Signs of a bad babysitter

I am blessed with a good baby sitter.  Ate Ester have been with us since a month before I gave birth to Gab. She is from my hometown in Bicol and we regard to her as a family now.

We have had some misunderstandings before, I think it cannot be avoided. There were incidents where she would say good bye and wants to go home to her family just because of the things said to her (sometimes by me) that meant something else to her.  I am glad we were able to resolve it and she is still with us until now, of coure, without any plans of leaving us as of the time I am writing this blog.

I came across a good entry on some pointers that will help us check  if our baby sitter is good to keep or not. I might as well share it with you.

It's not always easy to know whether your child's caregiver is doing the job she's supposed to. To find out, you may have to do some sleuthing. Some parents who suspect something may be amiss rent surveillance equipment. But it's often possible to tell whether something's wrong without going to that extreme.


You may have trouble on your hands if:

• Your baby isn't happy to see the sitter and has become anxious and withdrawn. A regular caregiver can never replace Mom or Dad, but a baby needs to trust and love his babysitter. Perhaps your child and caregiver haven't bonded, or the babysitter just isn't providing the kind of warmth and comfort your child needs. As in every human relationship, having the right chemistry is important. (If you suspect something more serious is wrong, educate yourself about the signs of child abuse.)

• Your babysitter seems secretive about how they spent the day. How your baby and his caregiver spend their time shouldn't be a secret. When you come home, you're probably eager to hear about your child and what happened while you were apart. If your caregiver isn't forthcoming about it, either she's not good at communicating with you or she has something to hide. Even a caregiver whose English is limited should be able to convey the ups and downs of your baby's day, and will understand why you want to know.
 • Your baby has been in one too many easily avoidable accidents. A babysitter must keep her eye on your child and know what he's doing at all times to prevent injury. She may be leaving your child unattended as he sleeps or plays.

• You notice your requests aren't followed. Both of you are working together to care for your child, so a caregiver shouldn't act as if she knows more about him and childrearing than you do.

• Your babysitter often shows up late. An undependable caregiver will leave you in the lurch time and time again. Find someone who you know is committed to the job and considerate of your needs. Tardiness and unexplained absences may mean she's unreliable in other ways as well.

• Your baby often looks unkempt and dirty. If your little one's caregiver can't take care of the basics, it may be a sign that she's not on the ball when it comes to meeting your child's needs.

• Her stories don't add up. Never tolerate someone who steals, lies, or deceives you in any way. You have to be able to trust your caregiver for the relationship to work.

So far I haven't observe any of this from Ate Ester.   Gab is happy to see her almost all the time, he regards to her as playmate. My son is always clean everytime we make turnover, he is clean and does not smell bad or anything.  Ate Ester follows most instruction I give, if there are any that are not followed as the way I wanted, we discuss it and understands each others concern. 

You may say I am lucky because I am able to keep Ate Ester this long.  Gab is now about 9 months. Hopefully we keep her long enough until my baby is able to talk and communicate in case we get a different baby sitter.