I Am A Teen And Still Have A Babysitter

@Briandl The first day she babysat me my mom formally introduced us which was akward because I saw her many times at school.

Yes she did act like an adult. I was dreading that she was going to make fun of me for being so close to her age. She didn't do that at all. Surprisingly that made me feel worse in a way. Why? Well my mom said she was more mature than me. The fact thay she didn't laugh at me or even acknowledge our small age gap was proof that she was mature and had an adult not a child's mindset. As defensive as I was I knew my mom wad right this girl was mature.She was pretty aloof and didn't talk to me much...except to give me orders such as to go to bed. She was so adult like to me that after a few days I let go a lot of my resentment..the whole vibe with her was pretty much what I was used to all my life with babysitters so I stopped obsessing over her age.

@Briandl Thanks for your interest. You have lot's of good questions. Yes my mom was nice to her the first day and everyday. She was always nice to my babysitters...as long as they did their job. One night (with a different sitter) my mom came home and caught me up past my bedtime. She was very angry with the sitter, yelled at her, made her cry and never used her again.

Yes she was more friendly to my mom than me. In fact she talked more to my mom in the 10 minutes or so they visited than the few hours she was with me. My mom was the same way, she turned on her charm for the babysitter and had a fun conversation..even her tone of voice changed. When she talked to me it was more bossy, critical and condescending.

I think there were a few reasons the babysitter was quiet with me. Yes I do think she thought of my as a child, not her peer. I have mentioned before that I looked younger than my age so it was easy to be in that role. Another reason I am guessing she was quiet is that on some level she had to think it was pathetic I was getting babysat by her. She didn't make fun of me but inside she had to be judgemental...so she had a stuck up attitude towards me.

Being quiet made her seem like more of an authority. I say that because there were no blurred lines. If she made more conversation with me it might have felt more like a friend coming over to hang out. When she did talk to me it was always an order...do your homework, do this chore, it's your bedtime etc.

Yes my mom was very pleased with her. It was very important to her that my freedom was restricted. She didn't want me going out with friends like other teenagers. She wanted me to do my homework, chores and go to bed on time. This babysitter was a rule enforcer and did her job well. She was my regular sitter for nearly a year, until she went away for college.

@Briandl The first few nights were kind of akward...at least for me. I was so self conscious about our small age gap. When sbe snapped out her first orders it stung me inside. To her credit all of that akwardness went away after awhile. I actually stopped obsessing about our ages because she was so much like the babysitters I had all my life. It felt the same to me so I easily fell into the role I knew so well.

Yes my mom had a great relationship with her. What my mom needed to see from a sitter is that she takes her job seriously. A strict sitter who enforces my mom's rules would win her over to the point where they would become friends. Whenever I saw that good relationship it made it clear to me that even if the babysitter was young she was on the level with my mom...at least when she was babysitting me.

@Briandl I complained to my mom at first that this babysitter was close to my age and even went to my same school. My mom got mad and yelled "do not question who I hire to babysit you". She didn't know I overheard the conversation but that night my mom was on the telephone talking to one of her girlfriends "my kid's new babysitter is his age, maybe a little older, but she is so much more mature than him, you know my kid is so immature he's like a little boy". So my mom really believed I was an immature little kid. It didn't seem like she was trying to rub it in about our ages, she genuinely believed it all made sense. Hearing that call it was a mix of embarrassment, defensiveness and acceptance. What I mean by acceptance is my mom sounded so confident that I was immature that it made me think that maybe I was afterall.

She would often have the adult conversation at the dining room table while I was in the living room. I could hear every word. Yes she often said be good...she was used to saying it for years. It was kind of a ritual. Sometimes she would say to the sitter "if my kid gives you any trouble let me know".