I’m going to share a story that you won’t want to hear, but it’s so common in American households, that we can’t afford to ignore it!
I had to go to a meeting and had a reliable babysitter, my office’s assistant. She worked for me at my school part-time, she was over 20, had undergone a background check, and was a family friend … so I thought I was safe with her!
Wrong!
I came home and my toddler had minor bruises, she said she didn’t know how he fell. If you know me, you know I only had one baby, I over-protected my son’s every step.
I couldn’t have any more children, so there was no room to get it wrong anyway; my son was sheltered and yes, I was overzealous! So, to come home and see him with bruises, I was furious. Sometimes a basic background check may not bring up everything you need, a police background check might be the best course of action in this instance, you can look at a victoria police check price to see how much one would cost and compare it with your area, so you are more thorough, but in our case, I don’t think a background check would have brought up how she acted around a baby.
Luckily, I had a camera in his room and checking the footage, I found out that she left him playing in his room upstairs for over 30 mins and he left the room, when I’m assuming he fell down.
That lesson left me with no trust in babysitters and made me a huge believer of safe proofing my child’s well being!
Today I’m going to share the measures I put in place to ensure, anybody who would be watching him from now on, would be silently supervised, even more than before.
Baby Surveillance Camera
Plan Your Child’s Room knowing you will need a shelf or higher surface which will give you a wider angle of the room to place a surveillance camera.
I had three different surfaces to place the camera and baby monitor.
But my ultimate goal was that at all times I could see and protect the most precious thing in my life!
The only reason why I could pinpoint what happened to my son was because of the steps I took to ensure we knew what was going on at all times.
No, it didn’t prevent him from getting minor booboos but it did allow me to dismiss the baby sitter, knowing she was not a good choice for my son and that was not just an accident – she neglected him.
Hiding Your Camera
I recommend you hide the camera in between stuffed animals, just leaving the lens open, so you can have a clear image. Like in the photo below:
Yes, it looks like a bunny in between the toys, but it’s a camera! I left just enough to give a good room view.
Giving Precise Instructions
From that point on, I left precise instructions of where the baby should play and how I expected the babysitter to conduct herself while watching my child. There were notes even for bathroom breaks.
More Is Less,When It Comes to Safety
Checking on my camera remotely became a necessity for me and it was the tool I had to have peace of mind. I actually purchased three cameras placing them in areas where I instructed the sitter to have my child at all times. So you might want to consider that.
Peace of Mind
I’m not going to say that what happened turned me into a paranoid mom – no, I left my son with other suitable sitters and nothing ever happened again. But I took precautions to ensure I would have peace of mind next time I had to leave my son without my husband’s supervision.
After all, that smile is what you live for…..
I wish we’d had access to a camera like Arlo™ Baby, which offers you the latest technology to protect your little one.
Arlo™ Baby – 1080p HD Monitoring Camera is an all-in-one smart baby monitoring camera. It offers:
- Live monitoring and smart alerts on your smartphone, tablet, or computer.
- Key features include high definition video, night vision, motion & sounds alerts, 2-way talk, music player, air sensor, rechargeable battery and multi-colored night light.
I gifted it to my stepson, (he recently had a new baby boy!) so he too, can have peace of mind and can enjoy all the great features, because Arlo™ Baby benefits go way beyond the surveillance aspect!
Do you have a scary babysitter story? Can’t wait to hear what you think! As usual, give us a Trendy Shout!
The safety of children is very important.
I was in search of a baby camera too, when Bunny was smaller. I never got around to getting one but Arlo looks like a good one! It is better to be safe than sorry!
The design of the camera is perfect for fitting in-between stuffed animals. This is a really good idea.
That Arlo Baby monitor is so cute and definitely Discreet! I need to get one for my preggers
There is an Arlo Baby?! We have the original Arlo and LOVE it and this would have come in handy when my twins were littler!
The design of that is so cute, it blends right in. I only let me mom watch my kids but I know it’s not always an option for a family member to be the caregiver. I hate that you had this awful experience but I’m glad you the cam to record what was going on.
Hiring a sitter is such a complicated thing sometimes. I have always had trouble hiring someone to be with my kids as I just don’t trust anyone with my babies. These are great ideas to make sure that you know what is going on!
It’s alarming and this is why it’s tough to trust people with your child. I can’t believe this happened. It’s also important to have a reliable camera in your baby’s room to make sure.
OMG. I cannot believe that she would leave your baby for 30 mins! It’s her job and that’s why she’s there! I would be more than furious if that ever happened to me.
These cameras are so cute. I have to admit with not having children, I hadn’t thought about all the things you would need to do to make your precious little one is safe.
