Babysitters

Since having a child I have discovered the challenges of finding and keeping a babysitter. We have been using sitters now for about 4 years on a semi-regular basis since moving to Ohio. First I was SHOCK to realize how much I was going to pay for a sitter. They now charge between $7.00 -$10.00, so that is about minimum wage to above minimum wage in Ohio. I remember when I started babysitting regularly in 1979 minimum wage back then was about $3.00 - the going rate for babysitting was $1/hour. So according to those standards I would assume the going rate would now be $3/hour. But alas is isn't. So since I am paying premium for babysitting I would hope to be able to find sitters that are available on a semi-regular basis. My experience has been, I find a sitter for Nat that I am able to use about 3-4 times, Natalee becomes comfortable with the sitter, then I find out that they are not able to sit anymore for a variety of reason's. This is an extremely frustrating cycle. It is beginning to make me feel like I have done something wrong, not paid enough, didn't have good enough snacks. sigh.... Additionally teen sitters are basically non-existent, they are too busy with their social life that they have no time for sitting. So that leaves us with very few options for a night out by ourselves since we have no family around. I am beginning to think I will look on the web site SitterCity for a sitter that maybe I can keep on retainer in hopes of being able to maintain the relationship for my child and feel I have confidence with who I leave my child with.