overpaid babysitter?

bvbirdygirl

bvbirdygirl

O.G.
Aug 4, 2006
6,999
66
#1
I watch these two adorable kids every saturday night, from 6 to about 9:30
sometimes ten..
they agree with each other, and never fight, or run around screaming.
probably the easiest kids to watch ever!
one is 5 and the other one is 7
(brother and sister)
their mother gives me 50 DOLLARS!
maybe its because im not that experienced of a babysitter, and my pay has been varied in different families, but to me 50 dollars is a bit much!
should i tell her that it is too much, or is four hours every saturday worth that money?
 
#2
Take the $50 and be happy about it. She probably pays you more than she knows she needs to so that she knows you will do a good job, because you wouldn't want to lose it. It's not as if you've coerced her into paying you more than you're worth, so no reason to feel guilty. It's only $12.50 an hour anyway. It may seem like a lot now, but believe me, it won't once you're a few years older.
 
#3
If you don't feel comfortable accepting that much money, you should probably talk to them about it. It's a large amount of money and they probably feel that your trouble is worth that much so in that case, I'd just accept it but still, it wouldn't hurt to talk to them about it.
Heck, I sometimes sit for a family and they give me $20 for about 6 hours lol.
 
#4
Litigatrix said:
Take the $50 and be happy about it. She probably pays you more than she knows she needs to so that she knows you will do a good job, because you wouldn't want to lose it. It's not as if you've coerced her into paying you more than you're worth, so no reason to feel guilty. It's only $12.50 an hour anyway. It may seem like a lot now, but believe me, it won't once you're a few years older.
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thats true, but all the kids want to do is watch movies, so we do.
and its too easy. it doesnt take much skill.
i have to practically force them to play an active game like hide and seek!
 
#8
bvbirdygirl said:
thats what she does, she goes to the movies or out to dinner with her husband and/or friends
i guess she thinks its worth it too..
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i am sure she is grateful for the time to herself or with her hubby or whatever. being a mom it is hard to find someone that you trust to watch your children well and whom your children love. i am sure that to her it is but a small price to pay. it would prob. suck (tired, can't think of a better word) to have to find another baby sitter that she can trust to do a good job.
 
#9
I babysit regularly for a family with two adorable and totally easy boys. They pay me $12+/hour. (I am in my 40's and my kids are big now, though, and they are glad to have someone with experience stay with the boys) Still, if you are good with the kids, that is not an unreasonable amount to get paid. When I first started babysitting as a girl I made $1.50/hr (my age is showing!), and was up to $3 before I was old enough to get a real job. I was always good with kids, and had tons of babysitting jobs, and even with the low pay, I made lots of money.
 
#10
bvbirdygirl said:
what do i say though?
the first time she paid me i said wow. that is waay too much, and she said its ok the kids love you!
i mean its great to easily get money, but i feel bad because its coming TOO easily
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Well, maybe before they leave, you can tell her that you really appreciate her wanting to pay you so much but that you feel uncomfortable accepting that amount of money.
If she does insist again that it's ok because the kids love you, then it's clear that she really feels that you're worth it.
 
#12
You're a trustworthy babysitter & those are hard to come by, well-behaved kids or not. $50 is not a lot for someone who will actually interact with the kids and who knows what to do in case of emergency...

Heck... when I was 16, I worked for a baby-sitting agency for the summer...they required you to be certified in CPR and basic 1st aid. The agency would call us & ask if we would like to sit at such-and-such a date from whatever time... mostly for the tourists who brought their kids with them on vacation. If I had plans (or if the sit was a child under 2!) I would say "no thanks" and they'd call the next sitter on the list.
This was 10 (or so ;) ) years ago, and I was paid $9/hr for the 1st kid, and extra $2/hr per kid thereafter...there was a flat $4 traveling fee...and if the parents stayed out past midnight, it was time and a half. Double time holidays!

I was not allowed to take them to the beach (hotel pool only) or off property and I didn't have to cook (the parents either left food, money for food, or told me to call room service) .... I got to stay in some snazzy hotel rooms & sometimes even got tipped at the end of the night.

The best were the kids I could put down at 8pm for bed & spend the next 3-4hrs watching TV & occasionally peeking in to make sure they were still sleeping.

Good times. :jammin:
 
#13
^^ITA...My 17 year old son picks up a 10th grader on his way to school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. It takes about 5 minutes extra to do this. The 10th grader and his mom really likes my son. Anyway he gets paid $200 a month for this service (averages to $25 per ride). When he first got paid, he felt just like you, (He thought he was doing this as a favor and didn't even expect any compensation) Now he is very comfortable with the payment. (The boy's parents are very rich.)... Just consider this as a good job and don't worry about it.
 
#14
she pays you so well as its hard to find babysitter on friday and sat as most teens want to go out with their friends. be happy as most babysitting jobs don't pay like that. you got a good thing going.
 
#15
Lol, I used to get paid $12/hr to sit with a kid while he napped... talk about easy money! I'd bring my hw and watch tv! Be grateful for an easy babysitting job and hope they call you again! They're probably so happy to have someone their kids like and they trust, if I was a parent, it would be worth the $!
 
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