Payton S.

Meet Payton

• Comfortable with pets
• Has a car

Flexible Caregivers must be willing and able to adapt to changes in daily routines and circumstances. When you're caring for someone, you have to be able to adjust to their needs. Ayesha Brooks of Ford Leonard Hood, Missouri. says “It’s important for caregivers to have flexibility, especially when working with single parent families.” Patient According to a Care.com poll of members, 55 percent of families say patience in the most important quality in a sitter. All parents know that raising children requires patience as the children learn everything they need to know. It takes time for children to learn right from wrong and if a caretaker lacks patience you could be looking at serious problems. "Patience holds the utmost importance in getting through the day with children," says Leigh Hunziker, a New York-based writer and mother of three. "Children test the patience of authority every day, so whoever is caring Read more for your kids should know how to handle it with the right balance of discipline and calm." Suzy Williams of Killeen, Texas agrees, says, "I look for kindness and patience in anyone who will be dealing with my son.” Attentive Caretakers should put the person they're caring for first. If they're spending all their time on the phone or on Facebook, they aren't doing a great job of interacting with the children in their care. Enjoys Children Not everyone actually enjoys spending time with children -- but all caretakers of children must actually like them! Elena Smith of Loudonville, New York says “When I was interviewing candidates to take care of my kids, I looked for people who seemed more interested in my kids than in me. I looked for people who genuinely liked my kids and wanted to get to know them.” Bilingual One of the common things families look for on Care.com is a caregiver who is bilingual. Helping kids to learn a new language is a great skill that a caregiver can offer a family. Trustworthy You're putting a lot of trust in this person who will be caring for your loved one -- they should be worthy of it. Many caretakers have access to the entire home and may even have a spare set of keys. They need to be trustworthy, both with your belongings and with the lives of your loved one.

Trust & safety

Experience