Maybe I should call it “my horror stories in babysitting” but for the ten years that I babysat, I have run into many mishaps but there was one particular disaster tale that I could not have predicted. For the first few years, everything was ok. I mean, I experienced the typical tantrums and hissy fits–nothing a little talk and time-out couldn’t fix. Then my adventures in babysitting turned ugly.

Somewhere in my career I found myself living in Italy and employed by a pasta empire magnate. They had a five year old daughter who need babysitter help on those many nights that they had to be at galas and events. She played an innocent angel when her parents were around but she was, in short, a demon child. 

On the first day, she disobeyed everything I told her. At one point, I had to plead for her to eat and instead she took the plate of spaghetti, slowly walked around to where I was and dropped it all over my lap. It was deliberate and vindictive. For the next couple of months, every time I would try to tell her parents, they wouldn’t listen or believe me. Because they were still paying me an outrageous sum, I figured that I would stay for a little bit more.

Finally, my foreign adventures in babysitting came to an abrupt stop when the girl’s grandmother came to visit. All three of us were in the car with the limousine driver when the girl started to hit me and call me names. Then she said very matter-of-factly that I should have never been born and that she would prefer for me to die. All that pent up frustration somehow manifested itself in my hand as I felt it–almost involuntarily slapping her hard across the face. Her grandmother saw what I did and as her granddaughter was making ungodly noises in the back seat, she made the driver stop immediately. She literally kicked me out onto the street.

Five days later, the girl’s parents slapped a lawsuit against me. Luckily, I won and was rewarded enough money to backpack around Europe for a year. I guess my adventures in babysitting weren’t so bad afterall.  A slight increase in my babysitting wages.

As a veteran babysitter, I have had several jobs in the business. I have been told that I am very effective at doing what I do and I have heard from some that I should even start a business training other babysitters. Although I have yet to do that, I will include in this blog several tips and pointers on being a  successful babysitter and ultimately, how to get recommendations.

-Be respectful — This is the most important tip to any kind of relationship. No matter how tough the child is, you cannot bend your morals. You can be firm when you need to but never be mean or abusive in any way. You are the older one and it is your responsibility to set a good example.

-Be prepared–I like to bring with me a bag of “goodies” which include little games and treats for when the child I’m caring for is being good. Also bring with you a first aid kit in case they don’t have one in the house and the child gets hurt.

-Be on time–Babysitting is just like any job where you have to arrive in a timely manner. Being there when you’re scheduled to reminds the parents that you are a responsible figure and that you care about doing a good job. Conversely, if you arrive late, they won’t have the confidence in you as a babysitter and may even refuse to hire you again. 

-Follow the rules–Ok, so it may be an indoctrinated natural tendency to go against what parents say but when they are not your own and actually your employers, it may be prudent to do what they say. When the parents of the child you’re looking after wants them to get to bed at a certain time, try to stay faithful to that limit. Guidelines will change depending on the parent because they all have their own concerns and priorities.

If you adhere to most of these babysitting tips then you will no doubt get a positive recommendation from your employers. If you have done everything that you can and they still don’t give you a referral, it’s ok. You will get many more chances.

I am going to babysit a 2-year old little boy this week. It will be somewhat of a challenge because I have never actually taken care of children younger than four and my expertise is generally geared towards children who are in elementary school. Kids who are school-aged generally have the ability to speak and therefore communicate their desires and discontent relatively clearly. The younger they get, the harder it is to convey their feelings. In fact, I am told that two-year olds often act out because they are so frustrated with not being able to make people understand what they are trying to get across. Recently, I researched valuable ways to keep young children on their toes with excitement.

An important part of my baby sitting methodology is using educational and fun babysitting games. When they are being irritable and inconsolable, the easiest solution would be to place them in front of a television. However, because their parents usually have rules against this and because it‘s a pretty vapid activity, I prefer to engage them in more interactive babysitting games.

Because two-year olds are still forming their cognitive skills, playing something like a board game would be near impossible. Since tots like to put everything they see in their mouths, the game pieces would end up being choking hazards. I read up about some online games that would be both educational and interactive babysitting games. A site like kiddio.org provides caretakers with a ton of virtual activities for toddlers and preschoolers. You can have them sit on your lap or on a tall chair while you lead them through all the colorful shapes and movements. Another way to entertain toddlers is by playing simple games. They absolutely love make-believe and role-playing time because they get to pretend to be their favorite heroes. This kind of babysitting game is probably most interactive so don’t be surprised if you have to chase a little king around the house for an hour. At least you’ll be working off some calories!

