Monday 26 January 2015

Part time babysitting

Prior to taking up a part time job as a babysitter, I actually had no interest in babies as I realized I don't know how to entertain babies at all. But after my baby cousin came along, I don't feel so awkward around babies anymore!

So I've been taking up more babysitting jobs to pass my time. 

For my first babysitting job for this season, I was back to feeling super nervous! And thankfully the family was super super nice. The mum showed me around and explained to me about the kid's schedule for bedtime, what to do, and etc. She showed me the fridge and said that I can eat or drink anything I like. There was a crossword puzzle that she was working on and she said feel free to complete it if I like (I tried and it was too hard). Then she showed me her Ipad and said I can use it if I want to. And lastly, she told me if the kids are asleep and I can take a nap too if I'm tired. I was like What??????

She has got to be the BEST parent to babysit for, I have so much freedom!

And in case you're wondering, Nope I did not use the ipad or ate any of the food or completed even one crossword puzzle or obviously take any sort of nap. I just browsed the web using my phone. I didn't want to watch TV or listen to songs as I want to be more alert in case the kids cry (They didn't)

So it was a lovely babysitting job to start off the season. These are the best of the babysitting job to get, let the kids play around for around an hour, then put them to bed and the rest is relaxing time and all you have to do is to wait until the parents come back from their dinner date.


I'm fortunate that I have more good experiences to bad ones. A few memorable ones has got to be when I spend time playing with them and observe the kids and just marvel at how well they behave and interact among the siblings. There was this little boy, he's the oldest child and probably just about 5 years old, he's hands down the most caring kid that I've ever seen! His sister was a bit upset that the parents left for dinner and she didn't throw any tantrum or anything, just kept quiet to herself. Her brother kept checking on her, stroking her head, and asked her what would she wanna play and they can play together. He's doing a much much better job in babysitting than I am. The whole night I just observed at how well behaved they are and that even though the parents are so rich (Stayed at the penthouse) but yet they are not spoiled at all.

Sometimes, instead of leaving them as they are, I'll join in playing with them and keep them entertained. There was once when I went to the accommodation, I chit chatted with the parents, and then watch over the kids a little and after the parents left, 2 kids started wailing like mad. It took quite some time to calm them down. Though I'm just thankful they didn't run after the parents or screamed at the top of their lungs or start abusing me. But they were just standing, together, and wailed. It was actually so cute to watch but I can't spend the whole night letting them cry so I successfully distracted them using the magical Ipad. Played a movie and the wailing slowed down, then stopped, and all of us started watching movie together. In the end we played together and had so much fun, then they dozed off and I waited patiently for the parents to return.

As memorable are the good ones can be, the bad ones are unforgettable too.

The worst babysitting experience I had was honestly wasn't that terrible, it's just that I failed at my job in taking care of the kids. The little girl had a glimpse of me when I arrived for the job and she was too tired so the parents send her off to bed. After the parents left, I then spent some time with her elder sister playing some games and watch a little bit of TV then sent the elder sister to bed. Just when I thought it was time for me to relax, the little girl fell off the bed while sleeping and started crying. I rushed to pick her up and put her back to bed but probably that wasn't a good move to make as she went hysterical once she saw me. No matter how much I consoled her it didn't work at all and she just want to escape and stay away from me and cried for her mum. I believe she cried for about an hour? Even though her elder sister consoled her, it didn't work. I called her mum and passed her the phone and she refused as well. So in the end, the best thing is to stay away from her and let her cry until her parents return.

I truly felt so terrible when the parents return as I clearly didn't do a good job in taking care of the kid. But the mum actually said she has never seen this strange behavior by her child before and assured me it's alright. I got paid and then left promptly.

And probably the worst part is this is a 2 days job and I have to babysit her again?? The parents initially requested for the same babysitter for 2 days. And I'll feel even worse if I bailed out on this 2nd job. With much reluctance, I braved myself and went back for the 2nd night and surprise surprise, the kid was so sweet to me! We cuddled together while I read her and her sister a bedtime story. Put them to bed and then it was smooth sailing until the parents return.

So after all, it wasn't that bad of an experience.

Super sweet baby that was so easy to handle and really friendly towards strangers!
I was using my leg to block her from falling down.

Kid spent hours playing with this amazing sandbox! 
It's also quite sad that the kid has to play with artificial sand while indoors instead of playing with the real sand on the beach. 

And through babysitting, it really opened my eyes to observe on how the parents communicate with the kids, and I would say 8 out of 10 parents would talk to the kids and kiss them goodnight before leaving. And when they are back from dinner, they would want to hear from me on how did the kids behave. It's nice to also be exposed to how different cultures raise their kids.

Raising kids are so tough, it's nice to be more exposed and observe how other people raise theirs in preparation for my own. Babysitting also unknowingly brought flashbacks on my childhood and what a nightmare kid I was! I can't ever complain about other people's kids in this case....

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