Night Shift Single Parents! Questions about child care!

[UnicoRN611]

I just graduated in May and am starting my new job in about 2 weeks. I'll train on days for the first portion of my training, then I'll switch over to nights. I'll be working overnights from then on.

My question is for the single parents. What do you do for childcare? If you pay someone to sleep over and babysit your kids, how much do you pay? I have 2 kids, ages 6 & 8. I have the option of having them sleep at my parents house for free, but to be perfectly honest, I really just don't like my parents and their child rearing methods. They make my kids feel guilty and feel bad about themselves, just like they did to me and my sisters when we were kids. I will gladly fork over the extra cash so that I don't subject my children to the lifelong emotional damage. This is an investment for their future, and hopefully I'll save them some therapy bills also.

Also, I want to add that I work in Southern NJ, near Philadelphia. I'll be making about $35 an hour when I work nights

Thanks in advance for your input!

[MrNurse(x2), ADN]

For 12 hour shifts, allowing them to sleep, no housekeeping duties, $100/ night is reasonable. That translates to $1300/ month +/-. You can pay less taking them to drop off at someone's home. You can also decide to have the hard conversation with mom and dad and seeing if they can step up to be the grandparents that will make wonderful memories. I tried that last one without result. Drop off, I would say $80 if you provide food, for a savings of $265/ month.

[UnicoRN611]

Ideally I'd like to keep them in my house since they already sleep at my ex-husbands house a few nights a week. If they slept at 3 different houses throughout their childhood, I think that would be a lot of adjusting for them. Plus I want them to feel like they have a "home base". If my parents were warm and loving grandparents, it would be a completely different scenario, but if they had been warm and loving parents to me, then I probably wouldn't have married an emotionally abusive man and wouldn't be divorced right now! But that's a story for my therapist!! Hahaha

Ok, I was hoping for the ballpark of $100/night also. :) Thanks for your help!

[MrNurse(x2), ADN]

Start at $90 and go up from there. Best case scenario would be to work when they are at your ex's. My wife and I paid $180/ night, but that included elder care that ultimately wasn't provided and she fell. We trusted this woman immensely, but she didn't use the bed alarm or keep herself accessible. We had a second sitter for her husband who confessed that she fell, otherwise, who knows what could have happened? Good luck, and invest in a nanny cam before you hire, that way it is not something new after you have started.