Baby Sitting World

When you think of babysitting, whether you are the babysitter or the parent, do you consider whether or not the children will be outside while they are in your care or the care of the sitter? 

In many parts of the country and in many parts of the world for that matter, the weather can change often from hour to hour.  A bright sunny day can change quickly to a stormy afternoon complete with thunder and lightning.  A snowstorm can break way to a clear blue sunny sky.  Warm summer air can drop numerous degrees in a matter of minutes with a sudden gust of wind from an approaching cold front. 

“What does this have to do with babysitting?”

When you are babysitting, YOU are in charge of taking care of the children.  Protecting them from sun, cold, rain etc. is your job.  Parents are busy people.  They have thousands of things to remember between working and/or taking care of the house, and caring for their kids with their often overloaded schedules and just plain daily maintenance!  If Mrs. Jones has left for work for the day and forgot to leave the sunscreen out, that doesn’t mean she doesn’t want you to put sunscreen on the children before taking them outside.  However, you do need to discuss this with parents and get their permission.

Some parents may not want you applying sunscreen to their children.  Perhaps one of them is allergic to sunscreen.  Maybe the mother prefers to do it herself so she’s sure you haven’t missed a spot.  Whatever the reason may be is not important.  Making sure you follow the parents request is!  Keep in mind though, that you also need to think wisely.  For instance, if a parent says she doesn’t want you to use sunscreen on  her children, then taking them to the playground between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. on a hot summer day is not a good idea.

Lots of children love the outdoors.  They love to play in the dirt with rocks and sticks, they like to dig in the sand, and they love to explore nature.  But, many of them prefer not to wear a jacket regardless of the temperature.  This is another instance where the sitter is required to use her best judgement.  Just because a child says they aren’t cold, doesn’t mean they should be allowed to run around without a jacket on a cold day.  If there are puddles outside or the ground is wet and muddy, the kids need to wear boots.  If their hands and fingers are red after being outside just a short time, they need mittens or gloves.  If it is raining or snowing, they need hats or hoods.

Adhering to parent’s requests and using your best judgement as well, will help to keep the children you are caring for safe and healthy.

As an added measure, keep a bottle of hypoallergenic sunscreen, a pair of kids mittens, and a small travel size umbrella in your babysitting kit!  Always try to be prepared for anything!

Lisa McLellan, Child Care Expert

Ahhh, Valentines Day!  A day especially for celebrating love, whether you are dating, engaged, in another type of relationship, or married!  Many couples use February 14thas a day to celebrate and express their love for each other in some way out of the ordinary.  Some couples will wed on this most wonderful day, while others will simply celebrate with candy, flowers, gifts, or a night out to some place special.   If they choose to go out and either one or both of them have children, they will all share something in common – they will need a babysitter!

If you happen to be a babysitter, be aware that New Years Eve and Valentines Day are two days when you may increase your hourly rates.  These are days when your services will be in high demand and charging time and a half is not out of the ordinary.  If you are a parent or guardian, you should start looking for a sitter at least a month in advance to be sure you get the sitter you want.

If you don’t go out very often or usually have family or friends who care for your children in your absence, then you may not even know where to look for a babysitter if you are now in need of one. The best local sitters are at Sittercity.com.  Sittercity has thousands of sitters available all over the country.  Just click the link and fill in your zip code to view the babysitters available right in your area.  Also, Sittercity is offering a special promotion to take 15% off with promo code “SAVE15″ now through Valentines Day!  You can try the newspaper classifieds, but why wait?  Click on the link, enter your zip code, and you can view potential sitters from the comfort of your own home.

Babysitting services like Sittercity, provide you with information like age, level of experience, rates, and often a photo,  background check, and/or comments from other parents who have used their services.  Find your next sitter now!  And Happy Valentines Day!

With Christmas day right around the corner, it got me thinking about one little reminder for babysitters.  Children stop believing in Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, etc. at different ages.  It is never up to the babysitter to tell a child they’re caring for that any or all of those wonderful magical beings don’t exist.   Whether or not it is or was part of the sitter’s own belief system at one time, it is not her duty to divulge the truth even if the child asks her about it. 

Religion plays a huge part in the lives of some people and little or no part in the lives of others.  With the parents permission, it is ok for a babysitter to teach the children she’s caring for about her religion or culture if it differs from theirs.  But, teaching children that their religion or culture is wrong, evil, or inferior is never acceptable. 

