nanny models terrible eating/kids complain. would you say anything?

[Anonymous]

I am the PP of the unhealthy lunch posting.

Organic food at the time (maybe still is!) was more expensive to purchase so my budget as a Nanny wasn’t really allowing me to eat it.

My problem w/my former MomBoss was that she never asked or requested me to bring certain kind of food to work, she only did that after she saw what my lunches consisted of.

Her constantly critiquing my lunch was simply annoying to me.

I would have gladly eaten whatever of her food that she had me prepare for the kids, but she never offered me.
I simply was told upon hire that I needed to bring my own lunch daily.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Years ago, I was hired as a Nanny for two small children.

I was required to bring in my own lunch and I usually would have a mustard + lunch meat sandwich, a small bag of potato chips, an apple, a cookie + a juice box.

The Mother would get annoyed w/me & tell me their family only ate organic food.
She would constantly tell her kids that I was eating junk.

Upon hire - she never disclosed to me that I only bring in healthy food.
Needless to say, my lunches became a huge bone of contention between us and I ended up quitting.
If she wanted me to only eat healthy lunches I feel she should have disclosed this to me upon hire or else let me eat whatever I made for the children’s lunches.

This doesn't ring true - all the bolded foods can be organic.

Sounds like the nanny wasn’t going to pay for organic.

There's no way someone can know by looking at the food whether or not it was organic - mustard, bread, meat, apple, cookie. The only things you'd know by looking are not organic are a juice box and bag of chips.

The Apple may have a regular tag, not an organic tag. The cookie could easily be recognized as one of the non-organic junk food types if it’s Oreo or similar.

Regardless, the lunch is junk. Bread isn’t exactly the pinnacle of health, lunch meat is atrocious, and nobody can say that juice boxes, chips or cookies are anything but treats. The only healthy portions of that lunch are the apple and mustard. Since she made a point of listing the mustard, but didn’t say anything about other things on the sandwich, I’m guessing there weren’t any vegetables like lettuce, peppers, cucumber or tomato.

Oh, please, the lunch was not junk. A turkey sandwich or whatever with mustard is fine, and an apple. I probably wouldn’t eat chips AND a cookie myself, but that would just be too much food for me. Sprouts and chia seed pudding wrapped in lettuce cups or whatever you would insist upon is vile and wouldn’t fill up a rabbit.

[Anonymous]

Nanny here and I've had the reverse issue. I eat healthy (not over the top, but generally make intentionally good food choices) and my last family ate complete garbage. It was twin toddlers and all they ate were frozen breakfast sandwhiches, frozen chocolate chip pancakes, donuts, chicken nuggets, pizza bagels, hot dogs, and cake/cookies/cupcakes/ice cream.

I was there for 4 years and around the start of year 2 I asked if I could have a grocery shopping allowance each week. I slowly changed their habits and the kids LOVED fruits and veggies, turkey meatballs, salmon, grilled chicken, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Years ago, I was hired as a Nanny for two small children.

I was required to bring in my own lunch and I usually would have a mustard + lunch meat sandwich, a small bag of potato chips, an apple, a cookie + a juice box.

The Mother would get annoyed w/me & tell me their family only ate organic food.
She would constantly tell her kids that I was eating junk.

Upon hire - she never disclosed to me that I only bring in healthy food.
Needless to say, my lunches became a huge bone of contention between us and I ended up quitting.
If she wanted me to only eat healthy lunches I feel she should have disclosed this to me upon hire or else let me eat whatever I made for the children’s lunches.

This doesn't ring true - all the bolded foods can be organic.

Sounds like the nanny wasn’t going to pay for organic.

There's no way someone can know by looking at the food whether or not it was organic - mustard, bread, meat, apple, cookie. The only things you'd know by looking are not organic are a juice box and bag of chips.

The Apple may have a regular tag, not an organic tag. The cookie could easily be recognized as one of the non-organic junk food types if it’s Oreo or similar.

Regardless, the lunch is junk. Bread isn’t exactly the pinnacle of health, lunch meat is atrocious, and nobody can say that juice boxes, chips or cookies are anything but treats. The only healthy portions of that lunch are the apple and mustard. Since she made a point of listing the mustard, but didn’t say anything about other things on the sandwich, I’m guessing there weren’t any vegetables like lettuce, peppers, cucumber or tomato.

