10 Embarrassing Things Kids Tell Babysitters

“Kids say the darndest things,” as more than one television show has demonstrated to us. This is true when it comes to your kids and the babysitter, as well. Babysitter’s learn all kinds of things from the children they are caring for. Many times, parents would be quite embarrassed to learn what types of things have been passed on to the babysitter from their children.

1. Family finances – The things that kids pass on about the families finances may not necessarily be accurate. Their perception of things is not necessarily in line with reality. Some kids tell their babysitters how terribly poor they are, while others may be telling them how rich they are. Either way, most babysitters know enough not to put too much stock into what is said in this area.
2. Opinions of relatives – If parents have expressed strong feelings, especially, strong negative feelings about particular relatives, these opinions may get shared with the babysitter. It is always difficult to predict what might trigger these things in the minds of children.
3. The latest fight – If the kids have witnessed an argument between the parents recently, it is likely to come to their mind during the parents absence. If it does, the babysitter may get the blow-by-blows of he-said, she-said.
4. Opinions of neighbors – A glance through the window may remind your children of opinions that you have expressed about certain neighbors. They are likely to share them with the babysitter as a matter of identification of who lives where.
5. Quotes regarding the babysitter - Parents need to be especially careful about comments made about their babysitters in front of the children. The kids are sure to relay the information to the babysitter the next time she is in the home. Make sure anything you say is something that you would be comfortable saying to the babysitter herself.
6. Work complaints – If either parent complains at the dinner table about their boss or co-workers, these comments may come to mind as the children are ‘making conversation’ with their babysitter in the evening. Those comments may not be ones you would want relayed outside of your home.
7. Home life details – There are many little things that go on in our homes that are a bit personal in nature. They aren’t things that we are necessarily hiding, but they aren’t things we normally talk about with others either. Why kids feel they need to share these things, we do not know, but they do.
8. Personal habits – Bathroom habits, what is worn around the house, singing in the shower, goofing off in front of the kids, these little things can be a bit embarrassing when we hear our kids share them with others.
9. Parent’s coverups – Sometimes parents tell kids things may not be the literal truth, such as why they no longer have a pet or why they didn’t buy cookies from the Girl Scouts. The kids, of course, trust their parents version of the story, but a babysitter may catch on to the fact that the dog didn’t really get asked to star in a Hollywood movie.
10. Intimate details – Kids are bound to hear and see things that they don’t fully understand in regards to their parent’s relationship. Those little tidbits, that might never be spoken in front of the parents themselves, have a way of coming out of the children’s mouths, when chatting with people like the babysitter.

Even when you think kids are not paying any attention to what is going on around them, they are absorbing much more into their minds than you realize. They also have an uncanny ability to quote their parents verbatim on items the parents would just as soon they didn’t remember at all.

Taken From Babysitters