I had a $$Making idea... Would you use this service?

[Mermaid02]

I was thinking with school getting out next week all the things we stay home Mom's and Dad's usually get to do ALONE and how much harder it will be with kids (grocery store, dentist, gym etc.) What if I had child care by the hour? People could sign up the day before, or that morning if I had room. I could also do a week if your sitter is on vacation or a day if they are ill. Would you use a service like that? Since Jack is in kindergarten I know a lot of people with kids now- I would just go "word of mouth". Not sure what to charge either.

What do you think??

 

[Pop Daddy]

a babysitter, i bet no ever thought of that before

 

[Mermaid02]

You may have changed your name- but you're still a pain in the tookus!
Oh, and you would have made me feel stupid if you didn't have the typo in there.

 

[Claudia1]

I think that is a great twist on an old standy-by! You are sooooo right! An hour here or there would be heavenly to many moms' It is so hard to have a mom's Dr. appt while trying to keep the kiddies out of the exam room's trash & drawers

Have you considered setting certain times, like 9-11 or 2-4 on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday, for those 1-2 hour time periods? Even though you have friends that won't go over, there will always be somebody that does or even have an emergency. That could help you to organize your day better. Otherwise you might have an extra kiddie or two from 8am to 5pm.

JMO, but I would not include meals. I would say to send any snacks or food that the child might need. That way you could lower your costs. The week-long replacements might be different but that could also be done as a carry-in. I would be so grateful for a quality back-up that sending meals for a week would not be a problem.

As for the cost, that would depend on prevailing rates in your area. What do teenage babysitters charge? I would charge double. What do the professionals charge per day? I would calculate the hourly cost and add 25% or so per hour. For the weekly subsitutions, I would reflect the prevailing costs.

I really think this is a great idea. You can control your time and make some money.

 

[mtemm]

I think it is a great idea, too, and if you can I would make it 1-2 hours. I'm sitting here with bangs down to my nose because I haven't been able to get a haircut! All those little things...dentist appointments, grocery store, are so hard. I'm lucky in that my dh works from home, but he's been so busy lately that I haven't been able to take advantage. Wish someone in my neighborhood would offer this.

Good luck!

 

[vald1977]

This is a neat idea! I like Claudia1's idea of setting up certain times. You could always bend the rules if you needed to if someone really needed you to do a certain time but for those who just want to go to the gym, grocery store, etc. it would be good for you to have some set times. Good luck and let us know how it goes .

 

[sharbear]

I think that it's a great idea. Just an idea to market it. I would call it Mom's Morning/Afternoon off. I think that I would make a min. of time you can leave your children for. Try to get people to make a day a week to drop off their kids. I've done this in the past, hired a teenager one day a week in the summer to run errands. Or even clean the house without interruption.

 

[Mermaid02]

"Have you considered setting certain times, like 9-11 or 2-4 on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday, for those 1-2 hour time periods? "

That's a great idea! I thought the same thing about food too.... and drinks even. That way everyone would bring their own cup. This would also give my son a "playgroup" type atmosphere without having our WHOLE summer tied up in babysitting.

I think I'll have it T-W-TH from 9-11:30 and 1-3:30 maybe charge a flat rate? What do you guys think? Yes or no? I used to work in a pre-school that had "playgroup" in the afternoon with a schedule and organized activities, I'm sure if I thought hard enough I could remember some of them.

And THANK YOU so much for the positive feedback!

 

[snoopy]

Where do I sign up?

(sounds like a great idea, and I know it would work in this area where most familes consist of two working parents....)

 

[Mermaid02]

So my husband just called and I told him about my idea and his comment was, "How about getting a real job?" I have applied for some jobs (in my field) but as of yet haven't even been called for an interview. Now I feel totally deflated. He said I shouldn't tie myself down to "playgroup" in case I get a job offer. I tried to explain to him that playgroup is a day by day commitment- not long term like preschool. He's really on my list lately.

 

[Princess_Aurora]

Our old day care did this. They charged $20/hour and you couldn't leave them for more than four hours I think. They had a whole day rate of $90. It costs more than regular day care, yes, but the people that use this don't need to pay for a whole week of day care and they usually just need someone to watch the kids for a couple of hours while they get some things done.

I think its a great idea to do to make some extra money (for Disney World maybe) during the summer

 

[mum4jenn]

They had a whole day rate of $90.

WOW!!!!!! They charge THAT much for one day of daycare in Texas???

My dd's old daycare charged $75 for the whole week and $20 a day for drop-off.


I could never have had a job if we had prices like that!!!

 

[SeaShelley]

Boy that "hubby for sale" listing on e-bay is sounding better and better isn't it?

I think your idea is great Por! Start asking around the kids' schools and see what interest is out there. I bet you'll find lots! Don't give up yet and don't let the grump get you down.

 

[Mermaid02]

Like my friend Novilla said, "He has a lot of good points, but being rational isn't one of them."

 

[Princess_Aurora]

Originally posted by mum4jenn
WOW!!!!!! They charge THAT much for one day of daycare in Texas???

My dd's old daycare charged $75 for the whole week and $20 a day for drop-off.


I could never have had a job if we had prices like that!!!

Well, that price is for infants...it gets cheaper the older the kids get. For a whole week here in the Dallas area for an infant it's usually about $120-$150/week. I know, it's insane. I've often wanted to get a job to help DH was our expenses, but by the time I get done paying the day care costs I wouldn't have any money left! I don't know why it's so much up here???

 

[dcgrumpy]

I would love for someone to watch my kids just to take a shower. LOL.


Geez, I need to get out of NY. I paid $230 a week for DS's daycare.

 

[mum4jenn]

Geez, I need to get out of NY. I paid $230 a week for DS's daycare.

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow!!! I realize the c.o.l is way different in NY than it is in south GA but my goodness!! I paid $85 a week the first year I had dd in daycare and then the last two years it was $75. There used to be a La Petite Academy and they wanted $115.

 

[bigsis1970]

I say go for it , especially if you think someone might be willing to do that .. or maybe you could just set up some playdates with other mom 's so you also could be child free for that interview that might come along ?

 

[Toby'sFriend]

I'm with dcgrumpy.

I could have used this service today. My 3rd Grader had a class play and my babysitting arrangements fell through. So I had to take the baby with me.

Thankfully he behaved really well and didn't cry at all during the play. I was afraid he would and I would have had to get up and leave.

 

[FOJMO]

Sounds like a lot of liability with no protection for either you or the children. I think there are laws about how many children you are allowed in child care at any given time or a ratio of children to child care givers.

It doesn't sound like you're planning on legalizing this "business". But if it were not a "business", then I'm not so sure that I'd take my child there, not knowing how many children at any given point you are going to have to watch, their ages, who they are, etc.

Call me overprotective, but I'd rather rely on a trusted, known babysitter, who has my child/children only to watch, especially if it were for a short period of time.

Also, people in your neighborhood may not be too thrilled with you running an unlicensed day care in your home.