4sitters.com is an online resource for babysitters, nannies, pet sitting providers, tutors, home daycare providers, and house sitters, anywhere in the world.

The site offers search tools; a sitter rating system; a sitter job posting and messaging service; and the ability to review the resumes of babysitters, nannies, home daycare centers, house sitters, and pet sitting providers before purchasing a membership.

The network extends to every state in the US and is available anywhere in the world.

Prospective members can register and evaluate the service for free. Follow the instructions on the website, and then verify that there are sitters in the area and review a sitter's experience and background before purchasing a membership. Resumes may include availability, pay rate, preferred age group, a photo, and references.

Membership is $6.99 a month, with a one-time setup fee of $34.99. The membership is auto-renewed for $6.99
every month thereafter; members can cancel at any time. Or purchase a lifetime, transferable membership for a one-time fee of $149.99. When you no longer need the service, your are free to transfer, sell, or give away your membership to whom ever you choose.

AmericaEd Learning Center offers preschool, afterschool, summer school, and daily drop-off and Saturday childcare programs.

The age-appropriate curriculum offers year around programs in basic academic skills (reading, writing, math and social), art, performing arts, music, musical theater, team and individual sports, critical thinking, and enrichment classes.

A service set up with out-of-town visitors in mind. American ChildCare offers short-term child care programs at conventions, and in-room babysitting services at hotels. Babysitters are licensed, bonded, and insured professionals.

References include every major hotel in Chicago and San Francisco, as well as several client hotels in New York. American ChildCare is a member in good standing with the convention/tourism/visitors bureaus of Chicago, San Francisco, and New York.

A service set up with out-of-town visitors in mind. American ChildCare offers short-term child care programs at conventions, and in-room babysitting services at hotels. Babysitters are licensed, bonded, and insured professionals.

References include every major hotel in Chicago and San Francisco, as well as several client hotels in New York. American ChildCare is a member in good standing with the convention/tourism/visitors bureaus of Chicago, San Francisco, and New York.

Parents seeking a sitter for a night out, a last-minute replacement, or a sitter for ongoing childcare may find the right person through BabySitters.com, a website that provides detailed babysitter profiles. Parents who sign up for the service can search for a sitter and/or post a job for a sitter.

The website also offers a "how-to" series for both parents and sitters. For parents, the series covers everything from doing a background check to how much a sitter should be paid. For sitters, the series covers topics that include certifications, training, how much to charge, how to interview, and a checklist for working with a new family.

BANANAS Inc provides parents with free child care referrals to a wide array of child care options, from an occasional babysitter to a full-time nanny, licensed family child care provider, or child care center.

BANANAS also helps parents hook up with other parents to form a nanny share or a parent co-op. And it offers free parenting workshops on an ongoing basis.

Call for practical handouts on topics that range from "How to hire an in-house child care provider" to "What children
need in child care."

The motto of Bay Area 2nd Mom is to "provide care when you can't be there." As such, it serves as a referral agency for nannies, babysitters, personal assistance, and housekeeping. Clients include single families, as well as hotel guests, and corporate employees.

What it offers is security: Every applicant is screened and offered professional training, if necessary. All pre-screened candidates are experienced, and English speaking or bi-lingual. Screening includes extensive background checks, including DMV printouts, checking references, Social Security traces, fingerprints, and two criminal background checks.

The well-developed Web site allows you to register online for whatever it is you want - be it a long-term Nanny or someone who needs only four hours notice.

The motto of Bay Area 2nd Mom is to "provide care when you can't be there." As such, it serves as a referral agency for nannies, babysitters, personal assistance, and housekeeping. Clients include single families, as well as hotel guests, and corporate employees.

What it offers is security: Every applicant is screened and offered professional training, if necessary. All pre-screened candidates are experienced, and English speaking or bi-lingual. Screening includes extensive background checks, including DMV printouts, checking references, Social Security traces, fingerprints, and two criminal background checks.

The well-developed Web site allows you to register online for whatever it is you want - be it a long-term Nanny or someone who needs only four hours notice.

