Reply to I need to make my life significantly easier -- "hacks" to make life, and parenting life, easier?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Pffffft to "hacks".  The [b]things that have made my life easier[/b] are:

1) [b]Nanny instead of daycare[/b]
2) Cleaning lady
3) Grocery delivery
4) DH who does his fair share
5) Short commute (this meant giving up space, paying more $$$ for our home)

The only "hack" type thing I'd say is dry shampoo, ha![/quote]

I have not found this to be the case at all. We’ve had to switch to a nanny b/c the pandemic and I really miss my kids’ preschool. Now I’ve got extra people in my home all day generating extra commotion and wear and tear on my house, plus I have to provide paid leave/deal with taxes/pay for a workers comp policy, etc. We’ve gone through a couple in-home providers now and they each have their own issues (poor time management, not carrying out the activities I asked them to do, etc.). Maybe I haven’t found the perfect match, but I’ve talked to friends with similar issues. Honestly I find managing an employee to be a headache I don’t want. This has made me realize how much I never want to move into management!

Before covid we had a really nice montessori school a mile down the road that offered a nice meal plan. I could drop my kids for the day and they’d do really cool activities and crafts that I didn’t have to prepare for. It cost about as much as a nanny, but I think quality out of home care (esp if you work at home) is GOLDEN. [/quote]

You just haven't found the right nanny.  I never had to get my kids bundled up and out the door in the morning.  I didn't have to take up any of my precious morning family time with drop off.  I didn't have to pack or unpack any bags or wash any bottles.  I didn't have to waste any of my precious evening family time with pick up.  I didn't have to take time off if my kids were sick, and they weren't even sick much because they weren't in daycare.  My nanny made my kids breakfast, lunch, and snacks, including deciding WHAT to make.  She did all the kids' laundry, sheets, dishes, and had the house tidy and de-cluttered when I walked in the door every evening.  If I were running late at the office every now and then -- NBD -- she was flexible in the evenings.  She was never late, pretty much never sick.  She took the kids on outings, formed regular weekly playgroups with other nannies in the neighborhood, and had plenty of ideas to keep the kids stimulated.  "Managing" her was a total breeze.  (When my kids turned 3, I did put them in part-time preschool for added socialization and structure and activities, and nanny did the drop off and pick up for that!)  She also got my kids on a later nap schedule than that offered at most daycares - so kids were actually pleasant in the evenings.

The "commotion" you are enduring is a factor of the pandemic and suddenly being WFH when your home was probably not optimally set up for such with little ones around.  I agree that would be stressful.  But it's of course not part of the normal nanny versus daycare calculus.  I'm also a huge proponent of preschool (like I said, I put my kids in part-time starting at age 3), but a good nanny made MY LIFE easier, hands down.
[/quote]

I’m the PP not enjoying having a nanny and you’re right that the pandemic is probably a huge part of it. It also doesn’t help that I really thrive on alone time and enjoyed working from home alone. But I guess I don’t see the huge issue about pickups and drop offs unless you have a long commute or crazy hours or something. It was maybe 10 min round trip to preschool and then my house was nice and quiet all day long. I never had any issue being able to pick up by 4:30/5 (DH and I usually swapped off to stagger hours). Sigh, I am just missing my normal routine. I also don’t have a big house so that doesn’t help (we’re close-in in a walkable neighborhood instead of buying bigger farther out).

I have several other friends who have complained about their nannies too though and the nanny forum is full of complaints, so I don’t think it’s all that rare that having a nanny can make life complicated. I guess if you can find a unicorn nanny with no personal issues they drag to work who rarely call out and are on standby to stay late, and you aren’t home all day dealing with it, then it’s probably nice.

But after this, if we have a third, I’m going back to daycare/preschool for sure. [/quote]

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