Top Things Your Babysitter Should Know

Date night or girls’ night out: every mom needs time out of the house to recharge those batteries. But leaving children with a babysitter can be nerve-wracking. You can put several strategies into place to make things easier for your babysitter, even if she doesn’t ask for help or even realize you are doing these things to make her job a little easier.

Having a place with important information can be helpful for babysitters in case they forget or were distracted when you were going over information.

“I have a small whiteboard on my refrigerator, and I write all the pertinent information on it. I include a schedule for what should happen in the time the sitter will be there since my son likes routine. My son has medicine he takes, so I have the dosage all ready to go and included on the schedule,” Ronna Sparks Woodward of Kansas City, mother of one, says.

Including phone numbers in the important information is helpful also.

“I have a list of neighbors, too. In case of emergency, it is nice to have somewhere to go or someone to talk to,” Sally Beran of Liberty, mother of three, says.

Actually leaving the house can be difficult as you try to slip out unnoticed by your children. Leaving the babysitter with a child having a meltdown is not a good way to start the evening. Having a new toy or something different can be a good distraction and start the night out right for the babysitter.

“We have some toys or activities that we use,” Woodward says.” We have a dry-erase crayon set and moon dough, and I save the toys from kids' meals in a bucket, and he's usually so excited about playing with them that he just says, "Bye, Momma! Bye, Daddy!”

Once you’ve left the house, checking in from time to time is important. Make sure the babysitter has a number to reach you as well. 

“I make sure that both Jon and I have the sitter’s cell phone numbers and we generally check in with them during the night,” Jennifer Richey of Kansas City, mother of two says.

There are also some definite things a babysitter should not do while on the clock.

“A deal breaker for me would be if the kids said they didn't like her/him, if the house was a mess after, if I walked in and they were on the phone while kids were playing by themselves,” Beran says.

The babysitter should also not be afraid to tell what he/she charges.

“As far as paying them, I get frustrated when they say, ‘Just pay me whatever,’" Richey says. “I don't want to not pay them enough or too much.”

Jennifer Higgins is a freelance writer, mother and teacher from Kearney.