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Home › Articles › Child Care › Nanny Know-How

Nanny Know-How

Choosing In-Home Childcare

By Melissa Granberry

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Monitoring the Situation
"In-home care has the advantage of providing a more intimate environment for your child," says D'Amico. "But at the same time, you are placing all of your trust in this one person. You have to be able to trust that they will act responsibly and do the right thing for your baby. It can be really hard to find someone you trust in that way."

So how can you monitor the caregiver to ensure that they are not surfing the Web while your child is watching another video? "Begin slowly," says D'Amico. "Don't leave your child with the new sitter for eight hours on the first day. Instead, do some work around the house or work from home. Lengthen the next few visits and leave for a while, but stop back at the house on and off throughout the day to check in. This is a great way to get a feeling for how things are being managed at home."

Check references carefully. "Ask the references what they saw as the strengths and weaknesses of this person," says D'Amico. "Then compare these characteristics to what is most important to you and the care your child gets."

Even if the nanny comes with wonderful reviews, trust your gut instincts. "If you are just getting bad feelings about someone, don't use them," says D'Amico.

Defining Childcare

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