Babysitter and dinner dishes

[Anonymous]

Do you expect your babysitter to do the dishes? What about tidy up?

We make dinner and leave it on the table for the kids and babysitter. We have one babysitter who always does the dishes (loafs the dishwasher, puts leftovers in rubber ware in the fridge, wipes down table) and tidies up and another who doesn’t do either. We get to come home from date night and do a half hour of cleaning up. We pay really well. Feels ridiculous that she puts the kids to bed and then sits in a messy room watching tv for hours. And it’s so annoying to come home to. Both babysitters are adults. Are my expectations out of whack?

[Anonymous]

I would not expect a babysitter to do my dishes. Yes it would be nice if they cleared the table and rinsed off the dishes. But I do not expect them to do it.

[Anonymous]

^^^ What PP said. I would never expect it but am often pleasantly surprised when it happens.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't want someone looking after my kids who is lazy enough to sit around watching TV and getting paid while her own dinner plates are sitting dirty on the table for someone else to clean up, no.

[Anonymous]

I would ask her to clean up, instead of being mad she doesn't.

[Anonymous]

Ever heard of paper plates?

[Anonymous]

She's a babysitter, not a maid. Not even a nanny.

[Anonymous]

I would think she'd clean up after the kids. I always did as a teen babysitting. Find a new babysitter or use the good one.

[Anonymous]

It’s weird you leave a meal out that then needs to be cleaned up after, leftover stored, etc. most people leave money for pizza.

[Anonymous]

I think it’s reasonable to ask that she put the leftovers in the fridge.
I wouldn’t care much about the dishes, I’d just do them the next morning. Or leave simpler meals.
She may be used to people who are territorial about their dishwashers (my MiL is like this-she says no one can load her dishwasher right).

[Anonymous]

No and it’s weird to leave dirty dishes for her! Clean up after making the kids a pbj -sure. Clean dishes sitting since you arrived-no. And if this is a teen just order a pizza or have carry out.

[Anonymous]

No, they’re not out of whack.

Now that that’s established, simply communicate what you want. When she comes next time, say, “Please put the dishes in the dishwasher and the food in the fridge after dinner. The kids can help.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s weird you leave a meal out that then needs to be cleaned up after, leftover stored, etc. most people leave money for pizza.

This.

I think putting plates and glasses in the dishwasher is fine, assuming there is room and it doesnt need emptying first. But cleaning up what you used to prepare dinner and put leftovers in tupperware in the fridge is a bit much for a date night sitter.
I personally would not have left food sitting out and would have put it away back in my sitting days, but it would have irked me.

[Anonymous]

I expect them to load dirty dishes in the dishwasher, or if dishwasher is full, move the dirty dishes to the sink.

Dinner is either Mac and cheese or pizza, and I expect the leftovers to go in the fridge.

I may feel differently, if this was a lunch meal - she may have been legitimately running around after the kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you expect your babysitter to do the dishes? What about tidy up?

We make dinner and leave it on the table for the kids and babysitter. We have one babysitter who always does the dishes (loafs the dishwasher, puts leftovers in rubber ware in the fridge, wipes down table) and tidies up and another who doesn’t do either. We get to come home from date night and do a half hour of cleaning up. We pay really well. Feels ridiculous that she puts the kids to bed and then sits in a messy room watching tv for hours. And it’s so annoying to come home to. Both babysitters are adults. Are my expectations out of whack?

Half an hour for you both to clean up? I doubt it. I also doubt you pay “really well”.