into the house. When I got to the door, the same woman was the one I had the appointment with. There was a four-year-old wandering around the house, and a baby asleep in the crib. I did not see any other adults present during my visit. This led me to believe that the provider had left the children unattended while she ran errands in her car.

The home was not only cluttered, but filthy, and dark. It also smelled of animal urine, despite the provider's claims that there were no pets. Because of this, I decided to turn this provider into the board of childcare licensing. As a side note, Sunshine cried at each of these places. Maybe she was trying to tell me something!

I couldn't believe these were my choices! I couldn't possibly leave my child with any of these people! What was I going to do? I only had two more days to find child care before returning to work!

I began wracking my brain for other options. My sister Dreamer couldn't do it, as she goes to school full-time during the day. My sister Skinny already has 3 kids of her own, one of which is a one-year-old, and she works part time as a massage therapist, so she couldn't do it. I have a friend who does day care, but she lives too far away from me.

Mr. Wright's sister has 4 kids under 6, including one under one-year-old, and she has a lot of health problems. I didn't feel comfortable asking her. Another sister-in-law would probably love to do it, but their house seems to be a breeding ground for strep-throat, since every time Spitfire visits, she comes home with it. My other sister-in-law lives clear out in Riverton, and works part time as a CNA. Mr. Wright's parents are in their seventies, and his father has a lot of health problems. It's been a long time since they've taken care of a newborn. You forget how much work they are. I didn't think they could handle her, and didn't feel comfortable asking them.

Starting to get desperate, I decided to check into the pricing at some of the facility day cares near my work. I was sticker shocked to learn they cost between $842 and $980 per month! I can't afford that!!!

I checked Care.com and Sitterfinder.com. Many babysitters or Nannies wanted $8.00-$10.00 per hour, which is still more than $800.00 per month!

Running out of time, I checked Craig's List and KSL classifieds. I must have called at least 30 people. Most had no openings for a newborn, or were too expensive. I left messages, but several people didn't call me back.

Finally, I got a call back from a woman who had an opening, was reasonably priced ($30.00 per day), and even better, she lived nearby my home and work! When I went to her house to meet her/interview her, her home looked like children played there, but was clean. She picked Sunshine up out of her car seat and held her and talked to her, immediately putting me at ease. Sunshine smiled at her.

She was also willing to take Spitfire on non-school days. She didn't mind that I would bring pumped breast milk to feed her. She didn't mind that Sunshine has reflux and spits up a lot. She didn't mind if I want to come spend my lunch break with Sunshine. She was a dream come true and I hired her on the spot. It's nice to know your baby is being well taken care of! Whew!