* Adventures in Babysitting *

Due Date- Wednesday, August 17- "Adventures in Babysitting." Summertime always reminds me of those carefree days of being a teenager. Babysitting was always a good way to make a little pocket change. So, tell us about some of your adventures in babysitting. Did you raid the refrigerator? Or talk to your boyfriend on the phone all night? Did you have a friend over and make silly crank calls? Come on, spill! It's too late to get into trouble. Alternatives are to write about experiences with a babysitter for your kids or how about babysitting for your grandkids? Do you spoil them rotten? Go ahead and write about whatever you'd like. You're in charge.

I really was never a babysitter when I was growing up. Being an only child, I never had any younger siblings to take care of so I didn't really feel very qualified to take care of someone else's baby. However, I did go along with my girlfriend Jackie on some of her babysitting jobs. I definitely wasn't much help and really just distracted her from her duties. We did raid the refrigerator, make crank calls and talk to boys on the phone all night.

In fact, I was so much of a distraction that it led to a terrifying experience for both of us. We had put the kids to bed and the two of us were carrying on with all of our silliness. An hour or so later, Jackie decided that we better go check on the little boy who was about 2 years old. We peeked in and the bed was empty! He was missing! Panicked, we began running around the house... did he go into a sibling's room? The bathroom? It was late and dark so he couldn't be outside or could he? He was nowhere to be found! What were we going to do? Call the parents? "Uh, we lost your little boy..." Call the police?

We decided to take one more look around the house turning on every light and calling his name. At last, we heard a little muffled voice coming from his very own bedroom. We could hear him but we still couldn't see him. Finally, we traced the sounds and there he was! In his sleep, he had slipped down between the wall and the mattress and had been sleeping on the floor. No wonder we couldn't see him! What a relief! Now we didn't have to tell the parents we had lost one of their kids. That was the beginning and ending of my babysitting career!