SAHM Babysitter – 5 Reasons NOT to Babysit

So, you think you want to babysit to supplement your life as a stay-at-home-mom (SAHM). But, do you really? Sure, it sounds great, and other moms are doing it, but really and truly, its not a good idea. The SAHM Babysitter sounds perfect, but its not Here’s 5 reasons, why you shouldn’t babysit.

1. Parenting is already a full time job. Staying at home, raising your family, its already a full time job that drains the life blood from you, while energizing your soul and making you blessed in happiness. Adding ANOTHER responsibility onto the already daunting task of keeping your offspring alive is maniac. The SAHM babysitter is always exhausted.
2. Tied to a ‘work’ schedule. Sure, you’re not working and showing up to the office, but the mama of the little you’re watching is. She expects you to be awake for drop off, alive for pick up, and available during her set schedule. This may seem reasonable, but when the spur of a moment trip comes up, the last minute lunch plans with an out of town friend pop up, or the desire to just sleep past 7am arise, you’re screwed. So, if your SAHM life resembled the care-free sporadic lifestyle of an unemployed twenty-something, babysitting isn’t for you. [[ perhaps like taking off to Europe for a couple of weeks, like we did earlier this year ]]
3. Goodbye Naptime. While all the children will still need to have their naps, the chance that either of them will nap at the exact same time for any decent amount of time is slim. Even then, when they do both go down for a nap, as the responsible caregiver you cannot just have a nap with the children. That’s seen as irresponsible and bad-babysitting. The SAHM babysitter shouldn’t be a bad babysitter.
4. Increased stress of maintaining a clean house. Twice a day, someone other than yourself and you’re immediate family is now entering your humble abode and being witness to the chaos within. This may encourage you to wipe the counters, sweep the floors, and occasionally put the shoes away, but it does not offer the opportunity to just fuck it and let the dinner dishes sit for 3 days. So, unless you have a house cleaner, or are extremely motivated at maintaining your house, perhaps reconsider.
5. Two is three times the work. It might seem like adding another wouldn’t double or triple the current work load, but in many sense it for sure doubles, and I would argue perhaps triples the energy and effort needed to maintain sanity. Twice the diapers, twice the babies to rock to sleep, twice the high chairs to clean, twice the babies to bundle… it all adds up. PLUS, constantly breaking up fights and tears because one toddler touched another toddler. I’m so over it. Between comforting my own child, plus a child that isn’t my own, at the end of the day, there’s very little left to give back… and perhaps one of the reasons nursing aversion hit me hard during my second trimester pregnancy.

For the past 3 months I have been a SAHM babysitter of the sweetest little girl of a mom friend in town. But, I was naive. Mom friends ask, how it’s going, and inquire about the prospects of babysitting. This is my real honest truth. I will never be a SAHM babysitter full time again. Perhaps, the occasional part time gig, or the occasional, but between my husbands chaotic railway schedule and my desire to be a social butterfly, I’m glad to be done. Not just because my pregnant body is tired of caring for two hefty toddlers, but because my SAHM fantasy didn’t involve feeling tied down and limited. So, now that our babysitting days are behind us, here’s to just chilling and reminding others, maybe its not the best idea for you. Peace.