The 8 Reasons Parents Call Their BabySitter While Out

Posted on September 23, 2017

It is not the least bit unusual for you to make phone calls to your sitter while she (or he)is caring for your children.

Because of this, a sitter should be prepared to answer your calls promptly when you do call.

If a sitter does not answer a call from a parent, for whatever reason, it can cause quite a bit of anxiety on the part of the parents. A prompt return of a missed call would also be in order.

Here are the top reasons parents call the sitter while out:

1. Forgot to mention. This is one of the most common reasons that a parent calls. This call is often received within minutes of the parents pulling out of the driveway, especially in the parents were rushed in their departure. There always seems to be one or two details that they ‘forgot to mention’.

2. Sick kids. If one of the children has the sniffles or just hasn’t been feeling up to par, parents are likely to make a phone call to the sitter to see if the child is feeling better, worse or remains the same.

3. Staying out longer. Occasionally, parents may decide that they’d like to be gone a little longer than they had initially planned. In this case, they would need to call the sitter to verify that she could stay longer at the home and to make her aware of the change of plans.

4. Coming home early. Many parents wouldn’t bother with making a call to let their sitter know that they are returning early, but in some cases, it might be appropriate.

Say goodnight. Many parents, especially mothers, like to call and say goodnight to their children just before they are put to bed. As long as this doesn’t create new separation anxiety for the children, a sitter should welcome this type of call.

5. Would you check? In the hustle and bustle of getting ready to leave and giving instructions to the babysitter, it can be easy to overlook things like unplugging an iron or locking a backdoor. Parents may call their sitter and ask them to double check these types of safety items for them.

6. Reminders. When there are important steps to be followed, such as a medication dosage, a parent may call the sitter to remind them about following through on the item.

Change of plans. Since most parents will let their sitter know where they are going in case of an emergency, they are likely to call their sitter to let them know if their plans change and they will be at a different event or location than originally noted.

7. Visitor coming. Occasionally, a relative or close friend may request to stop by the house to pick something up or stop in and see the children while a babysitter is home with the children. The sitter should expect a phone call from the parents to inform them of the visitor’s pending arrival and the purpose of their visit to the home.

8. Just checking in. This is the most common of all the ten reasons listed. It is very normal for parents to call a sitter just to enquire on how things are going with the children during their absence. This gives the sitter the opportunity to ask questions or just give an update, without having to disturb the parents unnecessarily during their time out.

Many times parents will not be able to take phone calls except in an emergency if their circumstances warrant a cellphone that is silenced. In those cases, it can be very prudent for the parent to make those checkup phone calls to the sitter, when they have the opportunity to do so.

0 comments

BumpNews

To Raise Good Kids, Don’t Let Them Do These 5 Things

Posted on June 23, 2017

These days, parents are often blamed for the behavior of their children.

Granted it is our jobs as parents to raise children to be good conscientious kids into responsible adults, so we have to make sure we instill certain rules and limitations on them from the beginning.

Here are 5 things we and our partners think you ought think twice about letting your kids do as they grow up:

1. Break the rules. Do you let your 12-year-old order off the kid’s menu even if it says it for children under 10? What about Facebook? Does your preteen have an account with Facebook even though their terms of use say he shouldn’t? When you let your children break these types of rules, you’re sending the message that the rules that apply to everyone else do not apply to them. Children who grow up thinking they are above the rules may grow up with an indifference to authority and perhaps even a blatant disrespect for it.

2. Get away with bad behavior. Find it hard to hold back the giggles when your toddler drops the F-bomb? Too tired to consistently enforce behavioral rules? Will you let your child do almost anything as long as you get five minutes of peace and quiet? When you let your child get away with bad behavior you’re reinforcing that the behavior is acceptable, especially if he knows you notice it. Behavior’s that are cute now won’t necessarily be cute when your little one grows up.

3. Be rude to others. While you may not think it’s a big deal if your child constantly interrupts you while you’re on the phone or refuses to look someone in the eye when they’re speaking, it is. This lack of manners, otherwise called social skills, will impact how your growing child will get along with others as an adolescent and adult. They are absolutely necessary skill to have to do well in school, work and life in general.

