Calling all Mamas!

[Denise]

Okay I need a babysitter and was wondering if anyone has used this Child care service or has heard anything about them.

http://babysmileokinawa.ti-da.net/

Also those of you who employee a Mamasan for child care. How did you go about finding them.

I appreciate any insight into the mysteries of finding daycare here in Okinawa :)

Thank you~ DB

Alittle information:
I have looked at FCCP and they won't take the babies because they are not fulltime.
I need flexable hours so the CDC doesn't work either and I prefer not to have a Teenager.
So that leaves me looking for some help... that's where your wealth of knowledge plays in :)

[Patty]

Hi. I have used Babysmile at least 4 or 5 times and have always been perfectly happy with them. Maho, the owner, is a wonderful person, as is Yayoi, one of the sitters. Those are the only 2 that I have personal knowledge of and I truly loved them. They were great with my kids, followed my directions of what the boys could and could not have, and were excellent about letting me know what happened while I was gone. I give them an EXCELLENT recommendation, and I'm rather picky about hiring a sitter. Best of luck!

[Denise]

Patty,

Thank you for replying back.
Much appreciated DB

[Rayven]

Our first sitter from babysmile will be here on Sunday. I really liked talking to the lady (Maho) who runs it, she is very sweet. She does an interview with you and then you email her when you need childcare (usually about a week in advance). Then she will email you back and tell you if there is someone who can come over. They ladies are moms themselves (all Japanese). She said most speak a little English but there are a few who don't speak any English. But you are asked if that will be a problem for you and if it is then she will only send you sitters who can speak some English. Maho took down my boys bedtimes (since we are using the service for date nights), as well as their routine and any other things that the ladies would need to know. The price is very reasonable too. I will pay the same amount for my boys to get one-on-one care in our home as I would if they were getting hourly care from the CDC. I'll let you know how it goes on Sunday, but I have a feeling it's going to go great. Oh they also ask that you get care for a min. of 3hrs. Hope this helps.

[Denise]

Thank you Raven,
I appreciate you sharing your experience with us after your Sunday date.
Have a great time on Sunday.
Take care~ Denise

[Rayven]

Ok so here is the run down of last night. Maho babysat for us. I meet her ten mintues before the time the hubby and I were planning to leave. She has a day pass, but this was a evening date so I had to sign her on. I parked in the USO parking lot and walked over to the visitor center (word of caution just go ahead and go off base and park in the visitor center parking lot). After she got her pass she went to go through the gate while I went back to the car, then I get a call that I have to go through the gate before they will let her continue (I don't if that is just overseas bases, Maho said it really just depends on who is at the gate (she said the Japanese guy there is strict, usually she has no problems)). Aside from that little hang up everything went very well. She followed me back to my house, I took her upstairs so the boys would know who was there with them. The hubby and I left had a great time. When we got back she filled me on, she let me know that my youngest had woken up and she gently rocked him back to sleep (a benefit of having other mommies watching your kids!). She let me know she had turned down the a/c (I was kind of shocked that such a small detail, I would have figured it out and I definatly didn't mind). I paid her (I forgot about the 5 dollar fee, but I had five dollars on me so it was ok). It was a great experience, I was really happy about the way she handled my son (he has night terrors and sometimes has a hard time getting to sleep as well, it can be rather stressful in the late evening). But she was very sweet and gentle and he actually sleep the whole rest of the night! I highly recommend babysmile to anyone who doesn't want to take their child to someone else's house or have a teen watch their children.

[Marissa Halligan]

I would love to consider using babysmile, but have not had any luck getting someone to contact me back. I emailed and called, and cannot get anything back from them. Can anyone provide alternate contact info or how to get in touch with someone at this service?

[Rayven]

This is the email address I use to contact them: [e-mail]

[Leslie Prather]

Hey Marissa...I have tried emailing babysmile too. Not luck. Have you heard anything back?

[Marissa Halligan]

Nope. We had the initial appointment where they came in, met me and my husband, and now I cannot get a response about availability. Glad I'm not the only one having issues. Maybe the woman who runs the business is busy???? At least that's what I'm telling myself. =)

[Veronica Nissel]

I emailed her once about reserving a date, gave it two days, then emailed again. I got a response pretty quickly the second time. They were booked for the date I asked about, but later found out it was a big festival weekend (tug of war weekend).

[Proud Mommie]

Denise are you still looking for childcare?

[Denneny Cochran]

Hi, I've been on the island since March and I have a 1 year old. I also would prefer someone a little older than a teen. My husband will be gone for about a month and I wanted to get someone before then just so he can meet them. Does anyone have any suggestions? I appreciate any help you can give me!