The motto of Bay Area 2nd Mom is to "provide care when you can't be there." As such, it serves as a referral agency for nannies, babysitters, personal assistance, and housekeeping. Clients include single families, as well as hotel guests, and corporate employees.

What it offers is security: Every applicant is screened and offered professional training, if necessary. All pre-screened candidates are experienced, and English speaking or bi-lingual. Screening includes extensive background checks, including DMV printouts, checking references, Social Security traces, fingerprints, and two criminal background checks.

The well-developed Web site allows you to register online for whatever it is you want - be it a long-term Nanny or someone who needs only four hours notice.

Care.com is an online service that matches families with caregivers - including babysitters, nannies, pet sitters, dog walkers, tutors, and respite care for seniors.

Families can search Care.com by their zip code or metro area to find listings of caregivers who match their specific needs. Search results include enhanced caregiver profiles - with photos, video interviews, and references - which families can view before contacting a caregiver about a job. Plus, families can request free background checks on any caregiver as part of their monthly membership.

CareSquare.com connects parents and babysitters/nannies in a social network, allowing for peer-review, feedback, and real-time booking of care.

This parent-owned online directory of childcare options includes in-home providers, nannies, childcare centers, and babysitters, serving infants through school-age children. The website also offers links to helpful articles on parenting, state oversight agencies, and more.

The database is searchable by zip code, children's ages, and type of care required. Results include contact information; a description of the services offered; the staff, philosophy, licensing, and facilities of the provider; and hours of operation. Helpful icons beside search matches indicate which providers offer drop-in services and off-hours care; some listings include photos.

A very minimal amount of information can be gathered from a free search of the site - name of daycare, how many children of various ages are cared for by the provider, address, and phone number. To get additional information - hours of operation, website address, photos, etc. - parents must subscribe.

A note of caution: Listed providers are not screened, so while the site is a great starting point in a search for childcare, it's imperative that parents check out claims regarding licensing, staff, and facilities.

GoGo Menlo! provides on-call and part-time placements for babysitters, personal assistants, errand runners, party help, and drivers.

Babysitters bring "GoGo activity buckets" with age appropriate projects and games for the kids. Sitters receive safety and CPR training and they carry small first-aid kits.

LaborFair.com is an online site that is free to search for or post for qualified childcare providers or any help with household needs (housecleaning, gardening, painting). The site lists childcare and homecare providers throughout the entire Bay Area.

Mani & Nanny combines nail care for moms with drop-in child care for tots. Kids play (while supervised) in the toy-filled playroom which is easily viewed on the flat screen in the salon or through the one way window. Moms are pampered by an experienced staff of nail technicians who use earth-friendly (no formaldehyde or acrylics), people-friendly (no parabens in the lotion) products.

Tools are cleaned in a hospital-grade sterilizer and each customer has their own pedicure basin, sanitized after each use. The five-item service menu includes only manis, pedis, and nannies.

The salon also offers a selection of unique, organic, natural-fiber baby gifts, toys, and clothes.

Pacifica Mother's Club offers friendship and support for caregivers of children from birth through age five, who reside in Pacifica and neighboring communities.

Membership benefits include playgroups, educational speaker presentations, on-line discussion forums, monthly newsletter, a babysitting co-op, and an “In-a-Pinch” meal program.

Pacifica Mother's Club offers friendship and support for caregivers of children from birth through age five, who reside in Pacifica and neighboring communities.

Membership benefits include playgroups, educational speaker presentations, on-line discussion forums, monthly newsletter, a babysitting co-op, and an “In-a-Pinch” meal program.

Parents Place, a non-sectarian program of Jewish Family and Children's Services, may well be the best parenting resource in town. It offers a number of helpful services for parents mind-boggling in their breadth. Among them, parent workshops, playgroups, parent support groups, resource and referral services, counseling services, parenting advice, annual open house nights for local preschools, and groups and workshops with resources on searching for preschools and kindergartens.

Its central goal is to not only support parents, but to bring parents together. Its resource and referral system is an example of how it succeeds on the grass roots level. The "system" is nothing more than a couple of big old bulletin boards hung just outside the offices. On them you can find slips of paper listing nannies, babysitters, and housecleaners looking for work. You can also put up your own advertisement.

