1.You really should take a babysitting or first-aid class before you accept responsibility for other peoples kid. (The Red Cross or your local parks department probably offers these in your area.) Besides, you get a cool-looking "official" card!
2.Do not call the children you babysit any of the following names: rug rats,house-apes,ankle-biters,munchkins,droolers,li'l monsters or smurfs.
3.Pay attention to the kids you're babysitting and play with them. (Stay off the phone!)
4.Even if the parents have weird rules, like "Junior should wear his safety helmet and body armor if he goes outside," it's best to follow them. This keeps the kids in their routine. Once you break one rule, they'll want to break all the other ones.
5.Clean up any messes that get made. (Better yet, have the kids clean up!) And if you really want to impress the parents, straighten up messes that were there before you arrived.
6.Don't invite any friends over! That is a big no-no.
7.When the parents come home,tell them some funny stories about what the kids did while they were gone. Parents love to here stuff like this.
15 years ago