To be a trusted professional babysitter, it’s always wise to get the proper credentials. If you’re sixteen and watching your baby brother then you probably wouldn’t have to go through rigorous training but it’s important to know the basics. For me, I knew I had to get an official certificate that says that I’m trained at Red Cross Babysitting. These past two weeks, I underwent an intensive course to prepare me  for the responsibilities of being an effective babysitter.

The class is designed for anyone looking to be a trained babysitter–that includes anyone from teenagers to older people who want to know modern techniques on caring for their grandchildren. The first day was just an orientation and introductory period. There were about twenty people in my class so it was relatively small and intimate. I was able to talk to other babysitters about their experiences and share valuable tips and advice.

At this Red Cross Babysitting course, they teach you both physical and theoretical skills. There are hands-on activities where you can experience lessons directly. You will be trained in CPR administration by practicing on a dummy and  you will also learn first-aid know-how. Afterwards, you will also be taught things like how to provide the children with nutritious snacks and how to react to an unruly child.

At the end of my two-week course, I felt much more well-equipped for the babysitting industry. As proven by my shiny certificate, I knew I had graduated with a world of new knowledge and practical skills.

All parents need time to themselves once in a while. It can be a little overwhelming when looking for someone you trust tolook after your children. Whether your child is a young baby or a teenager, you want to choose the right person for the job.

Teens are a unique age group forneeding babysitter supervision. They are older and more independent, so they require less supervision than a child who is 3 or 4 years old. This being said, teens often try to get away with more than a younger child does. 

Parents need to set strict rules and guidelines, and make sure that all directions are clear for whomever they choose as a babysitter. While limits are less restrictive, teens still need to follow rules. Babysitters need to make sure that they have complete instructions, such as homework being done by a certain time, any chores that need to be completed, and what the bedtime routine is.

As mentioned earlier, teens are more independent, so they will probably spend most of their time playing video games or chatting with friends on the phone. This is an age, however, where mental stimulation is still important. If a teen insists on watching television, try to steer him or her toward a program that is more educational and interesting.

Communication is also vital in the teen years. Any babysitter that a parent chooses to look after their children should develop a close bond with the teen. Sit them down with each other prior to the day the babysitting starts. This will ensure that both the teen and the babysitter are comfortable with each other. The last thing a parent wants is for their child and babysitter to have a personality conflict. This makes it stressful for the child, the babysitter, and the parents.

Finding someone who can interact well with your teenager will make it easier when parents need to leave their children to attend to other functions or duties. Not only will your children have a responsible babysitter, but they will also have a new friend. Everyone will benefit.

I had my very first babysitting interview today at the Tremains’ and I was never as nervous as I was in that living room, sitting in front of my potential employers. I have been to regular interviews before but this one was different. For one, they were seeing if they could entrust their only child in my sole care. The young prince they call their son is their pride and joy so finding someone who fits his needs in every way was more like an intimidating CIA interrogation than a conventional interview.

I was very intent on going to this interview with all of my good cards on the table. I arrived 10 minutes early, dressed neatly with my hair in a bun. I introduced myself to my potential employers and tried to come across as confidently as I could without losing any appearance of being a fun and happy person. Inside, my insides were twisting with anxiety but as long as I didn’t let it show, I don’t think they noticed.

When they asked me about my past experience with children, I told them specifically how long I’ve babysat for and how I treated the children, how I dealt with discipline and what kind of babysitting activities I had them do. Not surprisingly, the terms regarding how to look after their only son was relatively explicit and stringent. He was to be fed only vegan food and allowed to watch exactly two hours of educational television while remaining a safe five feet away. Although I never had to deal with a situation like that, I told them that I would be willing to comply to whatever rules they had enstated, within reason.

They’re going to call me shortly and I hope that they’ve since decided that I am the person for this nanny job. That would be quite the encouraging outcome for my first babysitting interview.

When I was young, my mother had an after school babysitter come and look after me. Because I was an only child, she made sure that only someone I approved and got along with would get the job. After many interviews in which I asked questions like, "What is your favorite ice cream flavor?" and "How do you feel about the current president?" (I was a precocious child) I was able to find the perfect after school babysitter.