4. Think you’re their friend. When it comes to the parent and child relationship, you shouldn’t be your child’s friend, or let her think that you are. Friends are confidants and those who have similar ideas and outlooks on life. Parents shouldn’t confide in their children as children aren’t emotionally able to handle playing the role of confidant. Plus, children and parents often see things differently, like when it’s time to go home from the playground. Setting limits and guiding behavior is an important and functional part of parenting.

5. Develop a sense of entitlement. Children who have a sense of entitlement feel that everyone owes them everything. They tend to be selfish and think whenever something doesn’t go their way it’s not fair. As they grow up, these children expect people to do what they say and get what they want when they say it and when they want it. If this distorted sense isn’t corrected, it can be problematic in the children’s relationships and interactions with others. To deflate this sense of entitlement, parents can teach their children the value of hard work and giving back to others and by setting limits on what they give their kids.

While there are many things you can and should do as parents, these are some of the things you shouldn’t. If you keep your kids from doing these five things, you’re definitely heading down the right parenting path.

0 comments

BumpNews

Trend: Punishing teens by shaming them virally in Social Media

Posted on April 25, 2014

Recently, a video of a mother in the Caribbean twin island nation of Trinidad and Tobago beating her 12-year old daughter went viral. It sparked much debate and online conversation about whether corporal punishment is necessary to discipline teens and whether such discipline should be broadcast to the world to see.

That type of video is not new, however:

In Flint, Michigan this month, three adults were arrested after a video of them beating, slapping and yelling at an 11-year old boy was posted on Facebook. The mom’s boyfriend shot the video and posted it to shame the boy for pretending to be a gang member and having bad grades.

Last month, a mother recorded her husband beating their 13-year old daughter with a belt after she went missing for 3 days and the girl’s Facebook page revealed she was spending time with boys. The video, shown on World Star Hip Hop, got over 350,000 views.

In 2012, a video of a sick mother beating her baby garnered close to 2 million views. Online petitions caused Malaysian police to arrest the woman.

Also in 2012, a former official in California was sentenced and is serving three years probation after a neighbor shot the man, Anthony Sanchez, beating up his stepson while teaching him to catch a baseball. The neighbor posted the video on YouTube.

That year as well, petitions from online directed a judge to make a decision in a custody over a couple’s daughter after a video of abuse with the mom beating the on went viral and got over 330,000 views on YouTube.

It’s not always the parents posting the videos either.

There is the high profile case of Hillary Adams, a daughter of a judge William Adams, who in 2011 posted a video she recorded in 2004 of her dad beating her. She posted the video on Reddit saying the world should see that he is unfit for the bench. The video got 7.6 million views. Judge Adams lost his judicial election.

Non Violent Shaming

And beyond videos, we’ve seen the images with teens holding shaming signs their parents make them hold on street corners with some of them circulated on line. Some parents are forcing their kids to hold signs and posting them online to teach their teens a lesson about how dangerous social media is and how fast an image can circulate world wide.

Last fall, a California mom made her 11-year old daughter wear a sign and stand on a busy street corner for twerking at a school dance.

Last January, a photo of a dad standing next to his daughter with a photo of himself on the front and the words, “Try me”, went viral on Reddit. The dad made his daughter wear the shirt around school for a week as punishment for breaking curfew.

There is also that 2012 YouTube video of a dad shooting his daughter’s laptop after she posted things about him on Facebook.

Also, in 2012, an Ohio mom changed her daughter’s Facebook cover and profile so the words superimposed on it said, “I do not know how to keep my mouth shut. I am no longer allowed on Facebook or my phone. Please ask why, my mom says I have to answer everyone that asks.”

In August 2012, a South Carolina man mom made her son stand on a street corner with a body placard that read, “”Smoked pot, got caught! Don’t I look cool? Not!” and “Learn from me, don’t do drugs.”

A Florida teacher was fired in 2012 after she put dog “cone-of-shame” collars around the necks of tardy students and some of the kids posted the images on Facebook.

In November 2012, Florida parents of a 16-year old made her stand on a street corner with the sign “I sneak boys in at 3 AM and disrespect my parents and grandparents.”

All of these are attempts from parents to curb teen drinking, sexual activity, bullying or disrespect. Supporters of these shaming methods say that parents and caretakers have few options with unruly teens.