The babysitter’s job is to take care of the children, keeping them safe while their parents are out.   If the sitter encounters an issue where a child she is caring for asks a question that she isn’t sure she should answer, the babysitter should either give a neutral answer, avoid actually answering the question directly, or tell the child she needs to think about it and will answer her the next time she babysits.  Then she should discuss it with the parents when they return home and ask them how they would like her to handle it.

Lisa McLellan, Child Care Expert

So many babysitters love and hate bedtime when they are caring for children.  They love it because then the bulk of the work is done and they can relax the rest of the night.  But, they also hate it because most children refuse to go quietly.  They throw fits, beg & plead, try to strike bargains, and sometimes just  flat out refuse to go to bed.

Sitters can greatly improve their chances of having the children go off to bed without much of a fuss by trying these simple ideas.

• Clarify with parents what “bedtime is 8:00″ actually means.  Do they mean you should start the bedtime routine at 8:00 or do they want their children’s heads on their pillows at 8:00?
• Start bedtime routines early.  Find blankies or other security items soon after you arrive and leave them in the child’s bed so that there isn’t an hour of “search and rescue” at bedtime.
• Avoid playing games or engaging in activities right before bed that gets the children’s adrenaline pumping.  Stick to activities like doing puzzles, reading books, or drawing pictures right before bed.
• Remember that going to bed is not an option.  But, what they do before they go to sleep can be.  If the parents want their children’s heads on their pillows at 8:00, they get them into their beds by 7:45 and let them choose what they want to do until 8:00.  Give them the options like read or look at books, play with a doll or stuffed animal, or even listen to music or recorded stories.  Some parents allow handheld games in bed as well.  But you should try to avoid this option because children often have trouble stopping the game when told to do so.  There may be another whole set of objections.  For instance, “I’m right in the middle of a game,” or I need to complete this level,” or “If I stop it now I can’t save my game and I’ll have to start all over again tomorrow.”

Remember that bedtime is not an option, and giving in to pleading to stay up later will just reinforce the behavior of begging to stay up every time you babysit that same child.  Sticking to bedtime routines and times will make getting children off to bed easier and almost effortless each time you babysit.

Some holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving are generally “family holidays” where the children go wherever the parents go, so a babysitter is rarely needed.  But, other holidays like New Years Eve and Valentines Day put sitters in high demand.  If you are a babysitter and you frequently babysit for more than one family, then plan your babysitting on holidays in advance.   You can and should  get paid a higher rate on New Years Eve and Valentines Day especially.

If you are a sitter on the younger side and don’t have a boyfriend or significant other yet, then you may not be concerned about babysitting on these two holidays in particular.  But, you should still be able to charge holiday rates even though you aren’t giving up a night out.  The holiday rate is up to you.  But if it is too high, nobody will hire you. 

You could probably charge anywhere from a couple of dollars more per hour to double your regular rate of pay depending on where you live.  A babysitter in New York City will more than likely be able to get several times her regular pay on New Years Eve, while a sitter who lives in a small quiet town far from any major city might only receive a couple of dollars extra per hour.

In an earlier post, I mentioned that having an email connection with the parents you babysit for is important.  This is one reason that it may be helpful to have email addresses.  A couple of months before a holiday, you could send out an email to all the people who you generally babysit for, telling them about your holiday rates.  This will also prompt parents to call and book you early so you can plan your schedule.

Another idea is to make up a flier ahead of time to give to new clients.  When parents meet with you for an interview or even if they didn’t interview you and just have you come to babysit, it would be helpful if you had a flier to give them.  It could include your regular and holiday rates, your availability, your experience, and any other pertinent information.  This may be a big help for you if you are uncomfortable discussing how much you would like to get paid. 

If you are an excellent sitter, be sure you get paid what you’re worth.  Check out what other babysitters in your area get paid when figuring out your rates, by checking out an online babysitting rate calculator, checking the ads in the classifieds, or by just asking friends or people you know that babysit or hire babysitters for their own kids.  Remember that rates can vary greatly from town to town.

Lisa McLellan, Child Care Expert

Many children have a security blanket or comfort item – something they sleep with or carry around.  For most, it is a blanket, for many it is a stuffed animal, but there are countless other items that children treasure. 

It may be difficult for a babysitter to understand the importance of a comfort item.  Perhaps she never had one as a child, or maybe she doesn’t remember the importance of it and how it made her feel.  Parents usually understand completely and return it to the child’s bed every time they find it lying around the house so that it is sure to be where they need it at bedtime.

