Letters

The Smart Mom's Babysitting Co-op Handbook is more than an instruction manual. It is a piece of the co-op! After spending time with the book, a new member is inspired to get started--and she knows how it all works. Time is in short supply. When each mom has their own book, the co-op has fewer unanswered questions, fewer phone calls, and fewer issues.

The book gives each mom a vision of how to work together. When moms each own a book, the co-op runs better because each mom has the answer and all moms are on the same page. When moms each have a book and read it, the co-op has more momentum, more enthusiasm, and more people that know the answers to questions and keep things running smooth.

No need to "sell" the co-op idea to a new mom. Let the book tell the story... the letters below speak loudly about the results you can expect:...

Years ago my Mother participated in a co-op like what you describe. She gave me some suggestions on how it was done but I was having trouble relaying the idea to others, figuring out the details and fine print. So I went searching far and wide for information when I found your book which has everything I was hoping for plus so much more that never occurred to me. I am so greatful. I now feel empowered to inspire my fellow Moms to get out and do things without child in tow with the confidence they are being well cared for. To get us started I would like to order 10 books at your special $9.00 rate. Thank you so much for putting this information into print. Yea! Sincerely, Laura Welch

Dear Tukwila Pres - Would you pass along a note to Gary Myers to express my appreciation for the Babysitting Coop book he wrote and passed along to me during our recent stint on jury duty together? I am very excited about the concept and will be introducing it to our MOM's group at church. So - you may be hearing from me soon for so more orders! God's blessing to you and to Gary for taking on this wonderful cause to help out mothers of little ones. If Gary would like to write back, my email is kopps@integrity.com. Thanks, Lisa Kopp

Thank you for your prompt reply to my query. It turned out that I had an old version of Acrobat Reader out there and the workbook was pointing to that. After the old version was deleted, everything went great.

Just as an update, we've done our start-up meeting hope to have a full complement of moms plus completed home visits by the end of February, with sits starting no later than March. I started with a mom's group in which I participate, but there wasn't quite enough interest (and, as you can see from the delay in my correspondence, the holidays made us moms pretty busy). So, now we're trying to recruit a total of about a dozen moms to start through the sponsoring method.

Everything has been self-explanatory. Most of the moms who are participating have been very career-oriented before staying home with their kids and some currently work part-time. One comment they all have been making is how professional and business-like the process seems to be. As I used to be a full-time management consultant, I agree (and I love the flow charts!).

We just place an order for 6 more of your books and look forward to receiving them. I am the current leader of our baby-sitting co-op in Suffolk, VA. Our co-op was started about 5 years ago by a group of moms in our neighborhood. Those moms have either moved away or the children have outgrown the co-op. We are in an area with alot of military so most of us do not have family nearby. The co-op has been a life saver! We currently have 15 families in our co-op and our system works great. We have amended some rules along the way that fit our group but for the most part follow the book. We require all moms to have a copy of your book so we all know the rules. A few past members have kept their books with intentions of starting a co-op in their new location. Thank you again for this book.

I am interested in starting a co-op in the Chicago area. The only problem is that I really don't know anyone here. I'm originally from Mississippi, and have never really made friends here. I work at Northwestern University and was thinking of putting up flyers for interested parties. I will pass your book on to others. I think this is a great idea, I just have never started anything before, so I'm kind of scared. I'm a single mom who works. I don't make much money, so I can barely afford daycare. Going out or running errands without my daughter is totally out of the question. I can't even get my hair done on occasion. I'm not trying to find a permanent alternative sitter, just a program where I can leave my daughter for an hour or so to do things that I can't do with her like dentist, doctor, and hair appointments. I haven't even been to the movies since she was born. I'm about to go insane!

The website was wonderful. I will try and get the word out for other moms in need of this kind of help. Thanks.

We have 24 members in our playgroup, but only 6 signed up to be part of the baby-sitting co-op. I've used it and so has 1 other mom. Other than that, I think people are afraid to use it. It's been great for me & the other mom so far! I actually got to go to the doctor's office alone! I haven't done that in 6 years. :)

Thanks for asking. I'm just going to keep working on it and hopefully we'll get more moms interested.

