In Home Childcare
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SageMommy.Com
This is relatively straightforward: if you’re already watching a munchkin or two
(and doing a good job of it), why not take in another?Stay-at-home parents
hopefully have the necessary ingredients: toys, a childproofed home, indoor and
outdoor play space, and a quirky sense of humor. Always check with your local
childcare licensing agency to see how many (if any) children you can baby-sit
without becoming a licensed daycare facility.
Pros: I charged $4 per hour per child and usually had two at a time. If you do the
math, that’s well over minimum wage and I didn’t even have to take off my
slippers. Plus, my kids loved having extra playmates and I had the satisfaction of
knowing that my little charges were getting far bette childcare than they could have
found anywhere else. I have so many special memories of this chapter in my life,
but here’s why I don’t do it anymore…
Cons: First we’ll start with the obvious effects of having a house-full of small
children: exhaustion, chaos, messes, constant stress. Now consider the less-
obvious drawbacks: using the bathroom with an audience outside the door,
feeling root-bound as you spend day after day in your ever-shrinking home with
only toddlers for company, being unable to watch TV or check your email, and the
deterioration of friendships as you become (in the parents’ eyes at least) an
employee and not an equal. There are also the small but notable legal risks:
lawsuits in the event of an injury—and what kid doesn’t injure himself at some
point?—and, rarely, false accusations of abuse.
(and doing a good job of it), why not take in another?Stay-at-home parents
hopefully have the necessary ingredients: toys, a childproofed home, indoor and
outdoor play space, and a quirky sense of humor. Always check with your local
childcare licensing agency to see how many (if any) children you can baby-sit
without becoming a licensed daycare facility.
Pros: I charged $4 per hour per child and usually had two at a time. If you do the
math, that’s well over minimum wage and I didn’t even have to take off my
slippers. Plus, my kids loved having extra playmates and I had the satisfaction of
knowing that my little charges were getting far bette childcare than they could have
found anywhere else. I have so many special memories of this chapter in my life,
but here’s why I don’t do it anymore…
Cons: First we’ll start with the obvious effects of having a house-full of small
children: exhaustion, chaos, messes, constant stress. Now consider the less-
obvious drawbacks: using the bathroom with an audience outside the door,
feeling root-bound as you spend day after day in your ever-shrinking home with
only toddlers for company, being unable to watch TV or check your email, and the
deterioration of friendships as you become (in the parents’ eyes at least) an
employee and not an equal. There are also the small but notable legal risks:
lawsuits in the event of an injury—and what kid doesn’t injure himself at some
point?—and, rarely, false accusations of abuse.