Ok so I've been a nanny/ babysitter for going on 10 years and I always run into the same problems with the parents. First things first

1) when you're hiring a babysitter, ALWAYS make sure they know ALL of the info. The date time etc is a little more obvious but a lot of times people forget to mention pets and they also forget to mention any extra tasks they want the babysitter to do, so they come home upset that it didn't all get done. We're not mind readers! If you have an extra task for us to do, it's best to write them down. Obviously if I'm babysitting a newborn for 4 hours, I'm most likely not going to be able to get a page full of tasks done, so be reasonable.

2) soooo many times when I babysit, the parents say they'll be home at one time and are always late! I don't mean 5 or 10 minutes late (which can still be a downer) but I mean like hours late. If you want to hang out later 90% of the time I don't mind JUST LET ME KNOW!

3) if you're trying to hire a babysitter, find out what times you need FIRST. nothing drives us more crazy than when a parent says let me get back to you. First of all we're worried you're not really gonna get back to us and we're gonna lose out on a job. Second of all when someone calls asking if we can hang out next week, it makes it very difficult to know if we really are busy. Also, don't contact your sitter unless you know FOR SURE that you need one. A lot of the times people babysit (because they love kids) but also because they really need the extra money. If we're told that we have a job set up, we will decline other offers that get made to us, but if you're not sure and then end up cancelling before we can find another job to do, were just screwed! Of course it's understandable that things come up, and that's not a problem. But when you ask a sitter if they're available and they go ahead and clear their schedule for you DONT BACK OUT EVERY. SINGLE. TIME!!!!

4) if money is a problem, let the sitter know. A lot of sitters set their rates high so that there is a little wiggle room if a family is strapped for money and can't afford a lot. We have our rates the way they are a) because most sitting jobs aren't for very long and we need to make money and b) if we do need to come down, we still won't break the bank. Don't just not hire us when we tell you our rates Let's discuss!!

The most important thing is just always communicate with your sitters. Send them a quick text when you're running late even if it's just a few minutes. Give all the information. Let us know all the tasks you want us to get done but be reasonable. It's just important like with anyone to have a clear line of communication so the sitter isn't left confused and worried she's not done what you wanted her to. Also let the sitters know what you DONT want. Most of the time we can tell if a kid is fibbing, but sometimes we really arent sure if certain things are ok. Just always always always let us know!!!