On Call Respite Night Childcare

Yeah... The only problem with on-call is that the parent has to wake up and be with the baby in order to call and get you there... which kinda negates the getting some sleep aspect.

Like others have said, the 'night nanny' where you come all night, THAT would be handy... I personally wouldn't pay for it, because I feel that the sleepless nights and other inconveniences are part of being a parent. BUT... there are all kinds of people who are more than willing to pay people to take care of their kids, and people who for some reason are incapable (medical issues, depression, etc.) so there probably would be plenty of people willing to pay.

$10 is a bit cheap though.

The on-call part sounds a bit weird... when exactly would they call? But if it was something that was planned in advance (ie - come over every night, or every Mon/Wed/Fri) then I could imagine you getting some customers. Where I live that's called a night nurse or a night nanny. It's basically someone who stays up overnight with babies so the parents can sleep. You could probably charge $20/hour... but recognize how much it will disrupt your life. You'll need to sleep during the days if you work at night.

I accepted sleep loss as a part of the parenthood experience. So, no...I would not pay for that. I would think by the time someone called you and you woke up enough to drive over, they should have the baby pacified by then. I mean, they are already awake, so it seems silly not to take care of it themselves. It makes more sense to me, to be available on a schedule. Like, staying overnight with a family, and waking as their baby wakes. I can't see people here paying for that. I would think that would do better in wealthier states and cities. People don't typically have the disposable incomes for something like that elsewhere. You live in California, if people anywhere would pay for that, it would be there!! Yes, I would need more then $10 an hour.

No. I can't imagine needing or wanting someone else to come to my house at night and comfort my kids. It is tough to get up with kiddos when I am exhausted but calling someone to come over and waiting for that person to get here while my child cries in the next room seems ridiculous.

It's not something I would do, but I had a friend who did something kind of like this. She was having some major post-partum depression so they hired a night person, I dont think she was a nurse or anything. The lady would basically stay at their house all night, and I think she would sleep on the couch until the baby would wake up and she would feed and get the baby back to sleep. I have no idea how much she charged.

I dont know about the on-call thing either, because by the time you called someone and the time it took them to get to your house it seems like maybe you could have fed and got the baby back to sleep. Unless it is a really colicky baby or something. I think I would rather just have someone there all night if I were to do something like that.

Yes though, $10/hour seems kind of cheap for an on-call kind of a job.

Your question comes the night after a run of 3 horrible nights at our house!! I gave up sleep when I had my first child (who woke every hour for the first 18 months of his life), now 3 and when my second arrived I wondered how parents have more than 2 kids! Its amazing how a mother can survive on such little sleep...

For the first time in 3 years, I actually considered calling my mother who lives 30 minutes away to come help out at 1am. My husband had a sinus infection, I was in the early stages of mastitis, and 6 month old DD and 3 year old DS were trading off every 20-30 minutes waking up coughing and sputtering with colds!! I couldn't do much of anything because my breast hurt with every breath so my poor sick hubby did most of the work with rocking and consoling. That was nights 1&2. Night 3 was better, but we were both so exhausted I almost fell over as I sleep bounced the baby on our yoga ball. Not cool!!

If I knew they were out there, I would have called someone for $10 for sure, but I would pay $20, maybe more, depending on how many nights we've been up... By the time I would have called, it would have been 2 or 3am and DH and I would have gotten at least 3-4 hours of sleep before needing to get up for the day. It would be worth it to me in that situation =) However, I think most children want their parents in the night and possibly wouldn't settle for a stranger.
Needless to say, we DID survive and I am at least doing better... DH on the other hand would like to pull his molars out and come hell or high water, he IS going to the Dr tomorrow!!

One of my sisters had a night nanny when each of her kids was born. It's not something I would do, but for someone who has money to burn who really can't function on interrupted sleep, there is a market for this. I believe that her nanny was on several nights a week for several weeks (or even a few months).

According the the NY Time, night nannies generally charge between $15 and $40 per hour.

10 an hour... 7-8 hours of sleep... $70-80 per night. To, one would assume, sleep BUT be the one to wake up (since neither are medical respite) when an adult is needed.

The on-call part, I would assume, is because she's not looking for a night nanny (which is a regular position with weekly hours, vacation and sick leave, etc.) but the "If I don't get some decent sleep this week I will go clinically INSANE" moments we (well I anyways) have had.

Meaning Bonkers on Wednesday = calling on Thurs morning for an overnight.

Or even having a standing 1 night a week gig (but not a 'half time, or full time' slot. Just one night a week).

Most parents get that 1 night a week, or heck, even 3 or 4. I didn't. I got one night off when I was in the hospital, and then not again until my son was 9 months old (where I threw an ever lovin tantrum that I had not slept in 9 months, and I was going to sleep in. HERE or in the Psych Ward at Overlake. We didn't have health insurance on me, so my now ex husband did the math -um, there's a sign for you- and decided it was too expensive for me to go to Overlake. I slept and slept and slept. From 7pm until 3pm the next day. That was the only 'overnight' he ever did, though. From then on out he'd let me sleep in 1 day a week, but I was still responsible for nights.

So I was still luckier than some. I got 1 morning a week for 2 years.

It would not have worked with my son.
When he wanted Mama in the night - he wanted ME.
Tired as I was, I was happy to rock him or take care of what ever was bothering him.
If he had tummy trouble at 2 am, I'd pour him a warm bath to help him feel better.

I personally wouldn't use it. But I know someone who had a night nanny come - and I thought it was ridiculous.

I do appreciate what you are going through, I'm trying to figure something out for myself right now - :-)

Rather than on call service, would you be willing to do childcare overnight for families with weird shifts? Childcare from 7-6 is easy to find. From 6PM to 7AM, not so much. If that's the shift the parents got stuck on, they may need someone to care for the child overnight to keep their job.

As far as comforting my child in the middle of the night - I miss my sleep, but my child needs ME or her father. I woudn't outsource what I should handle on my own, plus if you weren't in the home already (like an au pair) then by the time you arrived, I could likely have gotten her settled.

They're called sleep therapists or counselors. In OK they don't exist. My hubby and I were joking about how nice it'd be to have someone in the middle of the night and my sister (who lives in DC) said that her friend has someone that spends the night at their house and takes care of night time feedings, crying etc. The premise is that this person will help your baby learn to sleep, the reality is they let the parents sleep through the night. I wouldn't pay for it, I had the baby and we will take care of him be it 3pm or 3am. That said, I would expect pay to be similar to an over night babysitter.

Sorry, I don't really have an answer to your question, but I am having trouble the logic of wanting to stay in bed so much that you let your child ry long enough to call the on-call sitter and wait for them to arrive. Unless they lived very close by and be there in a few minutes, who would be able to actually sleep through that?