Sitter vs. Nanny

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yikes, I'm a highly paid nanny who does whatever I think is the best thing for the child. Parents who want me, tell me they specifically depend on me for that reason. They often discuss what their doing, and ask if that's the best thing.
Does that mean I am not a nanny, in your opinion?

You've described yourself exactly as NannyDeb did - someone who does what the parents want while offering advice, ideas, etc. I don't see any way in which you could logically argue that her definition is invalid.

No, I personally do not do anything, because I was "told" to. I do only what I determine is best. But that's just me, maybe.

MB here - In that case, I would not consider you to be a good nanny. My kids are my kids and I expect a nanny to follow my and DH's instructions. Of course we have regular conversations when she has thoughts or suggestions, and we trust her judgment to make good decisions for our child when necessary. But if she never did what we asked of her and only what she decided to? We'd replace her very quickly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yikes, I'm a highly paid nanny who does whatever I think is the best thing for the child. Parents who want me, tell me they specifically depend on me for that reason. They often discuss what their doing, and ask if that's the best thing.
Does that mean I am not a nanny, in your opinion?

You've described yourself exactly as NannyDeb did - someone who does what the parents want while offering advice, ideas, etc. I don't see any way in which you could logically argue that her definition is invalid.

No, I personally do not do anything, because I was "told" to. I do only what I determine is best. But that's just me, maybe.

MB here - In that case, I would not consider you to be a good nanny. My kids are my kids and I expect a nanny to follow my and DH's instructions. Of course we have regular conversations when she has thoughts or suggestions, and we trust her judgment to make good decisions for our child when necessary. But if she never did what we asked of her and only what she decided to? We'd replace her very quickly.

And I would add, partly this is because there are a lot of "right" ways to parent and raise children. Just because you have good judgment and may make good decisions does not necessarily mean I want you to put my child down for only one nap because you decided to rather than two because I asked you to. There is a lot of gray area there. And whether or not you have good judgment, not following a parent's instructions without a conversation first would be a HUGE red flag for me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Sitter simply does what she is told.

Nanny takes full advantage
of her experience and training.

Why do parents want an experienced nanny?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Sitter simply does what she is told.

Nanny takes full advantage
of her experience and training.

Why do parents want an experienced nanny?

Why not just get a lovely obiedient young lady to follow orders? Some of you get into trouble with "experienced" nannies.

[Anonymous]

Boring troll is bored tonight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nanny here. I read pediatric medical journals when child naps. I do the other stuff before hand. MB is a MD.

Thank you.

Because I am meticulous in every way, I leave my work place at least as tidy as I found it, if not more so. I just would not allow housekeeping duties to become part of my written agreement. Every reference will vouch for how I perform my work.

Imagine your hiring an administrative assistant. You spell out the tasks, but would you really add on, "by the way I want my Starbucks latte every morning at 10:30 sharp"? I don't know about you, but if I were her, I'd politely write you off. On the other hand, if she is a good and conscientious person, she will do her best to see to it that you get that drink, as soon as she learns how much you would appreciate it.

Sometimes it's all a matter of how you present yourself. At least with me. When you hire a professional, you need to have professional standards. That's what you're paying for, hopefully.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nanny here. I read pediatric medical journals when child naps. I do the other stuff before hand. MB is a MD.

Thank you.

Because I am meticulous in every way, I leave my work place at least as tidy as I found it, if not more so. I just would not allow housekeeping duties to become part of my written agreement. Every reference will vouch for how I perform my work.

Imagine your hiring an administrative assistant. You spell out the tasks, but would you really add on, "by the way I want my Starbucks latte every morning at 10:30 sharp"? I don't know about you, but if I were her, I'd politely write you off. On the other hand, if she is a good and conscientious person, she will do her best to see to it that you get that drink, as soon as she learns how much you would appreciate it.

Sometimes it's all a matter of how you present yourself. At least with me. When you hire a professional, you need to have professional standards. That's what you're paying for, hopefully.

