Re: Ever made a mistake?

Babysitting Children

Ever made a mistake?

Chosen7Stone 10-12-2007, 10:31 PM
You may wonder why I posted this under "Child Care Advice" so hear me out:
My mom always told me it's one thing to learn from your own mistakes, but even better to learn from others' mistakes.

So, that said -- have you ever made a mistake while babysitting, and have learned from that experience? Share that knowledge with us, so we can avoid the same!

*Love in Christ from Mary*
1 Peter 2:4-5

Vote my agency, Seminole Sitters, the "Best Overall Business" in Tallahassee for the 2007 Tally Awards at EverythingTallahassee.com!!!

Re: Ever made a mistake?

babysitterlaura 10-13-2007, 9:03 AM
Great idea for a post chosen7stone!! I have never made any huge mistakes while babysitting, but ther are a few minor ones that I will never make again!!

- I asked the children if they were hungry for lunch and they said no. I kept asking for the next hour or so and they always said no. (it was probably because they didn't want to stop playing the board game we were playing) so then finally I told them it was time to take a break from the game to eat lunch. So I went and started to make lunch, and by that time the kids were actually really hungry and got really cranky. So I learned to start making the food even if the child says that they aren't that hungry, because chances are when it's made they'll eat it, or at least it will be made so you can heat it up in a minute, and avoid a very cranky child.

- Another one that everyone knows, but I had to experience for myself was too much sugar. Boy, that was a tough day with the kids bouncing off the walls.

- Some children are honest, and some are not. When it comes to "Mom lets me do it' I have encountered children who tell me that with full honesty, that their mom does let them do something I'm not comfortable with, and then there are the ones that lie and say that they can do something they cant. I have just learned to say (and this usually avoids and argument): "Although your mom may let you (insert verb here) I am the adult right now and I dont feel comfortable with you doing that in my presence. I will ask your mom about (the specific action) and if she explains that she lets you do it, and tells me any guidlines, perhaps next time I will let you (verb). that seems to work well for me.

Well those are the only mistakes I can remember, but they have stuck with me, and I sure have learned from them!!

Re: Ever made a mistake?

Girrrl 10-13-2007, 6:13 PM
I'm sure we've all made mistakes!

Maybe the biggest mistake I've made -
The kids and I made jewelry with clay that you bake in the oven to harden/dry it, but once we got it into the oven, we/I forgot about it and took off for a bike ride! It was one of the KIDS that remembered, about 20 minutes later, blurting out "THE OVEN!" with a panicked look.
I immediately called the neighbor from my cell phone to ask if he could go next door and turn the oven off (safety was more important than my pride) and we then raced home on our bikes.
Everything was fine, but I still felt horrible. The kids wanted me to just not tell their parents, since nothing bad had resulted from it, but I knew I had to tell - because it was the right thing to do, and also because me 'fessing up to the parents was a great way to model honesty to the kids. Kids get preached to all the time about the importance of being honest, but maybe they were more impacted by watching me, despite my fear and the knot in my stomach, say to their parents, "I made a big mistake today that I have to tell you about, and I'm so sorry about it."
(They weren't the least bit upset, which surprised me - the dad said something about how the low temp of the oven, and the composition of the clay, meant that it hadn't actually been dangerous... but still. I think he was way too understanding; I think my mistake was actually very dangerous - it could have easily been something like brownies at 350 degrees!)

Re: Ever made a mistake?

Mommy2Lots 10-20-2007, 5:39 PM

ooh, Excellent topic!

I'm sure everyone has made at least some minor boo-boos (even if they don't say so).

A LONG time ago, when I was still a young babysitter (maybe 14 or something), I accidentally let the indoor cat out the door and the kids and I had to walk the neighborhood and find the kitty for our afternoon walk. It did turn out to be a fun adventure and we did find the cat, but boy was I scared at the time.

When I called and told the parents (before we went on the search because the cat ran fast and was way out of the yard very quickly), they were understanding and actually apologized to me for not telling me that their cat was somewhat of an escape artist and was always trying to get out. LOL

But, some people may not be as understanding, so don't forget about the pets, too.

Parenting/Sitting Articles - If you view these, kindly return back to Babysitting Forums. ;-)

Re: Ever made a mistake?

babysitterlaura 10-22-2007, 2:39 PM
The above reply from Mommy2lots, reminded me of a pet/housesitting mistake I made. So I'll share it because it could happen while babysitting too.

So I was house/pet sitting for these people, and I had been there for about a week already. Because I am the paranoid person that I am, every night I would bring in their hide key inside, because I felt incomfortable leaving it outside. One morning, the dog woke me up earlier than ususal to go outside. This dog had to be on a leash, so I always had to go out too. So I threw on a robe, and took the dog out. However, when I shut the door behind me, I had forgotten to unlock it. And of course, the hide key was inside, so were my keys, and so was my cell phone. And to make matters worse- it was pouring rain. So there I was, locked outside, in the rain, in my bathrobe, and the poor little dog was drenched.
Because it was so early in the morning, I really didn't want to go knock on any neighbors doors to see if they had a key, so I decided to try to find a semi-dry place, and wait until at least 8:30 to go to a neigbors. The dog and I were able to stand under the back deck and stay somewhat dry, but we were still soaking wet. Then it was finally 8:30, so I went over to the neighbors and rang the doorbell. They answered the doorbell, and there I was, totally emabarrassed (I was in my pjs and bathrobe) over the whole situation. Thankfully they had a key and I got back in, but that was a horrible mistake. So now when I house/pet sit there, I leave the hide key over at my parents house that way, I can never get locked out, and the hide key is available to me, even though it is not outside. I also never leave the house without my cell phone anymore, even to take out the trash, or water the plants.... just in case!!

Re: Ever made a mistake?

Miss Jiminy Cricket 10-23-2007, 2:49 PM

Not a mistake exactly...just a personal rule....NEVER make a promise to a child...because if you don't follow it up, they will remember. I mean little things like, I promise we can make the picture after tea", because if you don't and then bedtime comes, you're guaranteed to hear "I'm not going to bed til we make the picture...you promised." I think this stems from hearing broken promises when i was a kid...i just don't do it anymore, not with little or big things. There's nothing worse than being let down for a kid and whether its that promised picture or a trip to the pool, they'll always remember it and connect it with you.

Secondly, don't trust the kids with too much...once when i was younger i forgot to ask for a bedtime so had to rely on the eleven year old to tell me...this backfired when i heard the parents drive up while the kids were still in the lounge chatting...oops...i should have known she'd tell me she was allowed to stay up much later than she actually was...

'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself. LUKE 10:27

An Eye For An Eye Only Ends Up Making The Whole World Blind.