Frequent, long term babysitting: who should pay for craft supplies?

[Anonymous]

Hi all,

I babysit for a family 2-4 times a week for several hours. My charges are both elementary aged.

I try to do zero screen time when I’m with them, so we do a lot of crafting. They don’t currently have a ton of supplies at home (self admitted by mom), so I’ve found myself bringing my own supplies.

I brought some stuff I used when I was a kid, which I didn’t mind (I don’t need it anymore) and just took it back home. However, I know they would like to use the supplies when I’m not there...

So I did a Michaels run and grabbed supplies for some crafts. It ran me about $45. My hourly rate is $15.

I don’t expect to be reimbursed for this time because I didn’t bring it up beforehand. However, I’d love to keep crafting with them but I cannot afford to continue to pay out of pocket.

Is this worth bringing up to their mom? Or would it be rude? I would love some kind of budget. Especially because I’ll be full time with them this summer!

I’m just wondering whether it’s reasonable to ask her to pay or if this is just part of my costs that I need to factor in.

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

You ask her to buy or use what is in the house. No, you don’t ask for $45 and she may not want it in the house. For the summer you can ask for activity money.

[Anonymous]

I have a lot of crafty stuff in my house but in your situation I would ask if she can get some, and give her a list of ideas. Or ask for a budget and you get it.
I would probably be annoyed if you asked for reimbursement after buying something I didnt ask for.

[Anonymous]

OP here

I absolutely don’t expect her to pay for what I already bought! I knew when I bought it that I wouldn’t be reimbursed.

I think I’ll just ask if she wants me to buy some supplies the girls can keep/ if she wants to do so.

Honestly, I don’t mind spending $15 every week or two. The initial supply run always costs the most (I won’t need to buy fabric markers again, and beads for awhile...) so I’m just gonna go with the flow.

It’s a great family and I love babysitting for them! Thanks for your advice!

[Anonymous]

You should have a bigger conversation:
1) Can we agree on a budget for supplies during the school year
2) What are the summer activity plans and what is an appropriate budget for that.

I also think that you should be thinking more about low-cost alternatives. Take the kids on a walk to gather rocks or sticks and then use those to create a project, vs buying new items for each activity.

[Anonymous]

The family pays, not you! She should reimburse you the $45. It is her responsibility to provide the sitter with crafts, reimburse you for gas, and any food bought for kids. At $15/hr, this is dirt cheap, you should pay for nothing!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The family pays, not you! She should reimburse you the $45. It is her responsibility to provide the sitter with crafts, reimburse you for gas, and any food bought for kids. At $15/hr, this is dirt cheap, you should pay for nothing!

No, it’s not. The mom doesn’t reimburse for stuff not agreed to ahead of time.

Babysitter has it right. It’s perfectly reasonable to say “I’m not trying to avoid screens; the kids like to craft, you don’t have a lot of stuff, is it OK if I buy $x worth of stuff to do with the kids.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The family pays, not you! She should reimburse you the $45. It is her responsibility to provide the sitter with crafts, reimburse you for gas, and any food bought for kids. At $15/hr, this is dirt cheap, you should pay for nothing!

Agree.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The family pays, not you! She should reimburse you the $45. It is her responsibility to provide the sitter with crafts, reimburse you for gas, and any food bought for kids. At $15/hr, this is dirt cheap, you should pay for nothing!

The family should pay if its agreed upon first. Sitter should not go out and buy what she wants and then demand payment. $45 is a lot for craft supplies. I would not agree and I'd be annoyed if she brought things like fabric paints in my house without asking. Its nice she takes the initiative but you get permission first.

[Anonymous]

OP here-

I bought fabric markers. Not paints. very different things. And I don't know how many times I can say that I had zero expectation to be reimbursed the $45.

Honestly, if I sat for someone and they threw a fit over me bringing crafts, I would leave and never babysit for them again. I make sure all my crafts are washable, non toxic, and super easy to clean. I do all the cleanup myself. Every family I work with knows that I do crafts to avoid screens!

