The Journey of Parenthood…

BFBN Week Day 2

Today is Day 2 of Babywise Blog Friendly Network week! Today’s spotlight is over on Valerie’s blog, Chronicles of a Babywise Mom. Here’s the schedule for the rest of the week:

· Monday: Maureen Monfore, Childwise Chat

· Tuesday: Valerie Plowman, Chronicles of a Babywise Mom


· Wednesday: Bethany Lynch, The Graceful Mom

· Thursday: Rachel Norman, A Mother Far From Home

· Friday: Emily Parker, Journey of Parenthood

Valerie’s post is 5 tips for using family as babysitters. As usual, I LOVED this post! She always knows just what to say and gives great advice! I pretty much do all of the tips she suggested, and her post aligns beautifully with the post I have coming up on Friday 🙂 

I think a great point she makes when discussing writing out the schedule for your caregivers is: And a tip, make it clear you did these things to make it easier for them, not because you think they are incompetent. I always make a quick reference schedule with just the times for when they eat and sleep then a more detailed instructions on what they are allowed to eat, things we’re working on with them (like that Britt is struggling with throwing things off her high chair tray, or that Kye may be in a bossy phase or whatever), and other friendly reminders. I be sure to tell them that I’m doing that because it brings me peace of mind to know I said it and that way they will have all the knowledge ahead of time of what to expect. But that I know most of what I write is common sense stuff already to them 😉 (and yes, lots of smiley faces go into my instructions haha!) 


I find that when people keep my kids for me they actually appreciate my attention to detail. It makes it super simple to watch the kids because they know what to expect and already have everything prepared in advance. I always leave out things to make it easier for them and try to help things run as smoothly as possible! I also do not expect things to be the same as they are at home. I know, for example, that my kids get more snacks than normal when at G-Mama’s and that’s okay. They get a little spoiled and are allowed to “run the show” more than they are at home and it always takes a bit of an adjustment when we get back from a vacation, but it’s worth it for them to have that quality time with family and we appreciate SO MUCH having family keep them for us when we can’t! Like Valerie says in her post: Pick your battles. Remember they are working for free.Only ask for the things that are of most importance to you. Keep the adage “beggars can’t be choosers” in mind here. They are doing this for free and you can’t be picky about it.


Be sure to check out Valerie’s entire post today as well as the others featured this week!

Emily Parker
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