Spring Break

Spring break always seems to creep up on us, and it will be here before we know it! Finding a babysitter for the entire week can be quite a challenge since parents usually don't get their own spring break. That's where we come in! We will take the headache away from searching for babysitters who are unqualified and not responsible. Just make that one phone call and we will take care of the rest! Plus, with a new friend to play with, you can be sure your children won't be bored all day or simply having the TV be the babysitter. If you want to get a sitter for spring break, you should start the process now to ensure you get the loving babysitter you and your kids want!

New Hanover County Public Schools have spring break April 18-21.

Brunswick County Public Schools have spring break April 25-29.

Choosing Childcare

The daunting task of finding a childcare provider that fits your needs can be a headache. We found these eight tips that we hope will help you make the right decision. Just remember, that everyone has different needs, so what works for one, might not for another family.

1. Look down. When you're visiting a potential site, pay attention to how the staff interacts with the children. Ideally, a caregiver should be on the floor playing with the kids or holding one on her lap. In their early years, babies need close, loving, interactive relationships with adults in order to thrive. That's why it's especially important that babies' first caregivers be warm and responsive, and that even in group care, infants and older babies get a healthy dose of one-on-one time. (Though individual states set their own staffing ratios for child-care facilities, the American Academy of Pediatrics specifically recommends a ratio of one adult for every three babies up to 24 months of age.)

2. Ask for a commitment. Babies need consistent, predictable care. It helps them to form a secure attachment to their caregivers, according to Debra K. Shatoff, a family therapist in private practice in St. Louis. If you're looking at an in-home caregiver, request that the person you're considering make a one-year commitment to the job. If you're considering a center, find out how long the current caregivers have been working there and how much turnover the center usually experiences.

3. Do a policy check. Find out whether you share parenting philosophies on topics such as discipline (Do the caregivers use time-outs, scoldings?); television (Is the TV on all day or used sparingly, if at all?); feeding (What snacks or drinks are provided for older babies?); sleeping (When are naps offered? How are fussy babies put to sleep?); and so forth. Inquire about the sick-child policy (What symptoms prevent a child from attending?). Also ask whether there's a backup plan should the family day-care provider or in-home caregiver get sick and be unable to work. The more questions you ask early on, the less likely you are to be unpleasantly surprised later.

4. Drop by and spy. While word-of-mouth referrals from other parents or trusted resources are important, you need to look at a place for yourself to assess whether it meets your needs. Of course, any child-care environment should be kept clean, childproofed, and well stocked with sturdy books and toys that are age-appropriate. Other details to consider: When older children share the space, toys with small parts (choking hazards) should be kept away from younger babies. Ideally, infants and babies should have their own area where they won't get "loved" too much by older toddlers. A room or separate area dedicated solely to swings and bouncers may look appealing at first glance, but keep in mind that growing babies need plenty of floor time to develop and strengthen their muscles. If possible, try to visit the same centers at different times of the day to get a sense of how the staff interacts with the children and what the routine is. You may want to consider popping in unannounced a few times after you've enrolled your child, just to see how things are going. Sometimes your visits will confirm that the place is right for you, but sometimes they'll be a real eye-opener.

5. Keep talking. Until your baby can talk, you will be relying on what the caregiver tells you about your child's day. Make sure you can communicate comfortably with each other. When you first hand off your child in the morning, you should tell the caregiver how your little one slept the night before, if he is teething, and whether he ate breakfast. At the end of the day you'll want to know similar information, such as the number of diapers he went through, when he napped, and if he seemed happy overall. It's always preferable to speak to the caregiver in person. If that's not possible, ask if there's a convenient time to phone, perhaps at nap time.

6. Problem-solve pronto. It's inevitable that you'll experience conflicts with your caregiver, both large and small. Address problems right away rather than ignoring them until they grow out of proportion. Some issues can be resolved quickly; others may require more discussion. Whatever the conflict, treat the caregiver in a respectful manner, but don't be afraid to speak up, says Deborah Borchers, MD, a pediatrician in private practice in Cincinnati. When broaching a difficult subject, ask the caregiver's opinion, and hear her out. As the parent, you have the final word with an in-home caregiver, but you're more likely to elicit cooperation if the caregiver knows she has been heard. For example, instead of demanding an earlier nap time to make bedtime easier, ask the caregiver if she has ideas about how to adjust your baby's schedule so he won't grow so overtired in the evening.

7. Trust your gut. Every parent knows when something doesn't feel quite right. You may be turned off by a center everyone in town raves about or clash with a highly recommended sitter. If that happens, keep searching. Babies deserve, and thrive under, good, nurturing care. If something just doesn't feel right about your situation, investigate other options.