Seriously, I do not get being annoyed by this. Would you rather I put your kid in front of the TV and earn $15 an hour doing nothing?

[Anonymous]

OP again - I figured out the kid's favorite activity is something I have plentyyyyy of so I'm not going to worry about buying stuff for now. Their mom was thrilled, paid me extra, and we're chatting about summer this week. All is well! She mentioned being happy to buy supplies as well (although the girls love my "Mary Poppins" bag full of fun stuff). Thanks for the advice!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The family pays, not you! She should reimburse you the $45. It is her responsibility to provide the sitter with crafts, reimburse you for gas, and any food bought for kids. At $15/hr, this is dirt cheap, you should pay for nothing!

The family should pay if its agreed upon first. Sitter should not go out and buy what she wants and then demand payment. $45 is a lot for craft supplies. I would not agree and I'd be annoyed if she brought things like fabric paints in my house without asking. Its nice she takes the initiative but you get permission first.

She should then return it to Michael's. If you are too cheap to provide craft activities for you children then they can watch TV all day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The family pays, not you! She should reimburse you the $45. It is her responsibility to provide the sitter with crafts, reimburse you for gas, and any food bought for kids. At $15/hr, this is dirt cheap, you should pay for nothing!

The family should pay if its agreed upon first. Sitter should not go out and buy what she wants and then demand payment. $45 is a lot for craft supplies. I would not agree and I'd be annoyed if she brought things like fabric paints in my house without asking. Its nice she takes the initiative but you get permission first.

She should then return it to Michael's. If you are too cheap to provide craft activities for you children then they can watch TV all day.

We have crafts but specific ones. I don't want fabric paint, slime and other stuff in my house. I have no issue with my kids watching tv all day provided they do workbook and practice their instruments daily. Mine aren't craft kids so its a non-issue. She can buy what she wants but should ask if paint and messy stuff is ok in the house and she should ask first if she's looking for reimbursement. You can get stuff a lot cheaper than Michaels.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here-

I bought fabric markers. Not paints. very different things. And I don't know how many times I can say that I had zero expectation to be reimbursed the $45.

Honestly, if I sat for someone and they threw a fit over me bringing crafts, I would leave and never babysit for them again. I make sure all my crafts are washable, non toxic, and super easy to clean. I do all the cleanup myself. Every family I work with knows that I do crafts to avoid screens!

Seriously, I do not get being annoyed by this. Would you rather I put your kid in front of the TV and earn $15 an hour doing nothing?

Depends on the day. I have no issue with you putting mine in front of screens and you being there to make sure they just survive as they are in multiple activities plus school and everyone needs downtime. Screens aren't a bad thing in moderation. Its great you are doing all that and the kids are enjoying it but every family is different.

[Anonymous]

Hi OP,

I'm a nanny and have worked with families like this before. In the first family, I purchased supplies a few times to see if it worked/what kids liked. Then I spoke to the mom about this. She asked me to purchase and stock craft supplies that were appropriate for her kids ages. They loved the crafts as well and used it the days I was and wasn't there. I put things that were messier (so only for when I was there) up on a higher shelf and let parents know and then general supplies down lower (construction paper, washable markers and crayons, stickers, etc.) that weren't messy so the parents and kids could get them. After that initial conversation, mom asked me just to keep receipt and she'd reimburse me. I purchased some things at Dollar Tree to keep costs down and used the Michael's coupons for more expensive items. I also tried to buy items for the holidays right before or after, so there was a significant discount.

For the second family, after I brought supplies the second time the mom handed me money to put towards supplies. It ran out and she kept saying she hadn't restocked kids crafts for awhile, but didn't offer any more money. I brought left over supplies from other things and also dollar store items. I also did what a PP recommended and found some low-cost/free craft ideas and did a combination.

Some of the supplies (like the washable crayola paints) last a really long time. So I would try to prioritize getting things like that which can be used for awhile.

I also think it's worth having a conversation with her to make sure she's on board and asking if she'd like you to help purchase supplies and if so, what her budget is.