A Letter from the Babysitter.

I haven't babysat anyone in a while, but I learned a lot about what I do and do not like about children. I learned some neat parenting tricks and I got good at babysitting (or I would like to think that I did).

But here is a letter to the parents:

Your children are adorable. Yes, but they aren't angels. I have been around the block enough to know that they are different children when you aren't around. They may eat their food super well or listen to you when you ask them to clean, but that does not mean it will happen when I ask them. The do's and don'ts of babysitting from a babysitter:

Please don't have them take a nap super late in the afternoon. They don't go to bed well when I ask them to go to bed. It's not my fault if they are still awake when you get home. They just aren't tired yet. And yes, I did just let him scream and it did break my heart to let him do it.

Please do tell your children all the house rules before you leave. Because then I know them and I can make sure they don't get away with something they aren't supposed to. You may have told them they could have a cookie after dinner, and I feel like a terrible person telling them "no," but I don't know otherwise.

Please don't let your children sleep all together. They just stay up late and keep each other up. It just doesn't work.

Please do let me clean up, but don't have the house a mess when I show up. It's helpful when the kids help me clean up. It's also really nice to have the buckets/bins/shelves labelled or otherwise organized that I can tell what goes where. That way you don't have to undo what I did in my attempt to clean up.

I won't peruse your pantry looking for food. I'm not going to eat you out of house and home. I probably will sit down and enjoy a movie or Netflix when I am done cleaning your house and the kids are in bed. I'm not a bum; I'm trying to enjoy some "me" time. I am paying attention to the noises from the rest of the house to make sure that your kids aren't sneaking around.

I'm not going to invite my friends over. That's not okay by MY standards.

Thank you for your trust with your kids. I love them like siblings and I will try to be their friend while earning their respect.

Sincerely,
The Babysitter