What to Expect Baby-Sitter's Handbook [Spiral-bound]

Heidi Murkoff (Author), Sharon Mazel (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 29, 2003

When you put your baby in the hands of a sitter, you want to put your sitter in the hands of an expert. Certainly no hands are better qualified than those of Heidi Murkoff, co-author of What to Expect When You're Expecting and other bestselling childcare guides with over 22 million copies in print.

Marrying the reassuring authority and trust of all the What to Expect books with a lively, accessible voice, this guide contains everything a caregiver needs to know when minding a child, from newborn to preschooler. A mix of text, boxes, Q&As, and lists-plus plenty of blank space for parents to write in emergency numbers, specific instructions, and personal information about a child's likes and dislikes--it's the instruction manual that should be given to every caregiver, whether full-time nanny or weekend baby-sitter. It covers advice on feeding and diet, first aid, bathing an infant, potty-training, time-outs, rainy-day activities, sibling disputes, discipline problems, comforting a child, making play dates, even how to build a happy and healthy relationship with the child's family. Plus, it includes 61 of the most common questions sitters ask, from how to make mealtimes fun to what to do if you can't bond with the baby.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

It all started with a baby…and a book. Heidi Murkoff conceived the idea for What to Expect When You're Expecting during her first pregnancy, when she couldn’t find answers to her questions or reassurance for her worries in the books she’d turned to for much-needed advice.  Determined to write a guide that would help other expectant parents sleep better at night, Heidi delivered the proposal for What to Expect When You’re Expecting just hours before delivering her daughter, Emma.

Dubbed the “pregnancy bible”, the iconic New York Times bestseller is now in its all-new fourth edition, with over 17 million copies in print, and according to USA Today, is read by 93 percent of women who read a pregnancy book.  Other titles in the series include Eating Well When You’re Expecting, What to Expect the First Year, What to Expect Before You’re Expecting (a complete preconception plan), and the newest member of the What to Expect family: What to Expect the Second Year, the must-have guide for parents of toddlers. The What to Expect books have sold more than 34 million copies in the US alone, and are published in over 30 languages.

In 2005, Heidi expanded the What to Expect (WTE) brand online with WhatToExpect.com – the interactive, state-of-the-internet companion to the WTE books, and home to a vibrant, vast, yet close-knit community of 3 million parents. In 2009, WTE went mobile with the WTE Pregnancy Tracker (the most popular pregnancy app in the world), the WTE Fertility Tracker, the WTE Baby Name Finder, and the WTE First Year Tracker.

Heidi’s passionate commitment to moms and babies led to the creation of the What to Expect Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping underserved families expect healthy pregnancies, safe deliveries, and healthy, happy babies. With a beautiful, culturally appropriate low-literacy pregnancy guide (provided at no cost) and comprehensive prenatal health literacy support, the WTE Foundation’s groundbreaking Baby Basics program -- available in English, Spanish, and Chinese -- has helped over 500,000 expectant moms-to-be in need and their babies.

  Heidi has appeared on hundreds of television and radio shows, including the Today Show, Good Morning America, CNN, the CBS Early Show, Oprah, BBC Breakfast, and Good Morning Australia.  She connects daily with her WTE family online at WhatToExpect.com, as well as on Twitter and Facebook. 

Heidi and her husband, Erik, have two children and live in Southern California.

Product Details

• Spiral-bound: 256 pages
• Publisher: Workman Publishing Company (November 29, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 076112845X
• ISBN-13: 978-0761128458
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #209,110 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Heidi Murkoff is the author of the What to Expect®; series and author of Eating Well When You're Expecting, The What to Expect Pregnancy Journal & Organizer, What to Expect the First Year, The What to Expect Baby-Sitter's Handbook, and the What to Expect Kids series from HarperCollins. Her interactive website is www.whattoexpect.com, and she lives with her family in Los Angeles, California.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Richie's Picks: THE WHAT TO EXPECT BABY-SITTER'S GUIDE, March 9, 2004

By 

Richie Partington "Richie's Picks" (Sebastopol, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: What to Expect Baby-Sitter's Handbook (Spiral-bound)

If a young adult is interested in learning the wrong way to care for neighborhood kids or younger siblings, then I highly recommend reading SILENT TO THE BONE or KING OF THE MILD FRONTIER.

But if that young person would like to build a rep as a professional, safe, fun, and even educational baby-sitter, and make some bucks in the process, then THE WHAT TO EXPECT BABY-SITTER'S HANDBOOK is the book for them to read.

Providing practical information derived from the work of Piaget and Erikson without ever once having to mention them, this compact, well-organized guide will be equally beneficial to expectant teen parents, prospective aunties and uncles, and anyone else who is interested in the down-to-earth basics of child development and a wealth of information on keeping young kids happy, healthy, and engaged.

Beginning with "The Parent Connection," and "What to Expect at Every Age," the author provides a solid chapter in the areas of "Feeding," "Playing," "Going Out," " Bathing," "Sleeping," "Behavior & Discipline," "Caring for Siblings," "Baby-Sitting Basics," and "Health & Safety." Within each of these chapters Ms. Murkoff details the particulars of the various ages and stages.

She concludes the book with "Our Children, Our Home: A Fill-In Section for Parents," which allows space for parents to list particulars about their preferences and their child's likes. For instance, in the "playing with" pages, there are lines for favorite games, books, and songs, as well as television shows and videos that are permissible for the child to watch, and play date guidelines.

"In ev'ry job that must be done
There is an element of fun
you find the fun and snap!
The job's a game" --"A Spoonful of Sugar" from Walt Disney's Mary Poppins

I am particularly impressed by the amount of focus the author devotes to communication with both the parents and with the child. I am similarly pleased with the valuable Behavior & Discipline section. And, as a former childcare professional, I am delighted with Murkoff's repeatedly providing all sorts of strategies for turning routine moments into educational experiences for the child, whether it be activities that are part of feeding, playing, bathing, or cleanup.

Undoubtedly there are untold numbers of childcare professionals and teachers whose careers begin when they take care of neighborhood kids after school or on Friday nights. Reading THE WHAT TO EXPECT BABY-SITTER'S HANDBOOK will provide these teens with the tools they need to make their early experiences safe, fun, fulfilling, and profitable, and could thus well make all the difference in the lives of these young caregivers as well as the kids with whom they are entrusted.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Just an ok reference, November 30, 2005

By 

S. Lancaster "Tennessee Chick" (Memphis, TN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: What to Expect Baby-Sitter's Handbook (Spiral-bound)

A big fan of the "What to Expect" series, I purchased this book for my 12 year-old daughter who is planning to begin babysitting soon. I immediately noticed that it is spiral bound (as stated in the description) and seems pretty flimsy, like the pages could very easily tear out. Upon closer inspection, I was disappointed to see lots of information for nannies or even daycare workers in the book and very little useful information for a beginnning preteen/early teen sitter. I would look into other babysitter handbooks before purchasing this one - it is definitely not up to par with other books in this series.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thorough explanation which comprehensively covers kids, August 8, 2004

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: What to Expect Baby-Sitter's Handbook (Spiral-bound)

In What To Expect Baby-Sitters Handbook, Heidi Murkoff informatively surveys over sixty questions that responsible baby-sitters tend to ask most, ranging from daily routines and feeding, to safety and play-date activities. Baby-sitters will enjoy this thorough explanation which comprehensively covers kids of all different age ranges -- including just how to best handle newborns on up. Teens especially will find these important tips to be invaluable.