Oh, please, the lunch was not junk. A turkey sandwich or whatever with mustard is fine, and an apple. I probably wouldn’t eat chips AND a cookie myself, but that would just be too much food for me. Sprouts and chia seed pudding wrapped in lettuce cups or whatever you would insist upon is vile and wouldn’t fill up a rabbit.

My lunch was quinoa, celery, onion and spinach cooked in chicken broth, with about an ounce of simmered chicken shredded on top. On the side, I had a clementine, a small piece of cheese and a glass of water. The kids tried the quinoa/veggie bowl and they loved it. Actually, they asked me to make more next time, so they can have some too.

Yesterday, I had grass-fed beef, cashews, carrots, onion, bok choy, celery, bell pepper, beans, pineapple and kale in a stir fry with some brown rice on the side. I use very little oil, season with low sodium soy sauce at the very end and don’t use other high sugar or sodium sauces. Yet the kids and I think it’s filling and tasty.

Bread is fine if you eat sprouted whole grain. Most people don’t, and what they eat is not only nutritionally void, it can cause issues long term.

Lunch meat is full of additives, sodium and/or fat. Even if it says no nitrates, they add celery root powder or other “natural” curing methods, which does the same thing.

Do your own research. My lunch can be prepped in one batch, 35 minutes total prep and cook, then split over a week or two (combination fridge and freezer). I add spices to boost micronutrients as well as taste. And best of all, the kids want to eat more vegetables... Compare that to a lunch meat sandwich, juice box, chips and cookie. No issues with the apple, but otherwise, the lunch is awful.

We have a duty to be role models. Children model what they see, not what we say. If we swear, they swear. If we wash our hands, they want to wash their hands. Why is it so hard to understand that a child wants to eat what they see their caregiver eating? “Oh this is just for me. Let me sit here and chow down on a juice box, cookie, chips and sandwich, while you eat the healthy food your parents want you to eat.” Not me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nanny here and I've had the reverse issue. I eat healthy (not over the top, but generally make intentionally good food choices) and my last family ate complete garbage. It was twin toddlers and all they ate were frozen breakfast sandwhiches, frozen chocolate chip pancakes, donuts, chicken nuggets, pizza bagels, hot dogs, and cake/cookies/cupcakes/ice cream.

I was there for 4 years and around the start of year 2 I asked if I could have a grocery shopping allowance each week. I slowly changed their habits and the kids LOVED fruits and veggies, turkey meatballs, salmon, grilled chicken, etc.

This has happened with several of the families I’ve had. Parents applaud themselves because the kids don’t drink soda or eat hot dogs, but they have juice boxes that are at least half added sugar. Eating 6+ waffles or pancakes to feel full (elementary age kids), then needing a snack 30 minutes later is NOT healthy!

[Anonymous]

I would eat whatever I wanted. If you don't like it, then you prepare my lunch.

[Anonymous]

What did you expect her eating habits would be? I presume you knew she was obese upon hiring?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What did you expect her eating habits would be? I presume you knew she was obese upon hiring?

Healthy and slender don’t always correlate. Neither do obese/overweight and unhealthy food.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What did you expect her eating habits would be? I presume you knew she was obese upon hiring?

When I hired her she was picking my kids up after school at 3:30 and hanging out at the library or taking them to activities, so she had already eaten lunch. I knew she ate crap because she would often toss her fast food bags in our garbage, but eating this stuff in front of them day after day was never a consideration until pandemic times.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What did you expect her eating habits would be? I presume you knew she was obese upon hiring?

Silly of you to presume fat equals horrible nutrition. Are you slender? Why not tell us all the healthy food you eat?

Or are you fat, eat horribly, and assume all other fat people eat crap too?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What did you expect her eating habits would be? I presume you knew she was obese upon hiring?

When I hired her she was picking my kids up after school at 3:30 and hanging out at the library or taking them to activities, so she had already eaten lunch. I knew she ate crap because she would often toss her fast food bags in our garbage, but eating this stuff in front of them day after day was never a consideration until pandemic times.

Two routes to go here: Use the nanny as an example of what not to eat or figure out a way to incorporate your healthy foods into her diet. Might take some creativity but it can be done. Won't be perfect but worth a try. Eating is so personal that it's difficult to approach it without hurt feelings. Provide the foods. Make it helping you with your diet or something where she can save face and not feel controlled.

My children had a morbidity obese teacher in a small school where you have the same teacher for multiple years and also in clubs so familiarity. It didn't impact them although I recognize the school day is shorter and less intimate than care.