One of the toughest aspects of parenting is definitely looking for trustworthy child care when moms and dads need a bit of time off to run an important errand or to simply try and find a brief window of much-needed time for themselves – to go on a date, to head to the gym, to have a coffee with a good friend, or simply sit on a park bench and enjoy a few kid-free hours. Experts do say that part of healthy parenting is to take some adult-time to be alone even for just a little while.

Whatever reason you may have for needing a babysitter, though, finding someone you can actually trust enough to leave your child with can prove to be a complicated and sometimes overwhelming process.

Complicated because parents naturally don’t easily entrust just anyone with their children. Overwhelming because there are just so many things to consider! In this day and age, one can never be too careful when it comes to choosing the right person to look after your child in your absence.

In this article, we break down the process of finding a babysitter from start to finish to give you a complete, comprehensive guide. The goal is to hopefully make things easier for you and get you well on your way to finding the perfect person to look after your most precious ones – your children.

Before we start, let’s first consider a couple of things.