Sources for Sitters: ethics and tribulations for finding a babysitter on craigslist, facebook, or the neighborhood

A lofty goal, this title, but I'm determined to find answers to my latest quest into interdependence in society. 

Taking a class or going into an endeavor with a schedule requires an acceptance that Mom is going to be Away. This seems logical, simple even. I've tried to deny the fact that it takes resources outside of course fees or what's on paper to make this happen. And so, I'm going to have to embrace the fact that I will incur not only the expense of the class and books (which I deny up until the first assignment is due usually and then panic), but of the time to prep and write papers and midterms and finals (read=middle of the night=higher coffee and frozen pizza expense),(carryover effect=which makes for a tired mom who sits and eats handfuls of dry FrootLoops during Memorial Day Weekend instead of being plucky and planning a fun picnic or vigil or parade entry), and also of a babysitter to watch the kids when I ACTUALLY go to CLASS. Given that Steve gets home from work about 7:30pm weekdays, evening classes cost anywhere from $6-$10 an hour for childcare.

So I thought my babysitter was not coming back.. I figured, OH, this is IT, she's in Love, she's outtahere for the summer (she has one semester left, she has to come back in the fall, right??), I'm doomed. But then, she came back! And so 24 hours after I thought all was lost in that regard, all was back to normal, except now she has a real nursing job and is going to try to fit us in and such. So I'm a little concerned. Anyway, I put an ad on Craigslist to find a new sitter, for the early evenings, to cover my class (I mention this because the UWM Childcare option, would work, except for the fact they close at 6) .

And I got ten responses in an afternoon! WOW. Many qualified people, some nutty folks, ...people should just always be heavier on the spellcheck and lighter on the religious mumbojumbo in my book. So I interviewed two people and have another one scheduled next week.

And then I shot myself in the foot. (speaking of which, the new Cabela's circular in the Journal-Sentinel has pages of gun ads - from shotgun to purse-sized pistol. It isn't hunting season.  It is Memorial Day Weekend. !? Mentally challenging connections there).

Background: I've been obsessing on Facebook this weekend (not so ridiculous - I think it's going to be the solution for alumni relations for Shorewood High School..at least for some! Check out the Shorewood High School Alumni Group on Facebook. It's a totally open cross-class platform for lively discussion and pics and probably some Scramble).

I cross-checked my new sitter options on Facebook. I even invited them be Friends. And now, I can see all their pictures. And I'm afraid I'm going to have to make an ethical decision about one based on her self-representation in facebook. Never mind she's getting a degree in the right field and was very easy going and nice.  I know I would just worry about an underage party girl with a taste for the visually unappealing drunkenness that goes with it...I may just wonder about things at home the way I wouldn't with someone who had the same pics at their disposal but maybe wasn't quite so proud of them and chose not to post them online? I don't know. This is me, the one who made a huge face at the tidy whitey mother of three last week who mentioned that there are a lot of "Nice Parochial Girls" in the neighborhood who love to babysit - it made me kind of throw up in my mouth. Now that I'm faced with a girl who probably does that with some frequency, I feel like I'm stuck in the middle.

My block doesn't exactly have a lot of teens at the ready for sitting.  We have one tween, but she comes with considerable baggage. I think there is also something wrong (?) with me that I don't want so much attention right here at home -- would I have to clean extra hard? Yep.  Someone who comes maybe from a little bit away would maybe not care if they know all of our business.  Anyway, our block has some boys, boys I know at home have to be disciplined about their screen time just like Henry...and I think sure, they'd be fine probably, but what about Helen? It's more multimedia than it looks, having two, and our regular awesome sitter/friend person handles it well because unlike me, she is sporty. She walks, and they go to the park, and when Steve gets home the kids are both ready for bed and happy.

ahh.

That's all we want, right? A little touch of summer, some park fun, and no creepy pics online?

But I feel like I've unleashed the old people to invade the land of lost boys/girls to find their children drinking on Facebook..(omg and drinking with like some kind of tire part and a lot of tubing), and I am sorry! I never thought that'd be me..an employer not hiring someone because of her FaceBook offerings? But if I'm hiring for judgement, already I know there's some lacking there.

See you 'round the village!