Does Your Nanny Spend All Day at the Park?

[Anonymous]

My 2 yr old can still easily put stuff in her mouth, like a rock or piece of wood, so I would want her supervised at close quarters, plus older kids can accidentally send her flying to the ground and even lower slides with lots of kids make me nervous, so I would say it is ok for a 4 yr old but 2-3 yr olds still need close supervision especially if there are older kids in the mix who runmove faster and can knock down the little ones. Anyway, I would not be paying the nanny if I saw her sitting and chatting with friends for more than 5 min. I want her to be with my child.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It seems like a lot of nanny spend all day at the park. Maybe they go back to the house for nap time or preschool pickup, but morning and afternoons they are at the park. Is this typical?

There are two different groups of nannies you’ll see at the park. One group are the awesome nannies that are engaged and encourage their kids to play with each other and talk to the other nannies, but mostly are there to take care of the kids and teach them and feed them. Then you see the other group of nannies that basically ignore the kids or make them sit there and eat junk food so they’ll be able to just chat and look at their phones. I work from home so it’s nothing new to me. I have a wonderful nanny and it’s clear that she hangs out with these top-tier nannies. Like recognizes like.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not normal- she’s going all day to get away from you. Most are sitting socializing/scrolling their phones. Some are going to their homes /running personal errands Will return home for nap as soon as child wakes they go back outside until roughly 30 min before getting off for the day.

Yep this is what I saw at chestnut hills park when I had small kids.

Yes and I remember kids literally peeing on the sidewalk because the nanny didn’t want to take them home I guess. The worst nanny behavior I saw by far was at this playground.

[Anonymous]

Do you work from home? If so, that’s why your nanny is at the park all day.

- nanny

[Anonymous]

It’s much easier for nanny to be at the park. No toys to clean up, no food mess to clean up, no art projects to plan and clean up, no parent hovering or listening or whatnot. And she can be social with friends or be on her phone. But it’s not better for the kids to be outside all day most days. It’s great for them to run around a lot and get fresh air and whatnot. Go out both morning and afternoon if it’s nice! But you do need to balance it with other activities, direct interaction, and certain other things like books, manipulatives, etc.

[Anonymous]

I feel like being a nanny while one or both of the parents work at home would be a total nightmare and I'd probably try to be out of the house as much as possible too.

[Anonymous]

I agree with PP. Unfortunately, working from home is here to stay, so we nannies must adjust. It does feel less comfortable. I feel those of us who work with wfh parent should be paid more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was actually wondering the same thing. Our baby/toddler just dropped their morning nap and now the nanny is asking if we mind if they go to the park in the morning until nap time and then after nap as well. Our kid just likes to play in the mulch or with toys we bring from home-not much play equipment at the park for them at this young age. I get it, the park is easy. There is also the adult social aspect. But it seems like some structured play is needed too and that I pay too much for something a 16 year old could do.

What sort of structured play for a baby/toddler?

The adult should be interacting with the child. Reading books, singing songs together, learning sign language, taking a class together, doing art projects even if just play doh or finger paints.

None of that matters. Well, reading books, but surely you do that.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn’t say the whole day but from 10AM-1PM nannies take children to activities such as storytime, park, library, my gym and lunch a the park.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not normal- she’s going all day to get away from you. Most are sitting socializing/scrolling their phones. Some are going to their homes /running personal errands Will return home for nap as soon as child wakes they go back outside until roughly 30 min before getting off for the day.

Yep this is what I saw at chestnut hills park when I had small kids.

Yes and I remember kids literally peeing on the sidewalk because the nanny didn’t want to take them home I guess. The worst nanny behavior I saw by far was at this playground.

And remember parents are also potty training so if my child has to pee must do it at the park sometimes behind a tree. That has nothing to do with nanny’s behavior, btw.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you work from home? If so, that’s why your nanny is at the park all day.

- nanny

This.

(mom, not a nanny)

[Anonymous]

I am a Nanny and ALL of my previous as well as current families requested that I spend like 2-3 hours a day at the park.

It gives the child and I a change of scenery, fresh air + an opportunity to get out and about and exercise!
Parents like it when their child is active as it helps them sleep better later on.

For younger kids - I will do a park outing in the morning.
Then home for lunch and a nap, then later on we may play in the backyard.

We may go to the park again but that is rare.

At least one outing per day keeps most parents happy for the most part. 😃

[Anonymous]

as a mom - on nice days I spend most of the weekend at the park. Its great - kids burn off energy and get fresh air, there's no agenda or rushing, the kids get to know other kids that are there a lot and have playmates, i'm not trying to negotiate my 3 kids all wanting to do different things at a museum or kids play space.

I'm not sure why you think this is weird or that they must be only doing it to slack on their job but if you don't like it for your kid / nanny to do it, give them a schedule of when you want them home and what other activities you should out of the house. there's a very easy solution but its not weird to default to the park a lot or bad for the kids

[Anonymous]

the PP who says a 3/4 yr needs to be closely supervised...what in the world do you think people do when they have a second?!

[Anonymous]

I think the real question is what is the nanny doing all day at the park? If it is as a PP described some solitary play, some engaged play with the caregiver, time spent with friends and generally a caring demeanor from the caregiver then if the parents are ok with it, fine. However the sitter who simply sits and glances up from their phone every thirty minutes to make sure the child is in eyesight is a different story.