Look in the bag you haul around with you on your nannying duties. Is it a mess of old tissues, broken toys and scribbled notes? Or is your tote an integral part of your professional equipment? Check this guide to essentials, and it could smarten up your image as well as make your working life a whole lot easier.
Mobile phone
No need to list its uses in your personal life, but you should also make sure your current model is best suited to your professional needs. The Nokia 3330 comes with a 'hands free' kit and a voice-activated dialling system, which leaves you free to get on with the 'hands on' child care.
This model also provides predictive texting, which could save some time when communicating with your employer or other work contacts. Another bonus is the 99 names and numbers memory facility where you can store essential contacts like the family's GP, schools, and your employer's workplace (though do be sure to write down all the important numbers in an address book as well, in case your mobile goes missing). Internet access and downloadable games are also part of the deal with this phone. The Nokia 3330 is available from Dixons on a pay-monthly basis from around 50 pence per day, and there are various 'trade in' offers on old mobiles.
First aid kit
You're not expected to rival the nearest A & E department, but a supply of the basics will inevitably come in useful. Your choice of kits depends on the size of your bag, but the Boots Travel First Aid Kit should fit comfortably into most. This kit comes in a green zip-up plastic case measuring 15cm x 11cm and contains the following: 12 waterproof assorted plasters, two blister plasters, one fabric plaster strip, one micropore surgical tape, six antiseptic wipes, one 20ml tube of antiseptic cream, one 20ml wound and eye wash, two melolin dressings, crepe bandages, latex gloves and scissors, priced 10.95.
Wet wipes
These come top of many nannies' list of 'must-haves' and definitely merit a place in the professional's bag. Choose a 'fragrance-free' variety to avoid aggravating allergies, and leave the large plastic canister at home - travel packs with resealable openings are more practical. Babies'R'Us own-brand packs of Lotioncare Fragrance Free wipes come in packs of 80, priced Pounds 1.99.
Magic Towel
For really dirty incidents when wipes are not enough, it's good to have some towelling to hand. But you won't want to load down your bag with damp and smelly flannels. The 21st century version of the old-fashioned flannel comes in the form of the Magic Towel. This measures less than 7cm in diameter while it is encased in its wrapping, but expands to around 33cm squared when it is immersed in water. Magic Towels by Opal come in 'endangered species' designs and 'hearts and kisses' designs, priced 1.99 each. For your chance to win a free Magic Towel from Opal, see the box, right.
Library ticket and book
An under-rated source of pleasure for children and adults alike. Keep your ticket at the ready in your bag for odd moments when the children have no fixed itinerary, and to ensure that you always have something to read when waiting for your charges to come out of school or a party.
Tweezers and sting remedy
Invaluable for dealing with wasp stings during the summer months and useful all year round for treating splinters. Stainless steel tweezers with either slanted or straight tips are available from most pharmacies. If you favour natural treatments, Boots stocks the homeopathic remedy Apis Mel 6c which is described as 'gentle first aid for wasp stings' and is priced 3.80.
Lavender patch
A headache can interfere with your work and ruin your day. Whether yours is caused by too many late nights or the children's violin practice, you cannot continue to act professionally while you are suffering, so keep a lavender patch at the ready. Lavender is an old-fashioned but effective soother for headaches, and patches from Norfolk Lavender contain lavender oil and menthol. Simply place on your forehead or round the back of your neck and relax for a few minutes. A sachet containing two patches is priced 1.45.
Nappy Bags
Not just for nappies but for all those discarded wet clothes, damp paintings and sticky objects which would otherwise pose a threat to your organised appearance. Two slimline packs, each containing 100 fragranced bags, is priced 1.99 from Babies'R'Us.
Antibacterial handwash
Caring for children can be a dirty business and hot water, soap and towels aren't always available when you're out and about. A tube of antibacterial handwash will earn its place in your bag and won't take up much room, either. Avon claims that its Skin-So-Soft antibacterial hand gel kills germs within 30 seconds, and it needs no water or drying off. Priced 2.50 for a 75ml tube.
Child's medication and/or sun protection
If the child you care for suffers from asthma, or any other ailment that requires regular medication, you should always carry the relevant inhaler or remedy with you, whether or not the child usually requires medicating when you are out. Sun cream at this time of year should be treated as a preventive health measure rather than a cosmetic item. As you're more likely to stay outside for longer in the summer it's useful to keep a small top-up tube in your bag for the children and for yourself. Superdrug has removed VAT from all its sun protection products in an effort to encourage sun safety and is also providing 'best before' labelling to remind people that these products do have a certain shelf-life and should not be kept for use year after year. Their own-brand Solait SPF45 Baby Sun Lotion comes in a compact 100ml plastic bottle, priced 6.99.
Tissues
For the space they deserve in your bag, these are on a par with house keys and money. But stick to the kind that come in a plastic pouch, and avoid carrying large loo rolls around with you. Remember to remove all used paper from your bag daily.
Dictaphone
So you're not a doorstepping reporter or an employee of MI5, but you will be amazed at how useful it is to have one of these little gadgets in your bag. Not much bigger than a mobile phone, dictaphones are invaluable for giving yourself reminders, making important notes when you have no time to write anything down, and entertaining the children and yourself while you are out - you could recite poetry, play back the children's singing or mummy's or daddy's voice when they are grizzly; the possibilities are endless. Dictaphones take micro cassette tapes and are available from Dixons, Currys and other electrical stores from around 10.
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