Difference between revisions of "Childsitters Wanted"

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* '''Status''' (2006-03-19):
==Current Status==
''As of 2006-06-06:''
** the most urgent project is the beach trip June 12-17, with the England trip a close 2nd
** still looking for more sitters, underage or not
** still looking for more sitters, underage or not
** we have found one sitter who is working out nicely but she is only available during certain times. She is also too young for any driving, and can't really cover overnights.
** we have found one sitter (Rachel) who is working out nicely but she is only available during certain times. She is also too young for any driving, and can't really cover overnights.
** the kids' older brother, [[Mel]], is home for the summer and can handle the overnights but not driving; he can also provide a little help and continuity during the day
* {{faint|'''Search Keywords''': childsitting, babysitting, babysitters}}
* {{faint|'''Search Keywords''': childsitting, babysitting, babysitters}}
==Introduction==
We are [[Harena|Sandy]] and [[Woozle]] (officially known as Nick), two close friends trying to raise 3 kids ([[Josh|one of them]] autistic). We are somewhat overwhelmed by the responsibilities of just being ourselves, most of the time, and having to raise any kids at all – let alone three, let alone the three high-energy kids we actually are raising – is... well... even more overwhelming. (The kids are Sandy's from a former marriage, and it's a long story).


We are also both [[phone-phobia|phone-phobic]], so we're trying to minimize the amount of phone calling necessary. If you are a potential sitter who is comfortable making arrangements via email, IM, or IRC, that is a definite plus. :-)
If you are interested, please [[contact]] us (email is best; if you do IM, that is a plus).
 
If you are interested, please feel free to email us: {{emaildated|sitters|hypertwins|org}} or call 402-9774 (receiving calls is a lot easier for us than making them). [[Contact|More contact info]]


For more detailed information and background, see [[childcare needs]].
==The Kids==
==The Kids==
The kids are: [[Benjy]] (April, 1999), [[Zander]] (March, 1997), and [[Josh]] (December, 1992). Sometimes their older brother Mel is home from college, and he can help provide a little consistency and backup if we're not around.
The kids are: [[Benjy]] (April, 1999), [[Zander]] (March, 1997), and [[Josh]] (December, 1992). Sometimes their older brother [[Mel]] is home from college, and he can help provide a little consistency and backup if we're not around. [[Josh]] is autistic, but generally very low-maintenance.
==Overview==
We need childsitters for a number of different reasons:
* Someone to watch the kids when we need to go somewhere when they aren't all in school (with 3 kids, each at a different school, this happens on a regular basis)
* Someone to watch the kids when we ''don't'' actually need to go somewhere but just want to have some uninterrupted time to concentrate on our work (most days after 4pm and all weekend)
* One or more autism specialists ("qualified" and otherwise) to help with [[Josh]]'s training (we may be able to get some services from the city to help with this, but so far we keep running into obstacles every time we try to get this started; see [[Josh and The System]])
==Specific Needs==
==Specific Needs==
===High-priority===
===Upcoming===
* '''2006-05''' (exact dates not yet known) We need to drive to Indiana to pick up Mel, and all Mel's belongings, from [http://earlham.edu/ Earlham College] (he's graduating), and we will need at least 3-4 overnights and associated pickups/dropoffs. We had tentatively arranged with the kids' grandmother to cover this, but something came up and she is unavailable, so this is now getting kind of urgent.
* '''June 12-17''': A couple of overnights anytime during this span would allow us to meet a friend at Myrtle Beach. (3 or 4 nights would be even better, if we can afford it.) Josh will be away at camp for the week and Zander has day camp, so we will need: (1) Zander drop-offs in the morning, (2) care for Benjamin during the days (he *lives* for one-on-one attention), (3) Zander pick-ups in the afternoon, and (4) care for 2 kids until bedtime, with food assistance (we can leave plenty of frozen stuff which they can microwave themselves, and/or we can buy ingredients to prepare). Mel will probably be around most of the time, and we will be reachable by cellphone when we're not actually out beaching.
* '''August''': We're trying to get to England this summer (Woozle's dad is there for the summer), and August is looking the most likely at this point (we still have to get our passports, for one thing :-P). We'd like at least a week, preferably two weeks; 10 days is probably a reasonable compromise. Obviously we'll need someone (possibly more than one) to handle all the kid watching and transportation while we're away.
===Ongoing===
===Ongoing===
* '''Weekends''' are a good time for a relatively-low-stress sitting gig; although all three kids are usually home, Woozle is too (Sandy works in the afternoons Sat-Sun) and can give direction where needed but could definitely use the respite so as to be able to focus on work (Woozle works from home 7 days a week).
* '''Weekends''' are a good time for a relatively-low-stress sitting gig; although all three kids are usually home, Woozle is too (Sandy works in the afternoons Sat-Sun) and can give direction where needed but could definitely use the respite so as to be able to focus on work (Woozle works from home 7 days a week).
===Upcoming===
* '''2006-03-27 - 31''': Benjamin and Zander will be at loose ends pretty much the whole week (all three kids are out of school, but Josh has spring break camp the whole day) and someone to keep them busy during some of this would be useful. (It looks like Rachel will be able to cover some of this, but this still looks like a good opportunity for new sitters to meet the kids and learn the ropes while we're just doing errands and stuff rather than being out of town overnight.)
* '''2006-04''': Woozle will probably need to be out of town for a mediation session sometime soon, though a date has not been set. If someone were available to at least help Sandy with managing the kids after school (until suppertime), that would be very useful; better yet would be if someone were available for overnights and pickups/dropoffs so Sandy could come along.
* '''2006 - Summer''': We're trying to get to England sometime between June and August (Woozle's dad will be there during that time), for at least a week, preferably two weeks. Obviously we'll need someone (possibly more than one) to handle all the kid arrangements while we're away.
===Long-term===
===Long-term===
We are also eventually working towards having a "stable" (our "babysitter army") of a few dependable people who can step in and manage the kids for stretches of a few days at a time while we do other things with our lives – anything from a single overnight (e.g. Woozle often needs to go on short trips out of state for various reasons, and Sandy can't come along unless someone else can take care of the kids) to maybe two weeks (e.g. the planned trip to England this summer).
We are also eventually working towards having a "stable" (our "babysitter army") of a few dependable people who can step in and manage the kids for stretches of a few days at a time while we do other things with our lives – anything from a single overnight (e.g. Woozle often needs to go on short trips out of state for various reasons, and Sandy can't come along unless someone else can take care of the kids) to maybe two weeks (e.g. the planned trip to England this summer).
Some regular care after school (not necessarily every day) or on weekends would be nice, if the cost is affordable. We have a sitter who often comes over for much of the day on Saturday or Sunday, but she is often not available and it would be nice to have someone who will just show up at a given time without my having to remember to email couple of days before (I tend to forget about it until the last minute, when it is often too late).


