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I did this when my kids were a toddler and a baby and my husband was traveling constantly. Sometimes I would just drive to Starbucks and sit for an hour by myself, it was so amazing, a lovely thing to do for your wife.
I have used both a college student (best bet) and another sahm. The college student worked best for us because I didn't mind working around her classes and she was in early education and loved the experience. I found her on sittercity.com, they run background checks, references, etc. That college student is 30 now and still occasionally babysits my 7 & 9 yr old. We love her.
You could also look into local mother's day out programs as your child gets a little older. Many churches offer half-day child care certain days of the week. This would let your child get more socialization away from mommy and daddy and give your wife a chance to have her time.
You could always hire a housekeeper to come by weekly or bi-weekly to clean, whether or not your wife is home.
You could also look into local mother's day out programs as your child gets a little older. Many churches offer half-day child care certain days of the week. This would let your child get more socialization away from mommy and daddy and give your wife a chance to have her time.
You could always hire a housekeeper to come by weekly or bi-weekly to clean, whether or not your wife is home.
I grew up in Texas and went to Mother's Day Out but it doesn't exist out here on the west coast! So the OP should definitely consider MDO if he can find it!
If there's a college near you that has a major in early childhood education, or teaching, etc., then you might post a notice on a bulletin board saying that you're looking for a Mother's Helper, that could watch a young child and do light cleaning, laundry, etc., about 3 days a week for 4-5 hours each day (or whatever it is you want). A college student, especially one who wants to work with children anyway, would probably think a job like that was a dream - it could easily be worked around their school schedule. Obviously you would still get all their work history and references and whatever. But I think that would be a great solution.
Another vote for a college-age girl. I found a babysitter through a babysitting service when mine were 6 mo and 2 years old and I was getting my business off the ground and my husband was working 60+ hours a week. She was a college student majoring in early childhood education, and she was fantastic! She played with the kids, did light housekeeping (i.e., vacuumed, kept things straightened up, helped the kids pick up toys), took them to the neighborhood pool in the summer, helped at birthday parties, and even went on a family vacation with us one year when our extended family rented a couple of houses at a resort. She was able to keep an eye on the kids at night if the parents wanted to go out to dinner or to a show, and we made sure she had plenty of free time, too, for shopping or relaxing -- she had her own suite and the kids were NOT allowed to disturb her in her room. We kid that we basically paid her way through college. :-) Even after she graduated and became a teacher, she would still come back to babysit on evenings or a rare weekend when my husband and I were able to get away. We enjoyed her wedding, but after that, she was pretty busy. She was the best!
Thanks for all the tips and advice everyone. I ended up finding someone on the Care.com website. She is a great person and really is helping my wife out! This is money well spent!
I have a girl who calls herself a 'Mothers Helper' come by for a few hours when I need her to look after my (very lovable but demanding) baby son so that I can get caught up on housework, etc. She'll become invaluable next year when baby #2 arrives!
She's a college student, so she doesn't do this as a career or anything, just for some extra cash on hand. I pay her about $10/hr, because she's totally awesome with my son and a huge help!
It sounds like you are looking for something similar.
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