The service is free to nannies who wish to list (there is a $20 fee for parents to put up a listing for four weeks) and widely used; Parents Place was named "Best Place to Find a Nanny in San Francisco" by the Bay Guardian in 2001 and "Best Resource for Overwhelmed Parents" by the SF Weekly in 2003. There's no screening whatsoever of individuals who post listings. But the staff can provide guidelines on how to find the right nanny if you need help.

Classes & workshops: Offers a huge range of parenting classes, seminars, and workshops from New Mother, New Baby, to Look! I Can Cook!. Parent/child activity groups are held during the day; most classes and workshops are held in the late afternoon/early evening.

Afterschool classes: Parents Place's On The Mark mentor/tutor program matches volunteers with students ages eight to 18 who are looking for guidance and assistance with school subjects and other issues. [Contact Taylor Epstein, 415.359.2463 or email TaylorE@jfcs.org]

Services:

* Parents Place Express speakers bureau.

* Quarterly newsletter/calendar.

* Counseling services to families with children up to age 18.(Sliding scale, MediCal accepted.)

* Age-specific play activity groups for children with socialization difficulties.

* Mentor/tutor program for students ages eight to 18.

* Community service programs for teens.

* Bulletin board for parents seeking caregivers/caregivers seeking employment.

* Coaching and consultation for parents.

Place a voicemail ad for a babysitter, nanny, or tutor through their "Jobs Hotline." Interested students will call you, at which point you should interview them; students are not screened in any way by the Career Center.

Second Community Childcare Center is a licensed summer childcare program at Clarendon Elementary School. The program features daily field trips to city playgrounds and attractions - Mountain Lake Park, Yerba Buena Gardens, Zeum, Exploratorium, Zoo, Baker Beach, Presidio Bowling, movie theaters, Bay Area Discovery Museum, Children's Fairyland, etc.

Sitter Socials connects parents and babysitters in a fun setting. Parents and sitters chat and socialize, snack and shop, and "speed-meet" (think speed-dating) and parents walk away with a detailed list of babysitter contacts.

Parents and sitters negotiate the rates, hours, and job details - Sitter Socials just hosts the party.

A website for families looking for sitters and sitters looking for work, both can meet up in this virtual neighborhood cafe.

SitterCafe.com focuses on local help for parents age 13 and older. Parents pay a small fee to gain access to the information and sitters may use the site for free.

A website for families looking for sitters and sitters looking for work, both can meet up in this virtual neighborhood cafe.

SitterCafe.com focuses on local help for parents age 13 and older. Parents pay a small fee to gain access to the information and sitters may use the site for free.

Sittercity.com provides an Internet platform for parents and babysitters to meet and communicate with each other. Parents and sitters create personal profiles which are used to help identify possible matches.

Searches can be conducted by personal details, college, transportation capabilities, and other special qualifications. The site has articles, tips, and checklists for sitters and parents - as well as helpful information on responsible sitting and emergency care.

All information entered into the database is protected for privacy and security.

Sittercity.com provides an Internet platform for parents and babysitters to meet and communicate with each other. Parents and sitters create personal profiles which are used to help identify possible matches.

Searches can be conducted by personal details, college, transportation capabilities, and other special qualifications. The site has articles, tips, and checklists for sitters and parents - as well as helpful information on responsible sitting and emergency care.

All information entered into the database is protected for privacy and security.

SittersSearch is designed to help parents and families find sitters in their area. Searching the site to see if sitters are available in your area is free; to contact a prospective sitter, membership is required.

A highly reputable firm known mostly for the care with which it places nannies in homes, both live-in and live-out. It only accepts candidates who are experienced and come highly recommended, and it screens each one closely.

The firm also claims an expertise in finding baby nurses, housekeepers, personal assistants, household managers, butlers, and chefs.

It can also find temporary nannies for local families. Call 800.398.8810 to book a sitter at least 24 hours in advance of your outing. Babysitting rates run $16-$20/hour, with a four-hour minimum, and there is a fee if you cancel within 48 hours of your date.