Her name was Wendy and she was in her early twenties. From what I remember about her physically, she had wavy brown hair, liked to wear a dove pendant necklace and had a penchant for light colored dresses. Her voice was soft enough as to not sound harsh and loud enough to tell me when I needed to get in line. When she had to be stern with me, she was never too strict or austere as a babysitter. She simply goaded me into doing the right thing and taught me when I was wrong. If I had done something commendable, she would give me positive reinforcement with small rewards. For example, once when I had gotten straight A’s on my report card I remember her taking me to my favorite Japanese garden to feed the fish at the Koi fish pond.

I think if I didn’t have Wendy as my after school babysitter, I wouldn’t have been exposed to the many wonderful things that I was. She was the one who introduced me to the great music of Nat King Cole when she played it on the family record player and she was the one who opened me up to the world of poetry by Walt Whitman (of course, back then, I didn’t really get the mature implications). She had great babysitting ideas, and I will forever remember Wendy as my favorite sitter and one of my all-time favorite people.

I am a mother of two young girls and ever since I decided to open up my own business, the dilemma regarding who is to care for my daughters has been relatively taxing. I took it upon myself to start my babysitter search as soon as I knew that I couldn’t bring them to the shop with me everyday.

After speaking to some friends, I narrowed my search to a few outlets: newspaper ads, the Internet and recommendations from people I know. The first means is probably considered by many to be rather archaic. In fact, I don’t even know that many people who physically read the newpaper anymore. As a creature of habit and a resistor to change, I looked up the classifieds section in my daily newspaper to see if any potential babysitter flyers were posted and I saw about ten different ads with numbers included. I called up a couple and spoke directly to the babysitters. Unfortunately, most of their hours weren’t compliable with mine. I require that a babysitter be available for at least 10 hours of the day and I suppose that was a bit too strenuous for many people.

By far, the most accessible method of my babysitter search was going online. With all the resources that are out there, it’s so convenient and you are for sure going to find what you need. The best part about a lot of the web sites–especially the subscription-based ones–is that the babysitters are given a background check and are asked to provide as much information as possible about not only their own skills but also what they require from their employers. This way, I was able to use the search engines to tailor my finds precisely to my needs with babysitting agency reliability. I was able to discover which babysitters were available for ten hours or more and were located within a reasonable distance from my house.

Before I started to work as a babysitter, I decided that my best bet in getting a job was to take a babysitting class and get certified. I signed up for a week-long course that set me back only $35 and allowed me to leave equipped with valuable knowledge that I could use for the children I potentially took care of and also my future children.

The babysitting course, geared towards teenagers, was designed to cover all the basics of caregiving. The first few days were dedicated to the issue of safety. Through discussion and practice, I was able to learn about how to prevent injury, who to call during emergency situations, CPR techniques, basic first aid know-how, and age-appropriate toys and activities for youngsters. Caring for children can often be an unpredictable responsibility and knowing how to react in instances of distress is a must.

The last portion of the babysitting class was used to teach about the qualitative skills of being a good babysitter. It went over the first day of interviewing for a babysitter job to the last day about how to tell your employers you have to move on. In addition, I also learned important professional leadership tips and advice on how to make sound, responsible decisions. Anyone who has ever babysat before knows that this kind of information is just as important as knowing how to keep the child secure and away from harm.

At the end of my course, after I passed all my chapter quizzes and mastery exam, I received my much coveted "Babysitter Class Certificate" that now hangs in above my mirror, reminding me everyday that I am every inch the capable evening and weekend babysitter that I want to be.

When I graduated college with my degree in Anthropology, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. I was a young and naive girl of twenty. All I knew was that I needed to continue to feed myself while paying rent. For that summer, I took on the hefty job as a babysitter in New York. It will be an experience that I will always remember–for better or worse.

Not long after I posted my babysitter flyers around the city, people immediately started to call me. Some wanted me to take care of their miniature Yorkies which I explained was not apart of my job description and others wanted me to watch their elderly parents–also not apart of my arsenal of skills. Finally, a woman who lived on Lexington Avenue rang and said that if I was willing, she had a four year old son who needed to be looked after by a reliable and caring nanny. I excitedly agreed after she promised to pay me $20 an hour.

In short, the my time there was hell. Not only was the mother rude to me but she was disconnected from her child completely. If I had any questions, she would tell me to figure it out on my own. Her son was not any better. When I would accompany him on his piano lessons on Park Avenue, he would throw tantrums and scream so loud that the driver would be forced to let us off earlier. Once, he purposefully tripped me while I was running around the house, looking for him. I had bruises on both my knees for a week. I know that I was desparate for money but there had to be a limit and I was well past it with this babysitting gig. I called in the next day to terminate my employment as the newest most aggravated babysitter in new york.