Health & Safety Tips

Babysitting Safety Tips

What makes a "good" babysitter who is asked back again and again? There is no one characteristic that makes someone a good babysitter. Instead, a good babysitter successfully combines the knowledge and skills associated with leadership, safety and safe play, basic care, first aid, and professionalism. Here are some tips to get you started on the road to safety while babysitting.

  • Always be aware that an infant or child can be burned by anything that is hot, including food, drinks, bath water, heaters, and stoves or ovens.
  • Make sure that homes where you babysit are equipped with operating smoke alarms.
  • Keep matches, lighters, and candles away from children at all times.
  • Talk to parents or guardians about a Family Fire Escape Plan.
  • Know how to use the fire extinguisher and where it is located.
  • Teach children to Stop, Drop, and Roll if their clothing catches on fire.
  • If fire occurs, get yourself and the children out and don't return to a burning building. Your job is to protect the children, not their belongings.
To learn more about safety, prevention, and babysitting, take an American Red Cross Babysitter's Training course.  Call 810-766-6405 for more information.

Steps To A Healthy Lifestyle

It's never to late to resolve to lead a healthful lifestyle!  Here are some tips to make achieving your resolutions a little bit easier.

  • Make concrete resolutions for items that you can control, such as losing 15 pounds or taking a break three times each day for relaxation and to reduce stress.
  • Don't be afraid to make resolutions that take a long time to accomplish such as reducing your cholesterol level.
  • Break larger resolutions into small, easy-to-achieve steps. If you want to lose 30 pounds, break it down into smaller steps such as losing six pounds a month for five months.
  • Surround yourself with people who will give you positive feedback on your progress to achieving your resolution.
  • When making your list of resolutions, start with those that are easy to accomplish and then move to more difficult resolutions.
  • Develop a written plan outlining the steps to accomplish your resolutions.
  • Don't worry if you do not accomplish a resolution in the time you set. Just re-evaluate and continue to work toward accomplishing it on a new time line.