I think a college student might be a good fit. I used care.com. I did not have good luck with posting a job listing. I ended up with people replying they were "so interested" in my before and after school care job when they lived more than an hour away. How I found our wonderful nanny (a full-time college student) was by sifting through the available nannies who lived within a 10 mile radius, and who also listed being college students. I figured that a college student would be the least likely to drop us if full-time work became available. I then sent a message through care.com with my job requirements. In our case we have our nanny 20 hours a week, before and after school. If you have flexibility, a college student could work really well for you. Another idea might be checking at the preschool to see if any of their teachers or assistance are looking for after school care. I used to teach music at a preschool, and one of our teachers watched a child after school, just brought her back to her house after work. Good luck. I worked as a summer nanny for a SAHM for 6 years. It was a great experience, and 20 years later, we are still in touch.

You sound like a very nice husband! Just sayin.

Thank you. I'm OP. We really loved our last helper/sitter, but she found a full-time job. I wanted to somehow avoid that while not having a series of sitters (so my kids and wife can bond with one person instead of six). I just asked to join the oldtown moms list server (I hope they let dads in!

But seriously. Thanks for the brainstorming ideas. I really want to give my wife a break!

OP, try your neighborhood listserv. We found a great fill-in babysitter, and a mother's helper, and a few other part time options, from one email to our neighborhood. Some families have live-in nannies or housekeepers who want extra hours, some have teenagers who want to make a little money, even a couple of retired women offered to be available.

Good luck, and congrats on the new baby.

Anonymous wrote:OP - I frequently see postings on our neighborhood listserves from families saying their nanny has availability one day a week or in the mornings or something. You may want to start by reaching out to candidates like that - who already have a full time job but have a couple of available mornings or days or whatever - and setting up something regular once or twice a week. If you have a fixed arrangement, your DW can also plan accordingly to schedule appointments etc. for that time as your newborn gets a little older.

To clarify, I mean in the beginning your DW will of course want to be home with the newborn but in a couple of months, she will more likely need someone to watch the kids while she's out of the house and doesn't prefer to have the kids in tow. Accordingly, a high schooler she'd want to supervise with an infant is probably not the solution. She can plan appointments and errands accordingly if she knows she has someone coming Tuesday and Thursday mornings or every Friday, etc.

OP - I frequently see postings on our neighborhood listserves from families saying their nanny has availability one day a week or in the mornings or something. You may want to start by reaching out to candidates like that - who already have a full time job but have a couple of available mornings or days or whatever - and setting up something regular once or twice a week. If you have a fixed arrangement, your DW can also plan accordingly to schedule appointments etc. for that time as your newborn gets a little older.

Anonymous wrote:OP Here. Any thoughts in how we might want to find this right person?

Also, do people not like it when the mother's around? My wife isn't a micro manager but it sounds like this arrangement isn't popular. Why?

Well you haven't decided who the right person is yet, so we can't tell you how to find them. If I were in your shoes, I'd find a nice high school kid - a little on the geeky side rather than the popular side - who lives in the neighborhood by asking around of the neighbors or posting on a list-serve. I would keep the housekeeping quite light. Not all the below each day, but it's just a list of things I'd be comfortable asking a high school kid to do.

1. Fold clean laundry
2. Set the table for dinner
3. Empty garbages and put new bags in
4. empty the dishwasher
5. cut up produce, bake or make desserts
6. clean up toys left out, organize them (my toddler makes a mess of her books)

Anonymous wrote:OP Here. Any thoughts in how we might want to find this right person?

Also, do people not like it when the mother's around? My wife isn't a micro manager but it sounds like this arrangement isn't popular. Why?

Most professional nannies don't want to work with a SAHM because it's a lot harder--your boss is breathing down your neck and it's harder to bond with the kids because they would rather be with mom.

There are a few ways you could go:

College student:
Pros: older, could likely drive, more experience
Cons: would likely want at least 15 hours per week, schedule changes every sememster

Teenage mother's helper:
Pros: cheapest option ($8-10 per hour), MH jobs typically include laundry/dish help at least, wife can train her to her exact specifications
Cons: little to no experience, you have to provide transportation, no work history so possible risk of flakiness

Nanny/Housekeeper (1 day per week):
Pros: many independent housekeepers also have a lot of nanny experience, you could have her to basic kitchen/bathroom cleaning and a few hours of childcare
Cons: housekeepers charge significantly more per hour than nannies ($25 and up) so you could probably only afford help one day per week, a housekeeper with a company would not be available for this, so you wouldn't be covered by their insurance if she e.g. Got bleach on an expensive rug

Stable of sitters: find a number of sitter with different availability (college students, SAHMs with school-age kids, nannies who work 4 days per week, etc.)
Pros: you won't have to guarantee hours, you aren't likited by one person's schedule
Cons: wife's breaks will vary with sitter availability, unpredictable, lot of leg work to find enough people.

Anonymous wrote:OP Here. Any thoughts in how we might want to find this right person?

Also, do people not like it when the mother's around? My wife isn't a micro manager but it sounds like this arrangement isn't popular. Why?

I used to be a mother's helper in college. No problems as long as that is the understanding going into the position.

OP Here. Any thoughts in how we might want to find this right person?

Also, do people not like it when the mother's around? My wife isn't a micro manager but it sounds like this arrangement isn't popular. Why?

What's utter hours?

I think you should go for someone from like 2-6ish as a mother's helper/babysitter who's willing to do light housework. Gives mom time at home to bond with newborn, she can pick up the older kid for one on one time with that one, run some errands, go to a couple of appointments.

Good luck it will be hard to find someone for very utter hours and who will be stuck with your wife who needs a break but will be able to micromanage

My DW is pregnant with our second and is a SAHM. We hired a sitter/mother's helper to give her a hand and babysit when she had appointments, etc. Our current sitter found a full time job (yay for her) and we are trying to come up with a system before the new baby arrives.

Our current thoughts:

DC 1 is starting a 8-3:30 montessori school 2's class M-F.

DC 2 is well, a new born.

DW is home, but needs breaks.

????

So, I don't think we need a nanny. But I'm having a hard time figuring out who or what we need. Another mother's helper? A high school kid? The issue I've run into on care.com and other places is we really aren't looking for full time help and have no desire beyond guaranteeing 10-15 hours a week on a regular schedule. So, any ideas where we might find this person?