8. Be open to change. You're not married to a particular person or situation, and if things don't work out, you can always make a switch. Yes, you want consistency for your baby, but that doesn't mean you can't alter arrangements. Babies are resilient; as long as they're having a positive experience with their new caregiver, they'll be just fine, points out Dr. Shatoff.

Bringing your family closer

Spending time with your family is one of the most important things you can do. Being involved in your kids life from the time they're little helps to strengthen your bond for when they get older and want to be more independent. Creating a family day once a month or even once a week is a great way to spend time together without all the distractions life gives us. We found this article of 40 things you can do with your family and just wanted to share with those trying to think of new exciting things to do. Enjoy the little things!

40 Family Day activities

Ideas to fill your Family Day (or any day, really) with tons of creative fun!

Family Day is just around the corner (February 21). So parents in Ontario, Saskatchewan and Alberta, we’ve got a whack of great ways for you to make this Family Day the best one ever!

• Make one of our classic breakfast recipes.

• Do one of these activities for every day in February!

• Check out one of these 20 kids’ websites.

• Go to a farmers' market.

• Make a meal together with some of the items you buy at the market.

• Perhaps include our Whole Wheat Tortilla and Cheddar Quesadilla Wedges.

• You could also give our Banana Bread a try!

• Look up local outdoor arenas or safe ponds and take part in a Canadian tradition: hockey.

• After hockey have a hot chocolate sampling party. Invite friends over to try dark, peppermint or white hot chocolate. Get creative with whipped cream and sprinkles. Adults can add some secret Bailey’s.

• Or keep it simple by baking a batch of yummy Chocolate Chip Cookies.

• Beach Day! Pretend it is blazing hot out, put on your bathing suits and shades and some sunny music and have a beach party. Ice cream sundaes, or Ice Cream Sundae Pie, mandatory!

• Have a snowman challenge with your neighbours! Give out prizes for Most Creative and Best-looking.

• Nostalgia Movie Marathon. Rent your fave movies from your childhood, such asAnnie, Mary Poppins or Ghostbusters, and watch them again with your kids.

• Another option is to have an Everyone’s Favourite Movie Marathon. Each member of the family selects their favourite (PG-appropriate) movie to watch in a day-long marathon.

• Want to do something a little more hands-on? Make puppets!

• Already have a bunch of puppets? Then give them a home! Upcycle an old box and make your own puppet theatre. Spend the afternoon decorating it with supplies from the dollar store and recycling bin.

• Throw a dance party! Get the kids to dress up in costumes and have them put together, and perform, a little routine to their favourite songs! Or, just take a dance break in the middle of whatever else you decide to do!

• Make some short movies using your smartphone or a Flip-style camera.

• Make a stop-motion video. Use toys, Lego, et cetera, as the characters in your movie. Take one photo at a time with any simple digital camera. Import your photos into a simple movie maker and shorten photo duration to one second or one frame. Add voiceover and music, and you’re done!

• Hold a Guinness-style record-breaking competition. Who can stack the most plastic cups? Who can balance a book on their head the longest? Get the kids to come up with some fun records to set!

• Learn a magic trick.

• Make a craft! We’ve got 25 for you to try.

• Take your family bowling.

• Draw and cut out silhouettes of family members’ profiles.

• Cut out a bunch of pictures from magazines and make a collage.

• Make a puzzle! Buy puzzle templates from an arts and crafts store; everyone makes a puzzle and then passes the pieces off for someone else to assemble.

• Create a playset for action figures. Turn recyclable cardboard into playsets, like houses, spaceships, et cetera, by painting, building little decorations (magazine clippings for small paintings, tin foil for mirrors). If you have a skilled electrician on hand, add energy-efficient LED christmas lights for effect.

• Teach your kids to sew or knit something cool, like a pillow cover, plush toy or scarf.

• Have Backwards Day, where you eat breakfast for dinner, call Mom “Dad” and Dad “Mom” and, of course, wear your clothes backwards.

• Explore your family’s roots.

• Boardgame Bonanza! Dig out your dusty pile of games and challenge each other in Scrabble, Boggle and Pictionary tournaments.

• You could also make your own board game — who says you have to follow the rules? Add your own element to classic board games or make up your own!

• Another option: Play some classic board-free games — get silly with charades or Telephone!

• Set up a “library” with all of your old books and invite friends and neighbours over to check out whatever they like. You could even make library cards and organize your book collection by fiction, non-fiction, young adult, et cetera.