My nephew got his leg snapped in half by a daycare provider who got away with it because the prosecutor didn’t want to go to trail. It is a shame and it does happen this Arlo Baby 1080p HD Monitoring Camera is something every parent should have for their child. Thanks for sharing your story and the camera.
Cute Camera! Monitoring our babies is really important and we have to use reliable equipment/devices to this work. I like how you set up the babies room 🙂
This camera looks awesome and I totally want one. Your little one is so cute. I’m gonna go check out the website now.
Baby monitor is a very important device. It’s always a good idea to monitor, better safe than sorry.
staying with the baby is best, but in case you need to go out, i think baby monitors offering their sound and video is the best one!
This monitor covers it all it seems. To be able to check in remotely is a great feature.
Netgear looks like a great baby monitor and I agree that surveillance is a great way of child proofing your baby’s room. Great ideas x
This is so helpful. Your set up looks so good and it must be so safe. You did a great job and you must be proud. Also he looks so cute all snugly.
We’ve had baby monitors in many shapes, sizes and forms over the years. The ones that offer both video and sound are my favorite.
It looks like such a cute camera. We just had the baby monitor. And then we really didn’t use it as my ex put my daughter in bed with her. And that was that. She never left until my daughter was almost 5.
I’m sorry to hear about your son being injured while under a babysitter’s care. That’s so upsetting. When raising my daughters there weren’t these fabulous baby monitors. I love the idea of being able to see what really happens when you’re not there. Thanks for sharing this great information.
That baby camera is so sneaky. When it comes to your child though, it’s important to do all you can to keep them safe.
We have surveillance cameras at home to watch our baby too! The best proof is watching the recordings! 🙂
These are really great tips. It’s so important to protect our kids. I’m so sorry about your experience with your child.
I would tell the sitter that I had cameras in the house and leave her to do her very best. If a sitter is uncomfortable knowing that they are being monitored they shouldn’t come over.
A great product for new parents to try, nowadays security always starts at home. I love the colors and everything about the baby’s room!
When my daughter was growing up, I had a lot of bad experiences with baby sitters. I wish they had cameras like this back then. It may have saved me a ton of stress.
We have many cameras on our property both inside and out. I think they give us a piece of mind that we need these days.
Having a monitor is so important. You want to be able to see what’s happening when it is happening.
I’ve been labeled a “hover mom” and wear the title proudly. I have one child and I can’t afford for myself or anyone else to get it wrong. Lol. I get it completely and think this camera idea is pretty cool!
Having a a surveillance camera in your child’s room is a fantastic idea. I have always been worried when leaving the kids with someone other then family.
I would absolutely get a monitor if I had a baby. Nothing wrong with being hyper vigilant about your precious ones.
Are surveillance camera’s common to put in a child’s room now? I have not seen this or heard of this before.
Monitors are so sophisticated now. We caught our youngest having a conversation with my husband’s dead grandmother on night, they talked for over 5 minutes.
What great ideas. We had a monitor with our kids and it gave me such peace of mind.
That looks like a great camera. A baby’s safety is a priority. I’m sorry you had such a bad experience
A great suggestion for the new parent and to ensure your child safety.
I have a monitor as well in my daughters room (she is one year old next week) but only use it to see if she is sleeping. Havent had the need for babysitters just yet 😀 But you are right to do what you did, there are some babysitters out there who are not trustworthy.
Sorry to hear this happened! You really can’t be too careful these days.
I love this monitor. I think it’s so cute that you can work it right into your baby’s room decor.
That’s a great camera! Baby monitors have come so far. Back when my kids were babies, a good monitor was one with no static.
I would have been just furious and so frightened to come home to my child being bruised like this, especially being told that the sitter didn’t know how the injuries occurred. I think your camera set-up in your child’s room is such a good idea.
Oh no, I’m sorry that happened. I don’t play those games when it comes to my kids. If they aren’t with us they are with their grandparents, my sister or my brother in law and his wife. That is it.
I’m so thankful they are 5 and 12 now and they can tell me exactly what goes down. I would have loved a camera in their rooms as babies.
We used baby video monitors to actually check to see how our youngest son was getting out of his crib when he was a baby. I’ve been a stay at home mom for a little over ten years now, and we didn’t have sitters too often that weren’t family members that I implicitly trusted. Great gift though for new parents, who tend to worry a bit more than parents with more children.
Be sure to check the laws were you reside. Filming people without their permission is illegal in most places. Baby safety is important, and I agree that it can be hard to find good trust-worthy baby sitters!
You can never be too safe when hiring a sitter and I love the idea of having a camera to record all the action. I had to take a double-take at your nursery because I thought it was my oldest grandson’s nursery at first. He had the exact same theme for his bed and wall. Love it!