Everything grandparents need, on the fridge.

How to use it

How to use the grandparent babysitting sheet

1. Fill in the top half before you go

   Your phone numbers, the home address, anything your child must avoid, and how the day usually runs. Do it once and photocopy it, then just update the routine as your baby grows.

2. Write the routine as times, not rules

   Grandparents find “nap around 12:30, usually 1 to 1½ hours” easier to follow than a list of dos and don’ts. Add what helps them settle and where the comfort items live.

3. Leave it somewhere obvious

   On the fridge or by the kettle, with a pen. The bottom half is for the grandparent to jot down sleeps, feeds and diapers while you are out.

4. Read the log when you get home

   A quick look at the times tells you when the last nap ended and the last feed was, so you know how the evening will go.

What to write

The top half, box by box

1. Numbers first

   Both parents, one nearby adult who can come over, and your family doctor. Write the home address too: it is the first thing an emergency operator asks, and visitors rarely know the postcode or zip.

2. Things to avoid

   Allergies, foods you are not giving yet, and anything else that is a firm no. Keep it short so it stands out.

3. The usual day

   Wake, naps, meals, bath and bed, with rough times. Every family does it differently, and times are easier to follow than explanations.

4. Feeds, settling and comfort items

   How to make up a bottle or what they eat, what helps them drift off, and where the sleeping bag, dummy (pacifier) or favourite toy is.

Paper or phone

A sheet for the day, an app for every day

For a one-off evening, the sheet is all you need. If grandparents look after your baby every week, writing the routine out each time gets old, and you only find out how the day went when you get home.

In BabyRelay grandparents join your family with an invite code. They see the same timeline you do, including when the last nap ended and the next nap window, and every log they add shows up on your phone with their name on it. Scan the QR code on the sheet to get the app, and write your invite code in the boxes beside it.