Many defenders of online shaming point to the fact that they were beaten as a kid and they turned out fine but they leave out the part that no-one saw their beating, especially not a half a million people. Nonetheless, they also assume the shaming will work.

Shaming doesn’t work

Nonetheless, history proves that these public humiliation punishments don’t always work.

In 2011, a teen boy who was beaten by his uncle in a viral video was later shot and killed in a gang-related incident. The mom said her son was bullied and teased a lot after the video went viral.

“I regret maybe not being a part of his life a little bit more after the video,” the uncle said after his nephew Michael Taylor was killed.

Clearly, the online beaten didn’t sway Taylor from continuing down that path he was going in anyway, and without more intervention and care, a beating may not be the end of bad behavior. In fact, the viral videos may foster more negative outcome than good.

When kids compare extreme punishments to those their peers receive for similar offenses, they might feel singled out and treated unfairly by their parents, which can create feelings of resentment and damage the relationship, a NannyWebsites post states. This could lead to further acting out, which results in a no-win power struggle.

“Teaching kids to be respectful includes treating them with respect,” says Annie Fox, M.Ed., teen/tween expert and parenting author o” Teaching Kids to be Good People”. “Disrespect is a boomerang.”

Shaming could leave a mark on the teen’s self-esteem and add to depression, anxiety or isolation. A child could feel personally rejected by their own support system, giving them the sense that no one is in their corner and that they lack self-worth. Add to that the potential that the embarrassing punishment itself could lead to teasing and bullying within the child’s social circle and it might very well result in a dangerously alienated young person.

In sum, many of the bad acts the kids are being punished for were known by a relatively small number of people and broadcasting it on the internet lets potentially millions more know. Where is the value in shaming a kid for life for one small lesson, especially when there is no guarantee that it will work?

0 comments

BumpNews

Teacher Appreciation Week: 30 websites with ideas on what to get for your kids’ teacher

Posted on April 5, 2014

Teacher Appreciation week is in May and it is never too early to start preparing. FindABabysitter assembled an impressive list of 30 sites for you to check out in search of ideas.

Theme Ideas for Teacher Appreciation Week Coming up with a theme for teacher appreciation week might make it easier to tie all of your plans together. The theme may even inspire new ideas that you may not have thought of had you not come up with a theme. These five blog entries can help you come up with a theme for your teacher appreciation week festivities.

Ways to Celebrate Teachers There are many different things you can do for your teachers during teacher appreciation week without spending a lot of money. Maybe you can wash all of the teacher’s cars. Or you can have parents donate food for a potluck. If you ask, maybe you could get a local business to donate food for a special treat day. The kids can make cards or bring flowers for the teacher on a different day. Little things can add up and mean a lot to your teachers. Take a look at these five blog posts and see if you can find any ideas that appeal to you.

Gifts to Make for Teachers

When you make gifts for your child’s teachers you will be putting a little bit of yourself into each gift. It will be personalized for her and not something that she will receive from 10 other students. Try to make the gifts useful, like making her a grocery bag. She would think of you every time she used the bag to carry home groceries. Think how many years it would last. Now that many teachers are getting an iPad and other types of tablets, they might need to have a sleeve to protect it. These ideas and others can be found in these five blog posts.

Ways to Recognize Teachers For a special touch to your teacher appreciation week, find a way to publicly recognize your teachers. Maybe you put an ad in the paper thanking all of the teachers at your school. You can also recognize them in other ways, like plaques or awards. Check out these five blog entries for more ideas.

Gifts to Buy for Teachers

Sometimes teachers receive a lot of gifts that they can’t really use. How many candles do you really need? When asked, teachers will most likely say that it’s the thought that counts, but if they are honest they would tell you that gift cards are always appreciated. These five blog entries share ideas for gifts using store bought items put together in a creative way.

Ideas on a Budget In this economy, the budget to celebrate might be on the small side. You can find things to do for the teachers that will pamper them without breaking the bank. Instead of catering a lunch in, see if you can get parents to bring in a covered dish. For other ideas on how to celebrate teacher appreciation week on budget check out these five blog articles.

Teacher Appreciation Week Ideas on a Budget
Ideas for Teacher Appreciation Week
YAY! It’s Teacher Appreciation Week!
Teacher Appreciation Week: Frugal Gift Ideas!
Top 10 Ways to Appreciate Teachers

0 comments