Town & Country's thorough service does not come cheap. It charges 15% of a full year's compensation for permanent childcare and household help, and 25% for baby nurses and 35% for temporary help. But the agency is responsive and responsible, and several people we've spoken with have been pleased with its services.

A highly reputable firm known mostly for the care with which it places nannies in homes, both live-in and live-out. It only accepts candidates who are experienced and come highly recommended, and it screens each one closely.

The firm also claims an expertise in finding baby nurses, housekeepers, personal assistants, household managers, butlers, and chefs.

It can also find temporary nannies for local families. Call 800.398.8810 to book a sitter at least 24 hours in advance of your outing. Babysitting rates run $16-$20/hour, with a four-hour minimum, and there is a fee if you cancel within 48 hours of your date.

Town & Country's thorough service does not come cheap. It charges 15% of a full year's compensation for permanent childcare and household help, and 25% for baby nurses and 35% for temporary help. But the agency is responsive and responsible, and several people we've spoken with have been pleased with its services.

A highly reputable firm known mostly for the care with which it places nannies in homes, both live-in and live-out. It only accepts candidates who are experienced and come highly recommended, and it screens each one closely.

The firm also claims an expertise in finding baby nurses, housekeepers, personal assistants, household managers, butlers, and chefs.

It can also find temporary nannies for local families. Call 800.398.8810 to book a sitter at least 24 hours in advance of your outing. Babysitting rates run $16-$20/hour, with a four-hour minimum, and there is a fee if you cancel within 48 hours of your date.

Town & Country's thorough service does not come cheap. It charges 15% of a full year's compensation for permanent childcare and household help, and 25% for baby nurses and 35% for temporary help. But the agency is responsive and responsible, and several people we've spoken with have been pleased with its services.

A highly reputable firm known mostly for the care with which it places nannies in homes, both live-in and live-out. It only accepts candidates who are experienced and come highly recommended, and it screens each one closely.

The firm also claims an expertise in finding baby nurses, housekeepers, personal assistants, household managers, butlers, and chefs.

It can also find temporary nannies for local families. Call 800.398.8810 to book a sitter at least 24 hours in advance of your outing. Babysitting rates run $16-$20/hour, with a four-hour minimum, and there is a fee if you cancel within 48 hours of your date.

Town & Country's thorough service does not come cheap. It charges 15% of a full year's compensation for permanent childcare and household help, and 25% for baby nurses and 35% for temporary help. But the agency is responsive and responsible, and several people we've spoken with have been pleased with its services.

The part of the University of San Fransico's campus that has the most relevance for local families is the state-of-the-art Koret Health & Recreation Center (415.422.6821). (Non-neighborhood families can drop in, but only local families can join as members.) Facilities include a swimming pool (with certified lifeguards), racquetball courts, dance and exercise room, volleyball courts, and badminton.

The school is also a good source for finding babysitters. The Career Center (415.422.6216) will fax or mail you a current list of students interested in babysitting or in part-time nanny positions. Requests are free and generally processed within an hour or so. The students are usually in their early 20's with varying degrees of child care experience. They are not screened in any way by the Career Center. Be prepared to be flexible with class schedules and transportation.

The USF School of Nursing also maintains a bulletin board on the 1st floor of Cowell Hall (near Fulton @ Cole Street). There, you'll find slightly more mature students advertising their availability on a board called Students with Cars Looking for Work. You must go there in person to get listings or to post an ad.

The University of San Francisco offers a variety of Soccer Camps for children ranging in age from six to 18. Camps run in June and July for players of every level, as well as position-specific camps for strikers and goalkeepers. Half-day, whole-day, and overnight camps are available. Camp fees range from $175 to $600. The camps take place at Negoesco Stadium on the USF Campus in the Haight/Cole Valley/Hayes Valley area. To learn more about the camps go to www.eteamz.com or call 415.519.2520.

A summer enrichment program for Girls in Computer Science emphasizes hands-on activities, including programming robots, talks by prominent women in the field of computer science, and a field trip to a local tech company. Participants must be rising juniors or seniors (ages 16 to 18). Call 415.422.2024 for more information.

Wondersitter offers on-call babysitting services, including "Last Minute Sitter Availability" in which clients are able to book up to two hours before the time of the job.