• Make up a list of items to find in a photo scavenger hunt. You have to snap a pic of each item on the list and make it back to headquarters first to win!

• Treat the kids to a Banana Split Pizza.

• Devote an entire day to doing good deeds. Walk around your ’hood with trash bags and pick up litter, volunteer to walk dogs at your local animal shelter or shovel an elderly neighbour’s front walk!

• Form an “air band” by lipsynching to your favourite songs and miming playing instruments.

• Or make live music with an instrument made by you and your kids.

• Host a home trivia competition, with prizes for the winning teams. You can make up your own questions on a variety of topics or find them online.

• If your city allows it, set up a backyard fire pit and have a winter campfire, complete with s’mores and scary stories.

• Prepare all your favourite finger foods, put a blanket on the playroom floor and boom: indoor picnic!

• Declare a one-day organization blitz. Clean out your closets and put unused toys, games and clothes in boxes for donation.

• Throw a fondue party! Stuff yourselves with cut fruit dipped in melted chocolate and bread cubes dipped in melted cheese!

• Go on a winter hike in a park or woods. Collect items you find and glue them to sturdy paper to make a beautiful nature collage. Or, take some beautiful snowy pictures.

• Make a simple homemade bird feeder using pine cones, peanut butter, birdseed and a bit of string, then hang them up and spend a lazy afternoon birdwatching.

• Make a family time capsule! Put treasured mementos such as photos, ticket stubs and postcards in a shoebox.

• Order some Chinese food for dinner, but make your own Fortune Cookies.

• Add a snowy twist to your favourite game or sport — ever tried snow soccer or snow football?

• Make your own colouring book! Everyone can contribute a drawing and colour in each other’s artwork.

• Have a fort-building contest. Those couch pillows were meant for more than just sitting on!

• Play dress-up — fashion show to follow!

• Go to sleep! You’ve had a very busy day.

Who are the owners?

Sitters on Deck is co-owned and operated by Sharon Williams and Alison Fitterer. Sharon Williams has had her own home daycare for over 40 years and has loved every minute of it. She has raised two children of her own and is actively involved in her grandson’s life.  Alison is finishing her degree in Psychology and has babysat for over 50 families in her eight years of childcare experience. They are both CPR/First Aid certified and continue their education of children by taking yearly classes. Sharon actually  babysit Alison when she was little and is like a second mom to her. Sharon is now considered their family babysitter because she also babysat Alison’s two older brothers, younger sister, and six cousins.  Sharon and Alison both have a passion for children and that’s why they started Sitters on Deck. Sitters on Deck wants to make sure that the Wilmington area's kids get the care they need and that parents can rest assured knowing that they  have the best care.  

Why use a babysitter service?

Why use a babysitter service? This is a question that has been asked hundreds of times. Unfortunately, there is not one answer to this question. There are many reasons why babysitting services should be used. For starters, we make your life easier. When you're running late, your regular sitter calls to tell you she can't come and the kids are smashing their cookies into the carpet for the tenth time, who has time to call and find a new babysitter on a Saturday night? Leaving your kids with a "stranger" can be very scary, how do you know they're someone you can trust? Is an interview enough? Sometimes, yes, but to make sure we run background checks and reference check all sitters before sending them to our families. If you're on vacation and want to actually HAVE a vacation, we can find you a trustworthy sitter. Although some of the craigslist posters may be nice, it's always better safe then sorry in a town you're not familiar with. What about those days you've got a staff meeting at work and your child is too sick to go to daycare or school? You can breathe easy knowing we've found the perfect sitter for you. Having a babysitter interviewed by a company is not enough, which is why we encourage you to meet with our sitters before they come to babysit. Some even prefer to have the sitter come "hangout" a few times to get the kids used to somebody new. The possibilities are endless and we're just here to help. Catering to your every need is what we like to do and making sure you're completely satisfied with your experience. Family always comes first and that's what we like to think of ourselves, a family.

What we do

Sitters on Deck is your number one babysitting referral service in Wilmington, North Carolina. We find caring, responsible, and dependable sitters to handle any and all babysitting needs. We make sure our sitters are more than qualified before sending them to you so that you can feel comfortable leaving your precious little ones with them. Sitters on Deck does the work of finding the perfect babysitter to match your individual family needs. Instead of calling all of your regular Friday night babysitters only to find out they’re already booked, let Sitters on Deck handle the task. We will do our best to find you a sitter you can trust and count on. Sitters on Deck, reliable childcare made easy. 


What do you think about us? Would this be a type of company you would use for childcare? What could we do to make it better?