One of the most popular jobs to hold as a teenager is babysitting. Whether you are a nanny to the kids or just babysit them occasionally, there always seems to be some sort of struggle that arises. It could be something small or major depending on how old the kids are, or even how many there are. Don't get it twisted though, these struggles only improve us as sitters because we still love the kids we watch — these are just some of the few encounters we have daily.
Here are 16 struggles all babysitters and nannies can relate to:
1. Your name is called close to a million times.
"____, hey! Hey ____, listen to me! ____! Hello!" With the kids around, you will surely never forget your name. Can we also talk about how almost all of the time, they forget what they even had to tell you?!
2. You become a maid more so than a caretaker.
Jelly all over the counter? Milk all over the floor? No, the dog is most certainly NOT going to come and lick that up for you! You find yourself cleaning more than you do in your own house, even if you don't have to. Sometimes, you clean so much that you accidentally wind up doing the children's chores for them!
3. The amount of energy that kids have is actually sickening.
Why are we running 15 laps around the kitchen? No one really knows, but these kids could keep going all day. One thing is for sure, you cannot. They could run around all morning and still ask you a million times to take them to the park. What are you doing? You're daydreaming about being in bed.
4. The T.V. fights get heated FAST.
If you babysit more than one child, you know exactly what I'm talking about. This struggle intensifies if there is a bigger age gap between them. The minute you turn the television on, the kids fight over what show will be put on. What will you watch today? 20 minutes of Curious George? 5 hours of SpongeBob? Will you even get through a full show? Hint: Probably not!
5. When kids are picky eaters and you want to scream.
"Do you want this?" "No." "How about this?" The answer to your questions will always be 'no.' You're lucky if you can get these kids to eat a full meal, let alone more than one.
6. The nap time struggle is TOO real.
One of the biggest struggles that comes with babysitting is nap time. If you watch kids that have a certain nap time schedule, you can relate. Usually, the excuses are: "I'm not tired." "But my brother/sister is awake!" "I'm hungry now." "You're here and I want to stay up." "It's time to play." All I know is that if I had a nap time, I sure wouldn't complain.
7. You must surrender your phone because it's the coolest toy.
Young kids don't have cell phones to play with. This means that when they see yours, it becomes the most amazing thing in the entire world. Of course, how do you say no when the cutest little face asks you to use it? Ultimately, you always find yourself leaving their house with a nice film of some sort of sticky substance covering your screen. Anyone have some Windex?
8. You're forced to become the bug killer.
If you're like me, you are NOT the bug killer in your house. Instead, you're the one who runs away screaming and praying that it doesn't jump on your legs. However, when a kid sees a bug, they will most likely run to you to kill it. With a lot of mental preparation, you can most definitely do it. Oh, it has wings? Just kidding, you're on your own!
9. Getting kids to listen is an art and science you MUST master.
Sometimes, kids admire you enough to listen to your every word. Most times, they laugh in your face because they like to think they make the rules. How many times did you have to ask them to pick up the purple sparkly guitar off the floor? Apparently not enough because you just got up and stubbed your toe on it!
10. Your food becomes their food.
You were so looking forward to that extra piece of lemon cake that you brought as lunch. Now, you have tiny fingers grabbing at it and asking if they can have it. How do you say no? Instead of drooling over the cake, you're now eating a slice of cheese on bread. However, sometimes the look of happiness and the wide-eyed expressions make you realize it was worth it.
11. Your life is no longer private. Nothing is off limits.
"Who are you texting?" "Is that your friend?" "Is that your boyfriend/girlfriend?" "Where are you going tomorrow?" " How many dogs do you have?" Soon enough, you go from talking about your favorite color to what's your uncle's cousin's daughter's dog's favorite toy.
12. Early mornings with no sleep are the norm for you.
Not all babysitting gigs are the cliché night time ones when the parents go out. Sometimes, the kids are on summer vacation or have off from school (or don't go to school yet) and the parents need you to watch them in the morning. As a young adult, I know that 90 percent of my fellow young adults will agree with me when I say that sleep isn't always the best for us. Waking up at 5 a.m. to go babysit and trying to stay awake? Highly impossible, but somehow we make it work!
13. Kids change their minds A LOT.
"I want pizza!" *Makes pizza* "Ew, I don't want this, I want chicken!" From deciding what to eat to deciding what game to play, a kid really can never make up their mind. Sometimes, something seems interesting to them for a whole minute, and then it changes into the complete opposite. Now you're left sitting there with a bunch of extra food and 15 different board games all over the floor.
14. Kids like to play outside, no matter how insanely hot it is out there.
Don't you just love going outside in the heat of summertime because playing inside wasn't good enough? No? Me neither. Even when they're dripping in sweat, they still say, "It's not even hot!" Tell that to my makeup melting off...I look like I jumped in a pool!
15. Temper tantrums happen and there's nothing you can do about it.
Breakdowns are not limited to only a kid to their parent. As a sitter, we have the ability to say no if we feel it is needed. A lot of the times, if that isn't the answer the child wanted, they completely go into fit mode. Throwing things, crying, stomping, you know, the whole shebang. It's all happened once or twice to every sitter. The best magic words to make them stop? "I'm going to text Mom/Dad."
16. You have to be careful about EVERYTHING you do in front of them.
So much for that steamy new episode of Siesta Key. A kid will repeat anything and everything that they hear or see. They will look over your shoulder and sneak any peek they can get. Do YOU really want to be the one explaining to them what certain adult things are? I sure don't.
Thank your sitters, everyone! You should even consider taking us on a vacation after all of our struggles...