If a child you babysit for has a comfort item that he takes to bed every night and the parents have forgotten to locate it for you before they left, you should make it the first order of business.  Take the time early in the evening to perform a “search and rescue mission” for the blankie or whatever it is.  Don’t wait until it is bedtime when the child is tired and cranky and you might be a little tired and cranky yourself.  This will make bedtime go much more smoothly. 

Avoid saying things like, “It’s just a blanket.  Go to sleep; you can find it in the morning!”  Yes, to all of us, it is JUST a blanket, but to the child who holds it dear to his heart, it is essential.

The same holds true for pacifiers.  If you are babysitting a baby who needs his pacifier to fall asleep, make sure you locate it as soon as you arrive or you may wish you didn’t have ears if you can’t find it at bedtime!

Weaning children off of comfort items is up to the parents.  I know people who took their blankies to college with them!  Though you are acting in the parents place when you are babysitting, you shouldn’t ever change household rules or take it upon yourself to try to wean a child off of a pacifier, bottle, comfort item, etc. unless the parents ask you to.  Sometimes, the parents need the comfort item more than the child!

Lisa McLellan, Child Care Expert

I was checking out a couple of online babysitting services the other day and I noticed something that I thought was interesting.  First of all, most babysitters posted a picture of themselves (this is a really good idea) but some only posted a profile.  Even though everybody knows that “you can’t judge a book by its cover” people still want to see a face when searching for a child care provider.  Personally, I would look at all the sitters with photos first and would only look at the profiles without photos if I couldn’t find the type of sitter I was looking for in the group with photos.

Next, if you do plan on posting a photo with your profile on an online babysitting service’s website, please post an appropriate photo.  Many of the photos I saw were great.  They were photos of the babysitter smiling and usually holding a child.  Those photos to me said, “Hi, I babysit and I love it!”  This is the message you want to send. 

 Then I came across a photo with two girls in it.  The first problem was that you couldn’t tell from the photo which one was the babysitter described in the profile.  The second problem was that the girls in the picture were making faces trying to look cool, sexy, or whatever, and holding up their fingers giving the peace sign.  The photo appeared to have been from someone’s profile on a social networking site.  Attention Babysitters – this is NOT the type of photo you want to post on a babysitting services website.

While I was on these sites, I checked out the “Pet Sitter” sections.  I found it strange that there appeared to be a large number of teenage looking mothers on these sites wanting to find work as pet sitters.  I thought to myself, “why are these young girls posting photos of themselves with their babies on their profiles?  Could it be that they are trying to show that they have a child so if they are capable of caring for a child then they can certainly take care of your pet?  Could it be that they hope people will hire them figuring they really need the money because they have a baby to support?”   

It wasn’t until several hours later when I was still running it through my head that I figured it out.  These girls were babysitters and just used the same photo on their pet sitting profile as they did on their babysitting profile.  Attention Babysitters:  don’t do this!  If the site allows you to upload a different photo with each profile whether it is for babysitting, pet sitting, tutoring, or elder care, take advantage and use different photos.  If it is a tutoring profile you’ve posted, you might want to post either just a picture of yourself or a picture of you tutoring a school-aged child.  For pet sitting, again you can post a picture of just yourself, or a picture of you holding a puppy, having a dog give you his paw, you with a bird sitting on your shoulder, etc.   You get the idea!

If you don’t have the time to upload several different pictures, one for each profile, then use one photo for all of them but it should be a photo of  just you, preferably a head shot, smiling, and in focus.  Take a good look at your picture before you post it and be sure it is sending the message you meant to send!

Wishing you the best of luck!

Lisa McLellan, Child Care Expert

When girls become old enough to babysit and would like to get started, they often don’t know where to look for a babysitting job.  Many hang up fliers around their neighborhood.  Here are a couple of other ideas.

1. Check with your local library.  Most of them have a bulletin board often located near the children’s room where you would be allowed to hang a flyer.
2. Contact churches and other houses of worship in your area to see if they have a bulletin board or if they have a weekly bulletin or newsletter that you could advertise in.
3. Drop by dance schools, gymnastics centers, ice skating rinks, martial arts schools, and any other schools or centers where children may take lessons.  Ask if they have a bulletin board where you can hang a flyer.
4. Try calling daycare centers and preschools.  Although they care for children during the day, most don’t offer babysitting services for nights and weekends.
5. Check grocery stores and local fitness centers.  Though parents aren’t here to pick up and drop off children, they still frequent these places.  You’re sure to find plenty of parents at these places in need of a babysitter.
6. Of course you can always put an ad in your newspaper’s classified section.
7. What about online babysitting services?  Some require you to be 18, but some accept sitters as young as 13.
8. If you’re posting fliers around your neighborhood, don’t forget the playground!

