What You Should Expect From Your Babysitter by:Doreen Lee

The services of a good babysitter are indispensable for families with parents who are both working

. While it is doubtless that you love your children, you can't afford to always stay with them. There will be times when you have to leave them to a nanny or babysitter.

It is a common practice to hire a babysitter to watch over children for a few hours. Some parents even hire au pairs or nannies that are regularly responsible for attending to the needs of their children. If you're new to the process of hiring a babysitter, here are some of the things that you should expect from her.

The babysitter's responsibilities

A babysitter's function, in a nutshell, is to care for the children while their parents are away. Her responsibilities will somehow revolve around this area. These will include:

Responding to emergencies correctly

The babysitter is expected to use emergency contact numbers as needed. She also has to know basic first aid practices. You need to inform her where you keep your home first aid kit on her first day and where you place all the important contact numbers. You will also need to tell her about health problems in your children that may lead to emergencies.

Implementing house rules

Your children's babysitter will be your partner in implementing the rules of the household. This is why you have to hire a caregiver who at least respects your child rearing philosophies. You need to specify what your children are allowed to do and which parts of the home they can access for playing. She needs to enforce discipline in the home according to your own specifications when you're not around.

Keeping the children engaged in certain activities

The babysitter may also help your children with homework, or play certain games with them. Children have to be comfortable with their babysitters; caregivers understand that it's important for kids to be at ease with them even when they are practically strangers. It is a babysitter's responsibility to make her time with the kids worthwhile by keeping them entertained with fun activities.

Feeding the children and dispensing medications

If you have children with special needs, the babysitter can be tasked with providing their medication when you're away. She has to know where the medicines are and how much to give at predetermined schedules. She also needs to prepare meals for the children. You will need to tell her what sort of snacks they are allowed to eat and how much of it is permitted. If you come home late from work, you will probably need to provide instructions on what the kids should eat for supper. Some babysitters do not mind cooking the meal but just to be on the safe side, make sure that your refrigerator is stocked with easy-to-cook dinners that only need to be heated so the caregiver doesn't have worry about preparing meals from scratch.

Housework

Some babysitters do not mind helping with the household chores such as doing the dishes or cleaning the living room after the kids have gone to bed. You can discuss these responsibilities with your caregiver ahead of time.

About the author

Doreen Lee helps parents get instant access to thousands of qualified babysitters around their area by leading them to http://www.hireasitternow.com

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