I'm Now A Safe Sitter Babysitter Instructor

    I did it!  Yesterday I went up to the extension office for the Safe Sitter babysitting instrutor training.  Now your wondering what in the world that is.  There is this great program held all over the country called Safe Sitter.  It's a course kids ages 11 - 13 can take to learn the ins and outs, dos and don'ts about babysitting.  You probably think it's not necessary since you babysat and didn't have any training.  I obviously wasn't your babysitter either.  Then again, some of you might have taken some form of babysitting class when you were younger.  When I clear back some of the cobwebs in my mind I vaguely remember taking a short class on babysitting when I was in middle school.
    This all started months ago when my good friend, Connie Hill, asked me if I would be interested in taking the training.  She has done the training along with a few other folks for years now here in Ross County.  Problem is sometimes something comes up for an instructor when the course rolls around and then they're having to pull double duty to make sure the kids get all the information they need to pass their training.  Oh, and Connie mentioned food at the training.  Did I mention that?  She said they have a pretty good lunch.  I questioned having to be in Columbus at 8:00 a.m. considering I'm well over an hour away, but hey, there would be food.
    Due to low sign-up for participating in the training course up in Columbus it was cancelled.  There went my lunch...right out the window!  Even so, our County extension office decided to hold a training for me and Lisa (the other newbie trainer), along with Connie and Beth (the veteran instructors).  Oh, and I want to mention Lisa Barlage, who is the coordinator for the county Safe Sitter course.  I appreciate her taking time to go through the training with us.
    Basically we sat there for 3 1/2 hrs watching a training video (ok, so it was a DVD) and combing through the instructor manuels.  Then there was <gulp> the test at the end.  Connie failed to mention a test.  She doesn't think when she had her intial training there was a test.  She didn't have to take the test either.  In fact, Lisa B said this is the first year for the test.  I thought back to my school days and panic set in.  I'm not a good test taker.  Even when she said it was open book I wasn't impressed with the idea.  
    When we were finished with the training portion, Connie and Beth skedaddled out of there...probably so they didn't get caught up in the test taking.  That left me and Lisa (not to be confused with Lisa B) to fulfill our training by taking the open book test.  I am proud to say I scored a 99%.  Oh come on, I know it wasn't a 100%, but I didn't agree with the one answer I obviously got wrong.  I personally think if a baysitter suspects a possible broken bone and the options are call 9-1-1, call a parent to come help, or take care of the situation on their own, they should call 9-1-1.  Maybe it's just me.  If the Kid were babysitting and called to tell me he thinks someone he was watching might have broken a bone and wanted me to go over to check it out, I'd be saying in as non-hysterics as possible, to call in the professionals...and I'll be right over.  Not, "Oh, ouch, that's gotta hurt.  Tell you what, I'll be over right away to take a look at it and determine if I think it's actually broken or not."  I suppose I'm just a bit squeemish about things like that.  Give me a ewe birthing a lamb and I'm there.  Give me a possible broken bone and I want the calvary called.  
    So, regardless of my 99% (which by the way Lisa also got herself a 99%) I am happy to say I am a genuine Safe Sitter Babysitter Instructor.  Now I am legal and good to go next month when we do the actual once a year course in front of genuine kids.  I've also been told I get to do the diaper teaching portion of the show.  Oh, and I hear on day 2, which is test and graduation day, we get pizza so I'm not totally out on the food bit.  Smiling & Waving, Sharon