Splish Splash, Summer Safety!

The last two weeks have been insane and hectic for me. I packed up all my belongings, and somehow managed to fit it all into my tiny car. Now I'm in Philadelphia and ready to start the next chapter: The Babysitting Company Philadelphia!!!! Spread the word!

This time of year, it doesn't matter where you are, it is HOT! Children are very sensitive to the sun and heat so I want to go over, and refresh your memories with some summer safety tips.

1) Drink plenty of water: I know you know this, but it's very important. Babies under the age of one get dehydrated the easiest, and this can lead to death. They should drink three cups of water each day. 

AGE	CUPS OF WATER
1-3	5
4-13	7-10
14+	11-15

*Please note that amount of water intake depends on size and gender of the person.  Also, the more active the child is, the more water they should drink.

2) Sunscreen: The Environmental Working Group recently put out their top sunscreen choices.  Please check them out at Best Sunscreens. When swimming, it is best for the children to wear long bathing suits, or swim shirts, a hat is also important too.  If this cannot be achieved, then make sure you put sunscreen on everywhere. Especially in kids with lighter hair, make sure you get their hair too. 

-Babies under the age of six months should not wear sunscreen.  Please keep infants in the shade and avoid going outside during the sunniest and hottest hours of the day.

-Do not forget to reapply sunscreen often.

-Even if it’s a cloudy day, sunscreen is a must

3) Pool Safety: It is important to watch the children like a hawk, but it is even more important to keep your eyes on the kids at all times when they are in or near a pool.

          -Learn where safety equipment is before the parents leave and keep a phone nearby.

          - The article Keep kids safe in, around the water from htrnews.com states, “Each year, more than 3,400 people drown in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and more than one in five fatal drowning victims are children younger than 14.”

All this summer talk is making me thirsty, how about you?!  Please be safe in the summer sun, and if the child is bright red and sweaty, maybe it is time to switch activities.  If you are alert, focused, and aware, everything should be just fine.

Enjoy your summer!

Elyssa and The Babysitting Company

How to Soothe A Crying Baby

It’s 11pm Friday night, the parents left hours ago, and do not plan to return any time soon.  You’re nice and comfortable on the couch, in a comfortable hotel room overlooking the ocean, reading your brand new book.  Then, all of a sudden.... the baby starts to cry.

So, you get up and gently rock him for a while....doesn’t work. Feed him, burp him, change his diaper, everything is failing and you start to panic.  Please do NOT panic, the baby can sense that and it only makes matters worse. Unfortunately, there could be dozens of reasons why the baby is crying, you’re not his mother, nor are you a mind reader. 

Here are the top 5 ways to soothe a crying baby (according to me):
1) Look around the room, if you see a pacifier or a stuffed animal, try giving that to the baby.  These are comfort items that lets the baby know everything is okay, and makes him feel secure. 

2) Swaddle the baby.  Wrap him up in his light blanket nice and secure.  Often newborns like to be bundled up.  I can’t blame them, that’s how they were positioned for the last nine months.

3) Sing to the baby and rock him.  My personal favorite: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. When you are walking and rocking the baby, try a change of scenery. Move into another low lit room or even stand by the window and open it for a little fresh air.

4) If you’re like me, and the singing might make the baby cry more, see if you can find some soothing music to play.  Mozart, opera, or white noises work well.

5) If the baby is teething, you can give him a teething ring and that will soothe the pain.

If all else fails, text or call the parents very calmly.  Let them know the baby woke up, and he’s fine but ask if they have any tips for you to calm him down.  Mommy and Daddy know best!

Love,
Elyssa and TBC!

Annie's Experience with TBC

"Working with The Babysitting Company has been a wonderful experience from the start. I had the most fun working with a family earlier today. While on a job, I usually spend the most time with the child/children of a client. Today was different; I spent the day with two amazing little boys and their whole family. We had a great time; in the pool, playing games, dancing, watching a puppet show and sharing stories. I am happy to be working with The Babysitting Company, especially because I have the chance to meet many wonderful people!" -Annie Benjamin

SOM for April

Rolanda Desir is the Sitter of the Month for April. In Rolanda's application she wrote that if she was accepted as a babysitter for The Babysitting Company we would be able to count on her for anything. Well that is really an understatement. Rolanda is someone that can be counted on for EVERYTHING, really! Day or night, near or far, she goes out of her way to accommodate her clients. Rolanda is most deserving as Sitter of the month for April!


"I am currently registered at FIU, my major is nursing. I also have medical assistant certificate and Emergency Medical Technician Certificate. I am interested in working with The Babysitting Company because I love children and I am always glad working with them. I consider myself willing to learn, punctual, serious and confident in my job." - Rolanda

Feedback from Babysitter, Nicole

I will never forget my first assignment with The Babysitting Company. A family of five stayed in Miami Beach for 10 days. I remember Rachel calling me and saying: “Are you ready for your first assignment?” Although this wasn’t my first babysitting experience, for me it felt like my first day at school! I cleaned my shoes, ironed my clothes and filled my bag with tons of toys and games.

As soon as I arrived to the hotel I saw two beautiful children running around the lobby. Their father approached me and said, “Are you the babysitter?” I responded, “Yes, I am the babysitter.” And with a big smile on his face he said: “You have saved my day!”  That same day we went to the beach and we ate at a great restaurant. Every day we did different activities, like going to the zoo and even shopping. It was the best babysitting experience ever! From that moment I knew I was representing the best babysitting company.

Thanks to Rachel I am a proud babysitter of The Babysitting Company.
-Nicole Rivera

TBC is Hiring!

The Babysitting Company is a fully insured and licensed babysitting company that sends sitters out to resorts, hotels, residences, events, etc.

Joining TBC is super easy and extremely rewarding.  You will work with some amazing people, make good money, and you can work around your busy schedule.  If you have school, other jobs, etc. you can work part time.  We also have full time jobs available too!  Can it get any better?

TBC has several locations, and is really excited to launch Philadelphia and Atlantic City in June 2011.  Please check out the website at http://www.thebabysittingcompany.com/, and if you have any questions feel free to contact me at elyssa@thebabysittingcompany.com

Please note, that if you do decide to become a babysitter there are no commitments, unless you do confirm a job.  So if you are interested, let me know and I can send you the application and guidelines.

If you have any friends, family, co-workers, etc. that might be interested in babysitting please let them know about TBC! Spread the word, we are SO excited, and I look forward to hearing from you!

Thank you,
Elyssa and TBC

TBC Locations

One of the MANY, MANY perks of The Babysitting Company is that we have so many locations!  At all of our locations, we offer all the same services (weekend sitters, nannies, last minute, traveling, etc). We have sitters in Florida, New York, Washington, D.C., Boston, Detroit, Chicago, Phoenix, Denver, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.  We even offer our services overseas, in London, Israel, and Australia. AND…I am VERY excited to announce that we will soon have sitters in Philadelphia and Atlantic City!

Our headquarters are in South Florida (Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties).  Here we have over 300 sitters waiting for your call (in the least creepiest way possible).  At the other locations we do not have as many sitters, so reservations are limited.

At all of our locations sitters are familiar with the hotels and locations so therefore they can create fun activities, in and outside the hotel.  The hotel staff gets to know our sitters, so your children will definitely be in a safe and friendly environment.

When booking your next babysitter make sure to ask about TBC Membership Program. Generally, it allows for special rates and service fees at any location!

Always,
Elyssa and TBC