Sitter in the City

Last night I did the impossible. I had someone babysit Ava!

The sitter's name is Emma. I found her on a site called SitterCity that runs background checks, lists references and reviews from other parents, and lists experience, etc. It's only for serious postings and you actually have to pay a pretty hefty fee to access the site, so it's much less shady than say, Craigslist. She had lots of good reviews, numbers of people to call for references, and I decided she seemed like a good one to try. I had a dinner with some people from work who were visiting from several offices all over the place within the company I work for to attend.

Ava seemed to like Emma while I had Emma get to know us a little as I finished up Ava's eating/bath routine. But as soon as Ava sensed I was going, she totally flipped out and went hysterical. That made it hard for me to leave. Then I was pretty freaked out to drive to the place for dinner because it was pouring, and people don't know how to drive here when it rains. I made it to the parking garage next to the restaurant we were going to, but had a hard time finding how to access the restaurant coming out of the elevator of the parking garage and ended up stomping around in the rain for about 20 minutes. I got soaking wet too, as I couldn't locate my umbrella. To make matters worse, I was the only one there for about 20 minutes, and finally people started filing in. Due to traffic and the rain, we weren't all together until nearly an hour after the time we were supposed to start, and time for me was ticking. I told the sitter I would be back by 8:30.

I asked for my food to be put in a box so I could take it home around 8, and of course when it arrived at 8:2o, it was not boxed. So I inhaled a small filet mignon in about 10 minutes and got out of there and raced home. I did have a good time while I was there though, so not all was lost. And I got to slowly enjoy the appetizers and some wine.

I texted the sitter a few times to see how she was and update her about me being late. She reported Ava was fussy off and on, which sounds pretty usual for me, especially since she has ANOTHER cold. Yes, ANOTHER cold. I am starting to wonder where she (we? are) picking up all of this sickness. Maybe the park? For a kid who never goes to daycare, she sure seems to pick it up like velcro.

Anyway, I got home around 8:50, paid the sitter extra for me being late, and Ava was out within minutes. She was so tired.

So, I now know I can leave Ava with someone and the world will definitely not end. It's just so hard for me to trust other people, but I got a good sense of trustworthiness from Emma!