Many parents prefer to choose a baby-sitter or nanny to care for their child if he or she is under age 3. This option can be the most convenient, because the caregiver comes to your home. Your child will also be in a familiar environment and will avoid exposure to colds and other infections from other children. Hiring a nanny is one of the most expensive child-care arrangements, but the biggest difficulty is finding a reliable, well-qualified person. Because in-home care is not regulated in any way, you are the sole judge of a caregiver's character, knowledge, and skill.

Start your search at least 2 to 3 months before you go back to work so you have enough time to make a thoughtful decision. Ask friends and neighbors for recommendations. Before hiring or accepting an offer to baby-sit from relatives or friends, be sure they are qualified to care for your child and that you would feel comfortable giving those instructions or disagreeing with them on child-care issues that are important to you. Avoid hiring someone who is looking for something to do until a better offer comes along. To find candidates, check with a local agency that provides training and placement for in-home providers. Ask your doctor for names.

You can even ask her about her experience with a hidden nanny cam, her position about its presence, and how she dealt with it. This way, you will know if you will have problems in this area. You have to look for a nanny who exhibits maturity and a diversity of interests, not a child lurking within a woman's body. Since even the most high-tech hidden nanny cam can follow her on her outside activities. You also need to raise the matter of functions, duties and responsibilities you expect the applicant to fulfill if and when she is hired as your nanny.

You can give the prospective nanny the opportunity to back out of the hiring process without negative implications should she express hesitance with their presence. After the two personal interviews, you also need to conduct a working interview. You can observe how she interacts with the children (under your supervision) as well as study how the children take to her. Only after being satisfied with the above procedures should you consider hiring the nanny. Before actually employing the nanny, be sure to formulate a detailed work agreement signed by you and the nanny.

Listen to your gut feeling, even if you are under the gun because you need help immediately. Ask whether or not they're available the hours you need them, their salary needs, how long they can commit to the job, what interests them about child care, what kind of work they have done in the past, and when they can start. Invite the best candidates to your home for an interview. Some parents develop a job application form to make the hiring process more formal and professional. Once you have a candidate in mind, contact at least three former employers and three personal references. Ask former employers about the candidate's responsibilities, his or her strengths and weaknesses and the ages of the children that they have worked with.