Ability to plan meals would be a special bonus, as this is one of the biggest stresses whenever we are trying to go out of town – making sure there is enough food, which requires figuring out in advance what food to buy (and checking with the sitter as far as what they feel comfortable cooking etc.).
Ability to plan meals would be a special bonus, as this is one of the biggest stresses whenever we are trying to go out of town – making sure there is enough food, which requires figuring out in advance what food to buy (and checking with the sitter as far as what they feel comfortable cooking etc.).
 
===Back Burner===
==Getting a bit technical==
* '''2006-??''': Woozle will probably need to be out of town for a court date sometime this year, though the date has not been set. If someone were available to at least help Sandy with managing the kids after school (until suppertime), that would be very useful; better yet would be if someone were available for overnights and pickups/dropoffs so Sandy could come along.
This part may be just baffling to most people (hopefully it won't), but being a programmer I tend to think like this so feel free to ignore this section if it doesn't make any sense. I'm hoping that it will help me figure out what we need.
 
Requirements which come into play depending on the task:
* '''Josh''': must be comfortable with possibly needing to clean up the posterior of an autistic 12-year-old after he uses the toilet
* '''driving''': must be comfortable driving a minivan with up to 3 kids (if Josh is included, then you have to be prepared to deal with the possibility of Josh being in a mood and attempting to whack Benjamin; fortunately this comes up less and less) and picking them up from various locations. (They almost never get picked up from any of the same places, so you always end up managing two of them while picking up a third.)
* '''overnight''': must be able to put kids to bed (read bedtime story) and stay in the house overnight with them (alternate locations are a possibility, if Sandy approves them)
* '''daytime solo''': must be able to prepare meals (no serious cooking required; reheating of frozen dinners, making sandwiches, etc.)
* '''daytime assist''' (basic sitting where we are available for consultation): much like regular sitting; we can handle Josh cleanup if needed, and can also make suggestions for meals & snacks
 
Part of the idea is that if we can't find ''one'' person who is able to cover all requirements for a given task, we might be able to cover the various parts of it with different people – e.g. one to do the driving, someone else to cover afternoons & dinner, and maybe someone else for the overnights; whatever is needed.
 
