for about 18 months i worked as a housekeeper at a ranch/resort in colorado. during our busy season i made extra money as a babysitter. according to the hotel rules i was off the clock but i could only charge $5/hour. still, that was $0.75 an hour over minimum. there was a loophole to that in that if i was sitting more than one child, i could charge $5/hour per child. that worked out to be a pretty sweet deal on some nights. one evening i watched 5 kids a total of 8 hours. i dealt with 3 sets of parents on that one, two of which tipped me. i ended up with just under $250 for what proved to be an extended play-date followed by everyone laying down to sleep the last 3 hours while i read a book.
the great part though, was the reaction my walking up caused as they realized i was the babysitter. 30+ years old, hair halfway down my back, a full beard, and three earrings. the folks from the rec center kept assuring them that i was great with kids, had a calm and gentle nature, and totally knew my way around the property.
