Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do not call your "at home" neighbors, we are at home for many reasons but none are to be your back up childcare. Call. white house nannies, stay home, but don't ask me because you have taken advantage of the "good neighbor" policy.

+1 to this

If a woman isn't educated or driven enough to have a career I wouldn't want her to be watching my children. Plus we don't have cable TV at my house so they would be very bored.

Blow it out your arse.

Anonymous wrote:Do not call your "at home" neighbors, we are at home for many reasons but none are to be your back up childcare. Call. white house nannies, stay home, but don't ask me because you have taken advantage of the "good neighbor" policy.

+1 to this

If a woman isn't educated or driven enough to have a career I wouldn't want her to be watching my children. Plus we don't have cable TV at my house so they would be very bored.

Anonymous wrote:We have never had back-up care. Luckily we have a nanny who has never called in sick (over 17 months with us) and DH but DH or I could take a personal day if/when she ever does get sick.

+1 going on 2 years. Our nanny also brainstormed backup plans with us if she needs to take a day off.

We have never had back-up care. Luckily we have a nanny who has never called in sick (over 17 months with us) and DH but DH or I could take a personal day if/when she ever does get sick.

Anonymous wrote:Do not call your "at home" neighbors, we are at home for many reasons but none are to be your back up childcare. Call. white house nannies, stay home, but don't ask me because you have taken advantage of the "good neighbor" policy.

+ my DH and I work FT and our kids went to daycare. as any parents, we had mornings when we got up and the kid was sick. It never crossed our minds to consider bothering our SAHM next door or other neighboors staying home to care for our kids. poeple have lives and dumping a child for an all day on a friend or neighbor seems really not nice. our kids are our responsiblities only. we flew my MIL several times from the Midwest when we knew the daycare was closed (once we had an emergency, DH was leaving on a business trip and I came donw with the flu, we called her on Saturday night and she arrived on Sunday so my DH could leave). she loves our kids and is happy to watch them once or twice a year. otherwise, once of us works from home or takes the day off. my employer also offers as a benefit 20 days a year with care through Bright Horizon (in center or in home). there are agencies that can find you a nanny at the last minute. it may be expensive, but this is your kid and your job, not your neighbor's or friend's.

Perhaps a list of phone no.#s of back-up sitters on hand that you can call if the nanny is sick and cannot come in. I.e, a stay at home mother, a retired grandmother who doesn't mind sitting on occasion, perhaps a college student with some flexibility.

Are you close with any of your neighbors? If so, maybe a neighbor who is home during the day who wouldn't mind helping out every now and then.

Make sure it is someone your child meets prior however. It wouldn't be fair to leave your child with someone he/she is unfamiliar with completely.

Your kid like most will go thru stranger anxiety phase so having familiar caregivers is critical. You can't just leave them with new person and expect things to go smoothly. If you don't have family near as backup I would have a second sitter/nanny come in regularly for date nights or some frequency to get your baby used to her.

Find an agency if you don't have anyone to help locally. The peace of mind is worth it.

When we were still in DC, our back-up was
-- me (I work from home)
-- Seeking Sitters (cheap, rarely could do last minute)
-- MetroParentRelief (expensive, but could usually do last minute)
-- a friend's nanny who would take our kids in a bind (this stopped being an option when we had #3)

3 neighborhood babysitters who know my kids and the house rules because they've done date night babysitting for us - all three of mine happen to be college/grad students of some sort, so they have some days free, others not, but they're the first ones I call

Up to 10 days of subsidized back-up care through my work
15 days of subsidized back-up care through DH's work

+ unlimited non-subsidized assistance in finding back-up care through my work (I have to pay full price, but they're find the nanny). There are companies you can buy a yearly membership with for this sort of support if your employer doesn't offer it.

Do not call your "at home" neighbors, we are at home for many reasons but none are to be your back up childcare. Call. white house nannies, stay home, but don't ask me because you have taken advantage of the "good neighbor" policy.

my husband's employer offers backup care. It is buried within the benefits (not something they advertise) but double check neither of you have it. We have the option of daycare (mainly bright horizons) or in home.

I have:
- a close family friend who is often available
- an agency that can provide very quick turn-around on short term care
- a fairly understanding employer

For absences that are more planned (vacation for instance) we have some grandparents who can occasionally provide some level of backup care.

You need to make friends with some "at home" people.

I have:
1. My grad school friend's widowed (retired) dad living nearby.
2. My writer neighbor who works from home. She told us flat out "Call me last, and preferably when the baby is asleep" but she's still an option.
3. DH's business partner's wife who is a SAHM.
4. If we know the nanny will be out we can fly in DH's parents from across the country.

I am planning to go back to work FT and hire a nanny. I have been lurking here and on the General discussion board for a little while, and I keep hearing that it is the employer's responsibility to have back-up care if the nanny has a last minute emergency. Assuming that you don't have your retired parents living next door just waiting to take care of their lovely grandchildren, what kinds of back-up care do people have in place?