Yesu, you sound like a very good parent and you deserve a good vacation. You'll make the right choice from all the thought and time you're spending on it. Don't feel guilty about needing some time for yourself and your spouse. And don't take some of the off-the-wall postings to heart.
I have two kids (now teens), but I was a total nutcase about leaving them with sitters both at home and away, so I completely understand your anxiety about it.
In fact, once we were in a very small and nice boutique hotel in S.F. when our first-born was just about 4 mos. old. We had to have a sitter one evening to attend my sister's wedding rehearsal dinner. It made me extremely nervous.
My sister, who had no kids at the time, recommended a lady she knew from her health club who offered to sit. So we accepted, but I was till queasy about it, mainly because our baby was so young.
I'm so over-protective that I stopped at the desk on our way out, described our sitter, and told the desk clerk where to reach us in case he saw her leaving the hotel with our daughter! (Like that was going to work.)
Yes, I'm a paranoid nutcase about my kids, but most parents will understand. That night turned out completely fine.
The only other options we tried infrequently while vacationing were daytime kids' clubs at hotels, or group settings where you know people are coming and going and several sitters are there. Otherwise, we took our kids on all our adventures. Now that they're grown and more on their own, we're glad we did spend so much time with them. (Hopefully, they agree!)

Loki, did you read my posts at all? For what reason do you feel sorry for my kids? Because I am planning for a nanny to help me while on vacation? Did you bother to read that I would be present with the nanny- that she would be there in a public area, not sequestered in a hotel until all hours of the night. Boy for someone who has never even had kids you sure are an expert! What did they do to you when you were growing up that has made you this bitter and judgemental? I feel sorry for your kids if you do decide to have any... but then that would gert in the way of you dog, wouldn't it? I just got over being offended with you because I realized you are just ignorant-that's all. BTW, you did make an assumption about me- you said my marriage was fragile. Wrong again. I said nothing even remotely close to that. Marriage is awesome. DH is great and wants to treat me to a bit of R&R before our next child is born. I think you need to get a life!

yesu, don't worry for a nanosecond about Loki's opinion of you. Keep something in mind when you read the responses to your post or any post in the future:

You can't possibly imagine the face, the surroundings, the background, the problems, the struggles of each person who might be sitting at a keyboard and reading Fodors posts. Next time you are on a city street in a distant place from your own home, look around you and notice the huge variety of people whose outlook and experience doesn't come close to yours. That one over there may be muttering to himself; someone on the next corner may be obsessing about which thong to wear on her next cruise; someone you just passed may be an elderly person going home to an empty, guiet apartment. Any of them could be posting on this board if they have a computer and a little travel experience.

Go back and pay attention to the percentage of space on this thread devoted to supporting you and suggesting Loki is loco or at least completely out of his depth on this one. Loki's "column inches" are way outnumbered by those posts. Most people here are reasonable and helpful "friendly strangers." So let those who strike you as weird or offbase just float on by you -- they probably don't represent anyone other than their own, sometimes spiteful and judgmental selves.

Lousy grammar but you get the point.... get the gold here and leave the vinegar to itself.

So just chill, ignore, and proceed with your excellent plan.

Thanks, cfc, great advice. Maybe it's those pregnancy hormones that are making me so touchy...

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to post about my experience while on Maui for any other curious mommies. We booked a nanny through the Nanny Connection and were planning to have her only during the day as a mommie's helper. She turned out to be wonderful. She was very professional, and extremely safety concious. For example, she knew to cut up the grapes and hot dogs into little tiny pieces for my toddlers (to prevent choking) and also she would not allow my 3 yr old to swim for 15-20 minutes after eating, even though she was right next to her the whole time. She was very fun for my two little ones, they loved her. My 3 yr old awoke the next morning and the first words she said were "Where is Miss Lindsay?" After 3 days, we decided to take a chance and go to dinner alone at Spago. We were only gone 1 1/2 hrs, and when we returned, the kids were still awake, playing and coloring, and very happy. By the fourth day, we loved her so much we wanted to bring her home with us. For us, it was a much better value than bringing a sitter from home, and we were very impressed with our nanny (even DH, who is a die hard skeptic liked her alot.) Overall, I watched and listened very closely, followed my instincts, and I would say it was a very good experience. Good luck everyone!

yesu39470, I am soooo sorry I didn't see your post in advance of your trip. I would have told you that I have twice used the very service that you did, with satisfactory results each time. The only remotely negative occurrence was that the second babysitter, an older women, permitted my son to watch a t.v. show that I would not have. That is my fault, however, for not having specifically stated my desires in that regard. Even so, he is now 13 and non the worse for wear!

My husband and I are also professionals and I know that vacation time is so precious. I'm glad you had both family time and alone time.

Good luck with number 3!!

yesu, thanks so much for coming back and posting! So glad everything worked out well for you!

Thanks for posting outcome. You sound like you had a great time. Wonderful!

My oldest son just had a similar experience with three children under 9 during his Caribbean vacation. They also used a trusted and examined service. Things went splendidly there as well. Like yourself, they didn't spend more than a couple hours at a time (dinner etc./snorkeling once)-but children had a wonderful time with the nanny also.

This is a bit old, but topping for snowrooster.

topping