Bidding Farewell to the Beloved Babysitter

Written By: Jeanie Chang

christianbabysitter.homestead.com

It was like losing a family member when our family had to give a heart-wrenching goodbye to our family babysitter. After three wonderful years with us, she moved on to greener pastures. More specifically, a new job in Charlotte which is about three hours away. The kids were really sad, but I was devastated! My husband sympathized with me, but it was really me who mourned her loss. Of course, I was happy for her job promotion and the fact that she was moving to be near her boyfriend (soon to be fiance) so I couldn't deny that it was a great move for her. But not so good for our family with four kids! When she told me the news, I could see how hard it was for her to tell me not only because she knew I would be saddened, but because she truly cared for my kids! She loves them! She has been with us since our little one was seven months old and he'll be four in January so she's been his only babysitter. My first thought was "OMG, I need to find another great babysitter pronto!" Then the sadness came because I grew to love our babysitter as a part of our family, but my first thought was of panic because great childcare is hard to find especially if you have four kids!

I'm in a tizzy trying to find the right babysitter for my kids. First of all, the timing couldn't be worse (on my end) because we're entering the holiday season which means holiday events, girls night outs, Christmas parties, cookie exchanges, couples parties, etc! I need my trustworthy and loving babysitter more than ever during the holiday season! My husband and I have a commitment every weekend through January so I'm really in a tizzy!

Believe it or not, I found my beloved sitter on Craigslist! I love that site. I wrote up my own ad and received tons of email responses. But, I weeded out the unimpressive ones and narrowed it down to three. My babysitter was the first one I interviewed and I canceled the rest of the interviews with the other two potentials because I knew she was the one. First of all, I liked her email response to me - confident about her abilities without sounding too cocky, she was certified in CPR and First Aid (AWESOME!) and she was an MBA student. Impressive. When I met her, I wasn't so sure about her judging from her appearance. She wore a lot of makeup and was too attractive. LOL. But, when I sat down with her and got to know her - she won me over with her genuineness and kindness and I could tell she really did like kids! It did help that she was the fourth child in a family of five children.

That said, I haven't decided whether I'll place another Craigslist ad. I do believe I could get lucky again through Craigslist. But, I do have a potential babysitter that I'm getting to know and she seems to be a good fit so far. She was recommended by a friend of mine. Her personality is NOTHING like my previous sitter so I have to get past that, but this one is a first grade teacher (can't beat that) and she's married and settled. I have tried her out twice and my kids say they really liked her. She passed the first step, now she has to win me over. I think that will be hard because of my first babysitter who I consider to be the very best out there. (SIGH)

I know I need to move on, but it's hard. I'm still in mourning. She only moved a couple weeks ago and we keep in touch via Facebook and text. She was so sad when she knew my husband and I had a fundraiser to attend last week and I used the new sitter. She texted me that it was so hard for her knowing that she had to be replaced. HEARTWRENCHING! Who else would care for your kids really well besides you, your husband, the grandparents or other relatives? She's just as good as any relative in my family!!!

I think I will be in mourning through the holiday season. Until then, this new sitter is on a trial basis. I shall see whether she can live up to my beloved babysitter! I'm just kidding. I'm not that bad! But, my standards are high because they were set high from the beginning by our angel of a sitter. Have any of you gone through what I'm going through now? Let me tell you, if you find a great babysitter for your kids - treat her well!!!!!! After all, she's taking care of your kids and you're entrusting them in her care.

I hope I can get over this loss really soon. Wish me luck!