My search for a summer job, over?

As I've previously stated, during the school year, I work for my dorm cafeteria. Which means, every summer when I go home, I have to find a new job.

Last summer, I started off my vacation with an ear surgery. After three weeks of recovery, I applied for two jobs through my city, a playground coordinator and a banquet server at the golf course my city owns. I got both of them. The playground coordinator's hours were too strict, the pay was low, the playground they wanted me to work at was in a not-so-nice part of the city, and I wouldn't have any company besides mounds of little kids. The banquet server at the golf course job seemed nice, the hours were varied, I would get tips, I'd work with adults, I'd have a varied work environment (different kinds of showers, the regular restaurant, weddings, and so forth) etc. In all reality, I was a banquet server/waitress/bartender (with no experience!), my hours were terrible, and the customers and people I worked with were practically squabbling little kids. However, I made amazing money there. I really don't want to go back this coming summer though.

My mother works with a young lady who will be having a baby in March. We shall call the woman Lisa. Lisa hears about me all the time because I'm the most responsible and well-behaved of all my mom's kids. Lisa will theoretically be on maternity leave March through the beginning of May when I get out of school. Lisa doesn't want to put her baby in day care when it's only three months old, so she inquired as to whether I would think about watching her baby 32 - 40 hours a week for approximately $8/hr, as well as doing a few other tasks for her.

There would be some pluses and minuses for this job.

The pluses - I wouldn't have to worry about taking days off. Lisa said as long as I was well-versed in putting the car seat in and putting the baby in the car seat, then I could take her wherever I wanted to. It wouldn't even matter if it was an appointment or if I just got bored and went to Target. Days off or conflicts were always a big deal at the golf course. Lisa wants her baby to be exposed to other languages and cultures, so I can play my Italian tapes and podcasts while at her house, to help keep the language fresh in my mind until the school year. I would also have time to sit around while the baby was napping, and I wouldn't even have to change out of my pajamas if I didn't want to. I'd save money on lunch because I could eat whatever I wanted in Lisa's fridge, and I could potentially (though god forbid I have to) make use of my baby/child CPR knowledge. The job is close to home, and since Lisa works with my mother, I don't have to worry about them being "creepsters."

The downside? I wouldn't make as much money as I did at the golf course. Tiny babies aren't my favorites things in the world, but I like them enough that this wouldn't be a terrible job. There are also 5 dogs and 3 cats, which would be a little extra work.


I can tell the pluses outweigh the minuses, so I really hope that Lisa decides to go with the idea of using me! I don't mind being a slave to a baby for the summer. This would be a fantastic opportunity, and would eliminate the stress of the summer job search for me.