One way that home – based professional parents can get a little extra help with the kids from time to time is to hire a mother’s (or father’s) helper. A parent’s helper is different than a babysitter in that the parent is usually at home while the helper is helping out with the children and the household tasks. Selecting a parent’s helper is similar to selecting a babysitter, so be sure to choose someone that you know you can trust and who is reliable.
As with any child care situation, it is often good to set up a trial run of a few days to see how the helper that you wish to hire matches up with the needs of your family. Sometimes through no fault of anyone, an arrangement does not work out and you want to have the option of telling your helper that it is not working for your family. If all goes well and the kids as well as the helper are happy, you may wish to formalize the terms of the helper’s employment by making a simple, written contract.
Once you have selected a parents’ helper, let them do their work while you do yours. As hard as it can be, resist the urge to hover around where the helper and the kids are playing. You are paying them for a reason – so you can get some work done. This fact alone can actually be great motivation for you to go to your work area, get focused, and get down to business.
I am actually in the process of trying to set up a mother’s helper arrangement for my two year old son. We are lucky in that my husband’s sister lives right up the street. She loves her nephew, and we have decided that she will come to our house once a week and play with him while I get some work done. I enjoy having her around, and he does too, but he is having some trouble adjusting to me being unavailable, even if only for a few hours. We’re working on that and taking it slowly, she takes him outside for a little while and then they come back in so he knows that I am still there. Hopefully soon he will understand that I’m not going anywhere and he can relax and have fun with his Auntie.
Photo by anitapatterson on morguefile.com.