When I was growing up, I remember my parents going to Napa Valley for a business trip which they turned into a mini vacation. They left us at home with a babysitter. No big deal, right? Wrong! I remember our babysitter didn't even have her drivers license at the time. That means, my parents left their 4 precious children at home with another human that was not even 16 years old. What on earth were they thinking?
The times are different now! Not only is our generation way more wary about who watches our kids, the people who are willing and responsible to watch our offspring are few and far between and because of the most basic principle of economics: supply vs. demand, they are hella expensive. I'm talking $12-$15/hr. That's for a high schooler with basic CPR training and a drivers license. Not that we would ever let them drive our kids anywhere, but at least we don't have to pick them up or bring them home.