How picky are you about babysitters?

I never leave my kids with anyone unless I have to. And on the days that I do need a babysitter, it would have to be a family member. I don't trust just anyone. Even with a family member I can be picky. It's our kids we are talking about, we have a right to be picky. :)

I never leave my kids with any one except for their grand parents and we still do that selectivley. A lot of people say that I am overprotective but it is a scary world out there and you cant tell who to trust right off. It is hard for me to relax when I leave the kids and they cry or dont want me to leave. I cant imagine how hard it would be for me to leave them with a neighbor kid and still have a realaxing night. I know I need to calm down a bit.

You just can't be too careful with something as precious as your children. There are too many people out there who may be nice people but are not well suited for child care. I not only research my sitters well, I also check up on them. It is easier for me because my oldest child is 11 so she is old enough to babysit her sisters for short periods of time if we are not going very far away. Word of mouth is more reliable information than qualifications in my book, so ask around about anyone you leave with your child.

i'm really picky about babysitters. my daughter was 3 the first time i left her with a baby sitter. and it was the neighbours that i left her with. we see these people every day and they are my best friends so i knew them really well. i would never be able to leave her with a stranger.

I am because of all the bad things that I hear about. I don't trust any men at all because of something that happen to me with someone in my family. Yes I have to know them extremely well. I wouldn't let my sister in law watch my kids because she smokes around her kids, once left her daughter in the car while in walmart, was too sick to feed her kids so let them fin for themselves, 2 year old was carrying around a cup she found in the car with old kool-aid. Anyone who smokes around kids I don't let them watch my kids at all. I have to see how they react with my daughter before I leave her with them.

I generally leave mine with friends and family whenever possible. People who I have seen interact with him in the past. Now that he is getting older, almost 5, I know he will tell me everything, so i am a little less picky. You never really know, just have to use your best judgement. Personnally, I worry leaving mine with his own father sometimes...so I understand your hesitation. Just remember, that sometimes you do need time to yourself, dont feel guilty if you do need to leave them with a babysitter on occasion.

I've never left my son with a babysitter, I left him with a family member for a few hours but that's it. I don't know anyone too well to watch my son. My neighbor has offered but I need to know her a bit longer, she seems pretty sweet but I never really see her husband.

Thankfully i am yet to need a baby sitter, i'd never be able to pick one even if i needed to. As it is, i cant even bring myself to let my parents or in laws look after our daughter so there's no way i'm gonna leave her with just anyone. My daughter is only 11 months old but still, i have this fear of leaving her with other people - i think i worry that they will do things differently to the way i want them done & that would annoy me more than anything. I'd never leave her with a young teen coz i just don't see them as being responisble enough to look after a little one. I see younger teens putting up fliers offering their baby sitting services & i often wonder if people really do use them or not, i certainly wouldn't!

Because of my daughter's special needs, we don't have a babysitter. I wouldn't be able to trust just anyone to care for her. As far as family is concerned, it seems everyone is afraid to deal with her. I realize it is an issue but sometimes we need a break and that doesn't happen. We have not been kid free for the last 5 years.

I won't leave any of my kids with anybody unless they are my family or a really close friend. I have only trusted one person with my kids and she moved away so now we don't have anyone to watch our kids and we don't live near any family so we always have our kids with us. Our rule to our friends are if our kids can't come neither can we. My oldest can talk and my son can talk a little bit but not much but my infant can't. I guess I am fortuante enough to get to stay home with them and still work when I have to because I don't want no one else to raise our kids except us.

Very that's why I don't have one. I just feel you can't trust people to be patient or take care of your child like you do.

I wouldn't say I am picky but I have 2 sisters, 2 brothers, 2 nices and a nehpew who are available to watch my kids if needed, in return I am there if they need someone to watch their kids. I also have a couple of friends who are willing to take a turn if needed. It may be a little picky since I'm not just taking a neighbor who I don't know and they are all people I trust, but that situation has never come up.