Expert: Mariah - 7/14/2011

Question
QUESTION: I am 14 and I have never had the chance to babysit before. I don't know any kids in my neighborhood, but would really like to babysit, even if just for one or two times to gain experience. My friend has also told me she wants to babysit, and we were hoping for a chance to do it together. How can we possibly get an opportunity to babysit? Thanks

ANSWER:    I run a babysitting referral business where I refer sitters to families and families to sitters. You can start there.

Here's the website: www.flowersitters.com and here's the registration page: http://flowersitters.com/sitter-registration

You should ask your family to refer you to trusted families and friends who are looking for a sitter via word-of-mouth. You can also post flyers at your supermarket, church, laundromat, etc., but always bring a parent or a trusted adult with you when you meet a new family.

Also, take First Aid and CPR classes. You can raise your hourly rate and stay safe while babysitting.

Your hourly rate depends on your experience, your location (sitters in large cities like Chicago, NYC, LA, etc. charge a lot more than sitters in small towns), whether you're certified, and the number and ages of children you'll be watching.

Babysitting Ideas:

http://thecraftnanny.blogspot.com/

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/638187/rainy_day_activities_for_stay_at

http://www.babysitting-rates.com/babysitting-activities-ideas.php

http://www.abritishnanny.co.uk/activities-for-nannies-and-children.html

http://www.ask-nanny.com/arts-crafts.html

http://books.google.com/books?id=TmSEw67wy3kC&printsec=frontcover&dq=babysitting


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi again! Thank you very much for the suggestions. I went onto flowersitters.com like you suggested and set up an account. But as soon as I typed in my zipcode, there were absolutely no jobs found, even within 30 miles. I also searched for petsitting and mother's helper jobs, but still came up empty-handed. My parents also don't know that many of the people on our street. What to do now?

Answer
My website will be out of "construction" phase around July 25. Then, we will begin paid advertising and hopefully will have more jobs available throughout the U.S.

Sorry about that - for now, if you belong to a religious community, I would talk to the office there to see if you can pass the word around about your babysittihg.