Once you do get a few babysitting jobs, do your best and act responsibly.  If the people ask you to babysit again then it’s probably safe to assume that you did a good job and they liked you.  You should ask these parents if they would write you a letter of recommendation.  Some parents that interview you for a babysitting job will want references.  If you can give them a copy of some letters of recommendation or keep them in a notebook to show them, it will greatly improve your chances of being hired.

Remember babysitters, always be responsible, reliable, and trustworthy.  And don’t forget – Safety First!

Lisa McLellan, Child Care Expert

So maybe it’s a rainy day and you’ve run out of things to do with your kids or the kids you are babysitting.  Well, you have books don’t you?  Sure you can read them a few stories, but what else can you do with books?

• You read and let the children act out the story.  Let them get dressed in costumes and find props.  It will be the children’s theatre production of the century!
• Let the children read to you.
• You read and let the children draw what they see in their head while you read the story. 
• They can each make several pictures while you read the story, then you can staple them all together and make your own book.
• If the children are old enough to read, everybody takes turns reading a page each.
• Let the children read, and you act out the story. They always love this, especially if you are dramatic!
• If they can’t read yet but can recognize letters, ask them to see how many words they can find on a page that start with a particular letter.
• If the children are too young to recognize letters, ask them to find shapes or colors in the pictures.
• Babysitters: bring along a book the children haven’t seen or heard before.  If they are too young to read, have them look at the pictures and make up the story from what they see in the pictures.  (You might want to have a video camera or recorder set up for this.)
• If you can find some books the children have not read before, try reading it almost to the end then have each child make up an ending or guess what the real ending will be.
• If all else fails – stack the books like blocks and build a castle!

If you have any more ideas for what to do with books – please feel free to share them!

Lisa McLellan, Child Care Expert

There are many obvious safety tips for babysitters such as: if you answer the phone don’t ever tell the caller you are alone, and lock all the doors and windows after the parents leave.  But there may be a few that you may not think of right away.

• If you cook on the stove, use the back burners if possible so that hot pans cannot be pulled off by a child or knocked over onto the child. 
• Put out a pan fire by smothering it using a pot lid – not water.
• Do not allow children to stand on chairs or climb on counters even if the parents say it is ok.  Accidents happen because we didn’t know they were going to happen.  Some people make the mistake of thinking things like “since Johnny climbs up the stool and stands on top of it every morning and hasn’t fallen yet, then he won’t fall.
• Never allow children to jump on the furniture.  Most beds and sofas have other furniture nearby like nightstands or coffee tables.  If a child is jumping on the furniture and falls off he could be seriously injured if he hit his head on a table or even on the floor.
• If it is daytime and you are playing out back with the children, make sure that the front door is locked.
• Keep music, televisions, or computer games turned down low so you can hear what is going on in other rooms.

I know a girl who was babysitting three kids one day.  The two boys ages 6 and 8 wanted to play ball in the garage which was allowed by the parents.  The babysitter told them it was alright and she was going to put the little girl to bed while they were playing.  She brought the little girl up to her room and after getting her changed and ready for bed she was reading her a story.  She had to keep the little girls door shut as requested by the parents due to the air conditioning.  Also, the little girl had a “white noise” machine in her room which was on somewhat loud but that was how the child preferred it. 

Meanwhile, the boys had locked themselves out of the house accidentally, but the sitter couldn’t hear them knocking because the house was so huge, the little girls bedroom door was shut, and the noise machine was so loud.  The boys then left the garage, went outside in the dark and were knocking on the door and ringing the bell – still she didn’t hear them.  They went next door to a neighbors house and the neighbor tried calling on the phone – nothing.  Finally, she finished reading to the little girl and getting her into bed.  Just as she was coming down the stairs there was a knock at the front door and it was the neighbor with the two boys. 

Luckily, it all turned out well.  But so many things could have happened that it is scary to think about.  When you are babysitting – it’s safety first.

Lisa McLellan, Child Care Expert