Who I Should Consider for this Babysitting Job

My husband and I are going on a much-needed vacation to Barbados for only four days but we can’t bring our seven-year old son since this is a romantic getaway my husband prepared. Trust me--I asked. That leaves me with the tricky task of finding a proper caretaker for Jonathan. He is not an especially difficult child but he can get unruly from time to time. As a typical seven-year old who has an acute selective hearing problem, he does what he wants. This is why I want someone who will not only understand him but someone who would be able to communicate with him in an effective manner. Here is a list of considerations for this coveted babysitting job:

Grandma Olive
My husband’s mother--my mother-in-law--seems to be the clearest choice. She lives ten minutes away from us and she has taken care of Jonathan before. She has two small dogs whom Jonathan likes to play with. She would be the perfect pick were it not for the fact that she is mildly senile. She can’t hear very well, has a deplorable memory and once accidentally fed Jonathan dog food thinking it was cereal. Bless her heart but we will probably only pick Grandma Olive as a very last resort.

Uncle Ryan
My younger brother, Ryan, is eighteen years old. He is actually quite mature for his age and he has also taken up the babysitting job of looking after Jonathan before. The only thing is that, as a doting uncle, he likes to spoil my son too much. He will allow him to play video games until midnight and feed him pizza and candy. I don’t think my kid an handle more sugar and behave well.

Laura
Laura is our local dependable babysitter. She is always up for a good babysitting job and even though, secretly, I’m sure she thinks Jonathan is a handful--she will do anything to earn that extra income. She has been trained properly and treats my son like a mature person rather than a rambling child. If her schedule allows, I would love her to take care of him while we’re gone.