Miriam Steinberg’s children are all grown, yet there are still Pack ’n Plays in every room of her house. From Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., she babysits full-time — for her grandchildren. “One year, I watched nine grandkids. This past year, there were only six,” says Miriam, who lives in Lakewood near ten of her married children.

Before she became a bubby, Miriam worked at a travel agency. But after her first few grandchildren were born, she decided to quit. “I was feeling very badly because my daughters-in-law all had to work, and I figured I’d be saving them, collectively, a lot more money than I was going to make working.”

Miriam watches her grandkids starting from the newborn stage up until they’re ready to go nursery. “It would be nice if they all napped,” she says with a laugh. “Sometimes I get things done during my ‘working hours,’ sometimes I don’t, depending on who I have to hold and who is fighting with who. But it’s so cute to watch the cousins interact and play together. Of course they get into a little trouble, but they have a really good time.”

Just when the house is finally empty of children, some grandmothers are happily signing up to help raise the next generation, dealing with diaper changes and nap schedules and temper tantrums all over again. They’re not just “bubbysitting” here and there — they’re making their homes toddler-safe zones and welcoming the noise and mess back into their lives. And they don’t stop helping when their grandkids head to school — they take over carpool duty, turning their cars into Bubby taxi services.

What propels them to go beyond the call of duty, and how do they manage it all?

 Musical Cribs A former daycare provider who holds a degree in early childhood education, Frayda cheerfully babysits for the children of three of her daughters who live locally. “When I started watching my first grandchild, a friend warned me, ‘Be careful — if you do it for one, you’ll have to do it for everyone.’ At that point, I didn’t know who my daughters were going to marry and if they’d all remain in town — but they did.”

For one daughter, who works as a full-time office manager, Frayda babysits Monday through Friday — starting at 8:45 a.m. and going until anywhere between 1 p.m. to 6 p.m., depending on the day. For another daughter who has a more flexible work schedule, Frayda babysits fewer hours. She shares the babysitting for her third daughter’s children with the other local bubby.

“We rotate homes — two of the babies like the cribs in my daughter’s house,” Frayda says. “I’ll start off watching them in my house and transfer to another house. I’m very flexible. The kids come in very fresh that way, since there’s a constant change of scenery. My max is usually two small babies, and I usually watch four to five children at a time. Right now, I watch three three-year-olds and three one-year-olds. I’ve ‘graduated’ many grandchildren. I started with the oldest when he was a newborn and he’s now ten years old. They’re with me until they go to playgroup at the age of four going on five.”

Every year, Miriam Katz has to rearrange her “bubbysitting” calendar. The number of grandchildren she watches in her Silver Spring, Maryland, home is ever-evolving, depending upon how many children are born that year. She typically babysits Monday through Wednesday, for an average of eight hours a day. Other grandparents are involved, too, so childcare time is split.

She watches three kids at a time, at the max, until they’re four years old and “graduate” bubby school to go to nursery. “I love it because I get to be a total part of my grandchildren’s lives,” says Miriam.

(Excerpted from Family First, Issue 633)