I am desperately in need of a babysitting co-op. The idea sounds very efficient! Can you share ways in which I can get it started in my area? Finding someone to keep my 3 year old is extremely challenging. I feel frustrated and at a dead end. I need to do things in order to provide for us, but without any income I can not afford childcare. If you can give me guidance and support in getting one going here, it would be greatly appreciated!

I am so happy I found your website! I am interested in starting a co-op in Huntington Indiana. I'm a stay at home mom right now with 2 kids and I find myself thinking all the time about how I wish I knew other mothers who I could trade sitting with...plus the friendship! I know there just have to be other moms like me in this town who would really appreciate something like this. I would like to order one book to read and get started! carla1@huntingtonindiana.com

Some friends of mine and I are starting a babysitting co-op in the San Francisco area. We would like to order 10 copies of _Smart Mom's Baby-sitting Co-op_ to support our efforts. We've seen the book and it's a great system!

All of the co-ops are doing well. The Yahoo chat boards allow for chatting between members who don't know each other. It also allows for photos to be uploaded (letting new members put faces to names before the meetings), links (to events in the area, your website -to get answers to FAQ & books, and for safety: Sex Offender's Registry linked so they are aware of the surroundings they live in), a calendar (mandatory meetings, "playdates"), etc.

The Norfolk-based group decided to add a file of "house rules" so children were not telling sitters they were allowed to do something they were not allowed to, bedtimes & naps are kept on schedule, and special diets -like "no sugar after 5pm"- are followed. They've been up and running for 6 months and have 7 active members, 10 people on the board total.

The VA Beach group just got their books and the leader & secretary have been chosen. The group is very excited and they have already hit 10 members...they've only been up and running for less than a month. On their own they added photos of themselves...I took the idea and brought it to the other boards' attention.

The Newport News/Hampton group has 11 members on the board but not everyone is chatting. We are trying to get together to get books into everyone's hands and meet in person. It's been up as long as the VA Beach board.

The Chesapeake board is set up for the cities of Chesapeake, Portsmouth and Suffolk...I will split up the group into individual cities once enough members join. Currently there are three members on the board who are interested in joining. The group board has been up for two weeks. I expect it to become busy before the end of the month:)

I can't imagine life without the co-op. Even though I'm living at a friend's house in Newport News, I am going to use a Norfolk Co-op Mom as I drive to Virginia Beach for a doctor's appointment...I have the time on the books still.

To encourage bringing new members to the Norfolk group, I have offered 10 points to each sponser mom who brings a new enrollment (passing safety visit, receiving book, paying for membership, etc)...we've made a "ghost mom" who zeros out the positive/negative points as moms leave the area by absorbing those points, she is also the same mom who gives the 10 pts to the sponser mom...allowing for the "checks & balances" for the secretary:)

Thank you so much for this idea and for putting it in book form. Without it, I would never have known what it was like to get a break from my kids...I really appreciate it.

Subj: Smart mom's baby-sitting co-op book order Date: 7/9/02 7:53:46 PM Pacific Daylight Time From: b.a.watts@shaw.ca (Betty Ann Watts) To: tukwilapres@cs.com

I'm a single mother in Winnipeg,Manitoba,Canada. I work at my local community resource centre (between classes) and facilitate a mother's group Sept. to June . I would love to (and need to) set up a babysitting co-op here. I am a very broke university student and hope you will take pity on me by sending me a free copy of your book, Smart Mom's Baby-sitting Co-op Handbook. I'll be sure to stock it as an on-site copy in our resource library when I'm done with it.( and of course let them know where they can order it from )As my daughter would say,"Please and Thank-You with whipped cream and a cheery on top"

North East Winnipeg Community Resource Centre Attn: Aynsley Strong 203-1100 Concordia Ave.

Subj: I'm starting a co-op!! Date: 9/8/02 9:09:42 AM Pacific Daylight Time From: fernstrum@msn.com (John Fernstrum) To: tukwilapres@cs.com

I am so excited about starting a babysitting co-op! I have a nine month old son, and intend to have more children. I already have experienced the need for "time out" for myself. I can definitely see the benefit of a co-op, and I am sure other moms will easily see the same benefits! There are a few people in our neighborhood who have new little ones, and also some close friends who live nearby that are in the same boat. I can't wait to get started! I just downloaded the leader and secretary book and will be putting those together today. I am interested in ordering four of your handbooks to be delivered A.S.A.P. so I can get my first 3 moms over here and set things up! Thank you for this wonderful book and this wonderful opportunity... I just know our co-op will be a wonderful success!

