Americans Outsource Parenting Job

[Aristiana]

** Nos voisins qui prouve encore qu'ils ont un problème... **
http://dadtalk.typepad.com/dadtalk/2...e_america.html

We apparently do not live in the age of the Do-It-Yourself Parent. Instead, many American families even outsource their parenting duties, reports The Wall Street Journal Online via Yahoo.

Here’s an example:

The burgeoning industry of services aimed at harried parents, which began with the likes of birthday-party packages at gyms and pizza shops, has expanded to the point where you can now hire someone to assist with everything from potty-training your toddler to getting your teenage daughter to agree to a passably modest prom dress. “Fussy baby” services in Chicago, Denver, Brooklyn and Oakland, Calif., help comfort shrieking babies. In the New York suburbs, an entrepreneur has built a flourishing business by taking over one of the most timeless parental rituals of all: For $60 an hour he teaches kids to ride a bike.

As someone who has looked forward to being a father all his life, all I can think is, give me a break. If you don’t want to teach your kid how to ride a bike or build his first puzzle, why on earth did you become a parent in the first place?

While I can respect getting help for dealing with a colicky child, as Sarah Cunningham did, hiring someone just to potty train your kid or teaching a little one how to draw his or her first picture with a crayon is utterly ridiculous.

On the other hand, I think I just found my new vocation. So, I’ve developed this price list:

• Changing diapers: $5 each
• Putting baby to sleep: $5 a night
• Putting toddler to sleep: $50 a night
• Teaching toddler to draw: $10 a page
• Teaching toddler to walk: $100 a week
• Potty training: $500
• Teaching child to ride bike: $600
• Being dad to my own son: priceless