{| border=1
|-
! Task || Requirements || Description
|-
| overnight trips || '''overnight'''<br>'''daytime solo'''<br>'''Josh''' (probably)<br>'''driving''' (probably)<br> || Sandy & I out of town for about 36 hours, one overnight. Reachable by cellphone (except for England trip, but we will still be reachable by phone for that).
|-
| watching kids so we can work || '''daytime assist''' || This is just so we don't have to get up at random intervals to attend to the kids. Woozle does work which demands a certain amount of concentration, and breaking that concentration costs more than just the 5 minutes it might take to make Benj a sandwich or whatever. We also might want to go on errands around town, but can be reached by cell phone should an emergency arise
|-
|}
 
(This list is a work in progress)

Latest revision as of 15:14, 6 June 2006

Current Status

As of 2006-06-06:

    • the most urgent project is the beach trip June 12-17, with the England trip a close 2nd
    • still looking for more sitters, underage or not
    • we have found one sitter (Rachel) who is working out nicely but she is only available during certain times. She is also too young for any driving, and can't really cover overnights.
    • the kids' older brother, Mel, is home for the summer and can handle the overnights but not driving; he can also provide a little help and continuity during the day
  • Search Keywords: childsitting, babysitting, babysitters

If you are interested, please contact us (email is best; if you do IM, that is a plus).

For more detailed information and background, see childcare needs.

The Kids

The kids are: Benjy (April, 1999), Zander (March, 1997), and Josh (December, 1992). Sometimes their older brother Mel is home from college, and he can help provide a little consistency and backup if we're not around. Josh is autistic, but generally very low-maintenance.

Specific Needs

Upcoming

  • June 12-17: A couple of overnights anytime during this span would allow us to meet a friend at Myrtle Beach. (3 or 4 nights would be even better, if we can afford it.) Josh will be away at camp for the week and Zander has day camp, so we will need: (1) Zander drop-offs in the morning, (2) care for Benjamin during the days (he *lives* for one-on-one attention), (3) Zander pick-ups in the afternoon, and (4) care for 2 kids until bedtime, with food assistance (we can leave plenty of frozen stuff which they can microwave themselves, and/or we can buy ingredients to prepare). Mel will probably be around most of the time, and we will be reachable by cellphone when we're not actually out beaching.
  • August: We're trying to get to England this summer (Woozle's dad is there for the summer), and August is looking the most likely at this point (we still have to get our passports, for one thing :-P). We'd like at least a week, preferably two weeks; 10 days is probably a reasonable compromise. Obviously we'll need someone (possibly more than one) to handle all the kid watching and transportation while we're away.

Ongoing

  • Weekends are a good time for a relatively-low-stress sitting gig; although all three kids are usually home, Woozle is too (Sandy works in the afternoons Sat-Sun) and can give direction where needed but could definitely use the respite so as to be able to focus on work (Woozle works from home 7 days a week).

Long-term

We are also eventually working towards having a "stable" (our "babysitter army") of a few dependable people who can step in and manage the kids for stretches of a few days at a time while we do other things with our lives – anything from a single overnight (e.g. Woozle often needs to go on short trips out of state for various reasons, and Sandy can't come along unless someone else can take care of the kids) to maybe two weeks (e.g. the planned trip to England this summer).

Some regular care after school (not necessarily every day) or on weekends would be nice, if the cost is affordable. We have a sitter who often comes over for much of the day on Saturday or Sunday, but she is often not available and it would be nice to have someone who will just show up at a given time without my having to remember to email couple of days before (I tend to forget about it until the last minute, when it is often too late).

Ability to plan meals would be a special bonus, as this is one of the biggest stresses whenever we are trying to go out of town – making sure there is enough food, which requires figuring out in advance what food to buy (and checking with the sitter as far as what they feel comfortable cooking etc.).

Back Burner

  • 2006-??: Woozle will probably need to be out of town for a court date sometime this year, though the date has not been set. If someone were available to at least help Sandy with managing the kids after school (until suppertime), that would be very useful; better yet would be if someone were available for overnights and pickups/dropoffs so Sandy could come along.
wiki file: https://hypertwins.org/mw/index.php?title=Childsitters_Wanted&oldid=7126