Subj: HI! Date: 10/28/02 5:54:39 PM Pacific Standard Time From: roseb@281.com (Rose Burkhardt) To: tukwilapres@cs.com

I am interested in starting a co-op for my small town. There are a few co-ops in Austin, TX, which is about an hour away, so no hope for us Moms out here! My husband and I moved here about 2 yrs ago and rarely, rarely are able to go out, much less time for myself! I have friends in the same situation and would love for us all to be able to go out when we need to without hassle, and without paying a bundle. I rarely ask my friends to baby-sit because I feel guilty, and I know they do the same. I would love for us all to be able to have each other baby-sit in an organized form without feeling guilty!

Date: 3/4/03 11:41:33 AM Pacific Standard Time From: kelsons@cnonline.net (kelsons) To: tukwilapres@cs.com

Hi! I'm interested in placing a group order for several Smart Mom's Babysitting Co-op Handbooks. I am sending this e-mail to take advantage of the current website offer of books for $9, plus 50% off shipping and handling.

I am starting a co-op with several friends in the Beaverton, OR area. I hosted the initial start-up meeting last night and it went great! I hadn't purchased extra books for my friends in advance as I wasn't sure what the response would be, but now that we're going ahead with your system, we need books for everyone. We optimistic that our numbers will grow quickly, so I would like to order 10 books at this time. I understand that you'll be sending a reply e-mail with an order form confirming the order and the total. Can you also outline your return policy in case there is any need to return the books?

Subj: RE: Babysitting CO-op form Date: 11/7/03 10:58:04 PM Pacific Standard Time From: gr8cooking@dls.net (gr8cooking) To: TukwilaPres@cs.com

So far things are going pretty good. We have 11 families participating. We really just started doing the sits. Most of us were strangers from a large subdivision so we started a playgroup first to get to know each other better. We are also doing "In-A-Pinch" and are currently helping out a family who just had twins after both the mom and dad were laid off and then the dad was in a serious car accident the day after the babies were born. I feel such a sense of community in our subdivision and it is such a relief to know we have others we can count on. A lot of us joined the co-op because our families are an hour or more away and we didn't have anyone to help with babysitting.

I guess I was confused about column B because I was trying to read more into it and try to make it harder than it was. Thanks for the help!

Subj: Book Orders Date: 11/14/03 1:02:57 PM Pacific Standard Time From: tiffwilhelm@yahoo.com (Tiffany Wilhelm) To: tukwilapres@cs.com

Hello. I started a co-op based on your book and helped another group of moms to start a co-op based on your book in the last town I lived in. I am now in a new town and have joined a mother's group. They have a de-centralized co-op based on "baby bucks" that just isn't working for anyone. I volunteered to be on the steering committee for the co-op and intend to help the club start a number of smaller co-ops based on neighborhoods. I thought it would be wise to have a stash of books on hand as I don't believe that many of these frazzled moms will be into another "poor" investment.

I would like to potentially order about 10 books to start so that I may use them for motivation. I like the idea of a discount since this will be coming out of my pinched pocket!

What is the return policy on these books should I fail miserably? (I don't anticipate failure, but I have to plan for it).

I would like the opportunity to purchase 10 books at the 1/2 price rate. If you could e-mail or mail me the necessary forms, I'd appreciate it. Also, please let me know what the turn around time is on the order, shipping costs, etc.

Thank you for your time. You have a great co-op system and a very motivating book!

What a great letter to get...You have plenty of energy and ambition...I figure you are worthy of the risk... no problem if you have to return books...I just hope they are in good condition so I can reuse them...As for the price $10 per book will do and it includes shipping book rate (usually 5 to 7 days). The password to the free startup kit is "xxxxxxxx".

It really is smart of you to get each mom a book. The book will build momentum, inspire your friends, and give everyone a shared vision and a new start. I agree that the de-centralized systems are setup for failure… it is a good idea to use the co-op as designed in the book....it works!

Questions should be directed to Author@babysittingcoop.com Copyright © 2000 Tukwila Publishing. All rights reserved.