Would you let a teenage boy babysit your preschool girl?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sadly, no.
Not a risk I'm willing to take when there are plenty of female sitters available.

Would you really put your kids at risk with a stranger just because they are female? Sorry I would never be willing to do that!! I would rather have a somebody I know and trust watch my kids than someone I do not now or trust.

[Anonymous]

I would just like to day that I am male and have been babysitting since I was 12 I think. I got the jobs as overflow from my older siblings at the start but soon started getting calls and interviews from other families that heard about me form the families I sat for. I got sitting job while sitting for a boy at a park, the mother said her 9 yo daughter said I was a good sitter as she had seen me at the park with other kids. I sat for that family for nearly a year before they moved away and they has two girls (9,6) and one boy 8.

I all comes down to trust, if you trust them, and they want to, then there is no reason not to let them watch your kids. As to the OP's situation about her daughter needing to change clothes while the sitter was there. Case in point, two weeks ago I was sitting for a family and the youngest boy(6) vomited on the oldest girl (11). I told them both to follow me to the bathroom to clean them up, the girl got undressed without me saying anything to her, although who could blame her with warm vomit soaking into your clothes, and hoped into the tub. Why did she do that? because she knew and trusted me, same with her parents. I could care less that she was naked, all I cared about was getting them both clean and the boy feeling better.

Boys make just as good sitters as do girls, better in some cases like if you only have boys, same as a girl would make a better sitter if you only had girls. However is still comes down to who do you know, like and trust. Talk to them about it, if you want to then good, if they don't then find someone else. Gender has nothing to do with ones ability to babysit, their willingness to do it and knowledge about it is important. It is all training anyway for parenthood, they have to learn sometime so let them learn early and well so they will be great parents and people later.

[Anonymous]

Nope. I have 2 girls and would never let a teenage boy babysit for them. To be honest and fair though, I don't let teenage girls babysit for them either. We have wonderful neighbors with very nice, responsible teenage girls who have offered to babysit before. DH has wanted to take them up on it and I have almost gone through with it once or twice, but always decide against it. Paranoid mom? Maybe, but that's ok. I'm just not comfortable with it and have learned to unapologetically go with my gut. I don't consider myself a "helicopter" mom otherwise. I prefer to just have the grandparents watch them. I had a couple of sexually inappropriate situations as a youngster and that's enough for me to become biased.

I'll gladly take crap for being overly protective, don't care. A teenage boy babysitter for my girl? Will never happen. It does sadden me because I'm sure there are many lovely boys who I am not giving a fair shake. However, it doesn't sadden me enough to give it a shot. And you never have to drive with me, don't care.

I have to say the whole deal with the 11 year old silently undressing and hopping into the tub with the male babysitter didn't sit well with me. At 11 she should be taking a shower by herself right? I mean her parents don't bathe her at that age? Have I completely lost the plot with that assumption. I would personally be very upset if male or female sitter bathed my 11 year old.

[Anonymous]

I left my six year old dd with a male babysitter just yesterday. I have known him and his family for years and I trust him. As much as I trust anyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I left my six year old dd with a male babysitter just yesterday. I have known him and his family for years and I trust him. As much as I trust anyone.

A teenage male?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I left my six year old dd with a male babysitter just yesterday. I have known him and his family for years and I trust him. As much as I trust anyone.

A teenage male?

Yes

[Anonymous]

I was the one who posted about the girl who was vomited on and then undressed to take a bath, I did not give her a bath, just ran the water and it was more of a shower with the detachable shower head. They were both standing in the tub, I helped the boy wash but just have the girl the shower head so she could do it her self as she normally does. I will also point out that I have been sitting for this family for several years and have given each of the kids a several baths, when I was asked to, until they could do it themselves. If they need help with anything they know to just shout for me and I will do what I can but I am not sitting in there watching them unless they are young enough to actually need me there. My point was she trusted me and was comfortable with me enough to get undressed with me in the room without a second thought. To them I am like a family member almost I would guess.