*Warning* This blog post is not advocating that you leave your house with your television in charge of your children. Please make smart decisions and don’t leave Elmo 100% in charge of your children in your absence.

There are plenty of things to keep up with around the house that may fall of the radar when you have kids around. Dusting, cleaning out your junk drawer, feeding your pet hermit crab Mr. Jiggles, or making sure Granddad doesn’t overdose on prune juice are things that move down in the hierarchy of responsibilities after you have children. Keeping up with a kid, working around the house, and keeping up with a job at home can be more stressful than trying to reverse engineer Velcro. My two children, Beth who is 5, and George who is 3, are a raucous bunch to deal with during the day. This is going to sound absolutely horrible to most parents but (big surprise here) I’ve found that I can get a lot of work done by just turning on the TV and letting them watch. Sure, little George may come up and ask for a few things here and there, but for the most part, the kids are fine on their own. Just to clear the air for any commenter’s here, I’m not stationing my children there for 12 hours a day and feeding their lethargy, I am talking about 45 minutes twice a day so I can have some time to catch up on life.

You have heard the old adage that television will rot the brain. I disagree here as I bathe my children every night and have seen no signs of rotting. I think I have circumvented the rot because I am limiting their viewing to shows that I deem acceptable. This means no South Park or CSI, instead they watch movies and shows that are entertaining to my little ones as well as educational. There are so many TV shows out there to watch but only few that have real educational or motivational value. If any parent is looking for some tips, from my experience these are the top 3 that keep my children occupied:

1.Charlie and Lola: Both of my kids enjoy watching these two British children on TV. In each episode, Charlie and Lola will work together to resolve a problem. They teach children about problem solving and the benefit of teamwork. Either one of the pair may make mistakes, but they always end up working as a team to fix the problem.

2. Sesame Street: Cliché? Probably, but we all grew up on it and my kids love it – especially Elmo. The show has been playing forever and still comes up with new innovative ways to keep my children entertained and learning. Sesame Street teaches lessons about friendship, being healthy, and kindness, as well as all about numbers and the alphabet. Those crazy Muppets make learning fun.

3. Disney movies: This one requires some parental investment in videos but these movies last longer than an hour and never get old. Heck, I’m still watching “The Little Mermaid”. I can stand listening to the music that I’ve heard countless times before and I know the content of each movie is wholesome. Each movie has a beautiful female character to entertain Beth and a male hero to keep George role-playing for days.
With my children quietly watching television in the next room, I am able to finally get back to a little bit of work and cleaning. TV has been my ultimate babysitter during the day and it works cheap. I have yet to pay it, feed it, and it’s not inviting it’s boyfriend over to make out while my kids are asleep. If you are looking for a “break” to get other chores accomplished, I recommend the television be part of your blueprint. Remember, make sure your kids can actually learn something from their electronic babysitter so their brains don’t start to decompose.

This guest post has been provided by Nicolas D’Alleva. Nicolas is the proud father of 2 children and the owner of an answering service in Pennsylvania. When Nicolas is working from home, the television can often be seen teaching his children life lessons.

Sittercity.com, the online sitter service that links nannies, babysitters, pet sitters and other caregivers to families, has won a contract from the Department of Defense to provide military families with instant access to care provider profiles.

Care provider profiles include background checks, pictures, references, reviews, a four-step screening process and  a specialized matching technology to help select the right care provider.  Sittercity.com doesn’t employ the care providers.  It is the nation’s largest and most trusted online source that simply helps match them with families.

The one-year contract covers Active-duty Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps members and their families, as well as National Guard and reserve members and their families.

>>>>>Sittercity.com has acquired Sitters.com…read more<<<<<<

Sitters.com is one of the largest sources of up to date care providers.

They offer comprehensive care provider profiles with references, reviews, ratings, photos, videos, availability schedules, training and certifications to make search for a care provider  quick, simple and safe.

Parenting magazine rated sitters.com as one of the safest online sites for finding care providers due to its thorough selection process.  Each profile and job posting is reviewed by a member of the All Mom Team and includes a link to the bio of the Mom that completed the review.

In addition, members can check out background checks, online reviews and ratings posted by other members of Sitters.com as well as talk to references before contacting the care provides.

Features which distinguish sitters.com from their competitors:

• Focus on having the most up-to-date  care providers: people actively looking to provide care today rather than claiming to have “hundreds of thousands” of  providers

• Phone Support available 24 hours a day, including weekends and holidays

• All-Mom Editorial Team: team of moms that are dedicated to keeping the Sitters.com community safe and secure.  Every Mom on the team has at least a Bachelor’s Degree and 5 years of corporate business experience.

Best of all, it doesn’t cost anything to check out the value Sitters.com offers. You can search for care providers and also create a trial membership for free.

For paid members, Sitters.com comes with a money-back guarantee. If you post a job and don’t get at least three applicants in three days, you will get a full refund.

Care.com is an online service that matches care & service providers in the areas of child care, tutoring, pet care, personal assistant services and senior care to the people who need their help.

By joining Care.com as a paid premium member,  subscribers receive full access to the service including caregiver contact details, background checks and references.  They can also post jobs detailing their specific care needs.  All premium members have access to caregiver alert emails and  weekly member newsletter filled with expert tips and advice.

Features which distinguish care.com from their competitors:

• Care on Call: Broadcast a message to caregivers near you in seconds
• Free Background Check
• Care Club: Online shopping mall rewards program that offers discounts and Cash Back rewards to Care.com members when they shop at participating online retailers in Care.com’s Care Club
• Co-ops: group of moms or parents take turns caring for each other’s children in order to save on child care
• The Tell A Friend program: help your friends find quality caregivers while also getting rewarded

Unlike other websites, they have 2 interesting categories of sitters: special needs and care gig provider. A care gig provider will assist you with running various “gigs” from parties & events, shopping, moving services to general errands and even vacation services.

Care.com also offers money back guarantee.  If a subscriber  creates a job posting, and doesn’t hear back from one of the hundreds of thousands of caregivers listed on Care.com within three days, then the subscriber can close the account and receive a full refund of any membership fee paid.

Update: You can find current coupons, promo codes and other offers here.

Care.com is currently running a Free Year of Child Care Sweepstakes.  They’re giving away $12,445 as part of an effort to raise awareness of the high cost burden and stress families are under when it comes to caregiving.

Why $12, 445?

According to State of Care Index average  American family with young children spends $12,445 annually for child care.  That is 14 % of the average families’ household income.

Who is care.com?

Care.com is premier online  service that allows families to search for professionals who can assist with senior care, child care, special needs care, tutoring, babysitting, pet care, housekeeping, and errands.

There Must Be A Catch!

There isn’t one! All parents have to do to win the $12,445 prize is to visit care.com anytime from Sept. 14-Oct. 9 and sign up for a FREE Basic Membership or subscribe for a full Premium Membership.

If they’re already a Care.com member, they can register through their homepage.