It’s not often that my husband and I get a night out. More often than not we have our date nights right here at home. Not for any other reason than we just enjoy being home, and the time we spend together here is sacred. Our date time is just that, date time.  Not talking about work, kids, or bills time. I think that’s why it works for us anyway. But sometimes we just need a good night on the town. I don’t know about you but I struggle with babysitters. I have to really know a person before I leave them with my kids for any extended period of time. And they have to really know my kids as well. Everyone has to be comfortable.

At this point, with my kids being as little as they are, I don’t want just the neighborhood teenager to watch my kids. Not just yet anyway. At any rate, I like to make sure that my babysitters have all that they need when they watch my kids. So, no matter how well they know my kids, I fill out our “notes for the baby sitter” sheet. It’s not really a sheet that needs filling per se, but instead a paper that I print out and post where it is easily found. On this sheet I put pertinent information. My cell number, and my husband’s cel number. We also include a number for another family member in case of emergency and my husband and I cannot be reached. Along those same lines, I include the number of the kid’s pediatrician. My kids do not have any allergies, but if they did, they would be listed too. Okay, all of that emergency info is expected.

I also like to add snacks the kids can have, and ones they absolutely cannot have. I give a run down of their bed time routine. What shows they absolutely cannot watch, and those that I prefer they do. Anything that you want your sitter to do should be noted. If you keep all of this in one handy easy to find place you can rest assured it should be followed. Plus, it just makes it that much easier for your baby sitter to care for your kids, instead of wondering if they do get a before bed snack or not.  Keep the file saved on your computer and you can print it each time you need it.

-Stephanie Wright