If the person hiring an admin assistant was desirable or famous enough, you'd have people lining up around the block to bring you lattes as many time as you like, at the schedule of your choosing. Don't be ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nanny here. I read pediatric medical journals when child naps. I do the other stuff before hand. MB is a MD.

Thank you.

Because I am meticulous in every way, I leave my work place at least as tidy as I found it, if not more so. I just would not allow housekeeping duties to become part of my written agreement. Every reference will vouch for how I perform my work.

Imagine your hiring an administrative assistant. You spell out the tasks, but would you really add on, "by the way I want my Starbucks latte every morning at 10:30 sharp"? I don't know about you, but if I were her, I'd politely write you off. On the other hand, if she is a good and conscientious person, she will do her best to see to it that you get that drink, as soon as she learns how much you would appreciate it.

Sometimes it's all a matter of how you present yourself. At least with me. When you hire a professional, you need to have professional standards. That's what you're paying for, hopefully.

If the person hiring an admin assistant was desirable or famous enough, you'd have people lining up around the block to bring you lattes as many time as you like, at the schedule of your choosing. Don't be ridiculous.

So which Kennedy do you think you are?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ditto on the nannies do housework. Every nanny that I know does housework. It would be silly to hire someone full time to do nothing while the kids nap.

+1, although housekeeping means different things to different people. The vast majority of nannies do cooking, housekeeping, and home management tasks that are related to children and the extra messes they make. Some nannies go well beyond that, but I wouldn't consider housekeeping and cleaning that is not child-related part of the definition of a nanny.

+1

Exactly. Cooking, housekeeping tasks related to children IS part of nanny job.

[Anonymous]

My nanny jobs in NYC always have fulltime housekeepers to do whatever I might need, even ask what *I'd* like to have prepared for lunch. Nice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

nannydebsays wrote:A sitter generally does custodial care. Makes sure the kids are safe, fed, and entertained.

A nanny does all that and more - she works to provide an environment that is intellectually, emotionally, and physically stimulating, and she often has a child development related degree and/or experience.

A sitter does as she is directed to do by the parents, without offering ideas/suggestions/advice.

A nanny does as she is directed to do, but she also expects to give advice, offer ideas, help parents resolve issues, and take initiative.

This is silly. A good sitter also offers advice and ideas, helps parents resolve issues, takes initiative, and works to provide an environment that is intellectually, emotionally, and physically stimulating for the kids. I've also found that more sitters than nannies have a degree in child development. Many sitters are twenty-something women who work full time as teachers or in other child-related professions and babysit at night, on weekends, or during the summer to earn extra cash.

The biggest difference between a nanny and a sitter relates to duties that go beyond direct interaction with the kids. Since a sitter typically works on an occasional or very part time basis, she is generally less integrated into household operations and, thus, is expected to do less than a nanny in terms of wrap-around care like children's laundry, cleaning and organizing toys and gear, meal planning and cooking for the kids from scratch (though most sitters do reheat meals or prepare simple things like spaghetti as directed by parents). Most sitters are expected to read or watch tv while the kids sleep, whereas most nannies are expected to perform other child-related tasks, such as those listed above, at that time.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

nannydebsays wrote:A sitter generally does custodial care. Makes sure the kids are safe, fed, and entertained.

A nanny does all that and more - she works to provide an environment that is intellectually, emotionally, and physically stimulating, and she often has a child development related degree and/or experience.

A sitter does as she is directed to do by the parents, without offering ideas/suggestions/advice.

A nanny does as she is directed to do, but she also expects to give advice, offer ideas, help parents resolve issues, and take initiative.

This is silly. A good sitter also offers advice and ideas, helps parents resolve issues, takes initiative, and works to provide an environment that is intellectually, emotionally, and physically stimulating for the kids. I've also found that more sitters than nannies have a degree in child development. Many sitters are twenty-something women who work full time as teachers or in other child-related professions and babysit at night, on weekends, or during the summer to earn extra cash.

The biggest difference between a nanny and a sitter relates to duties that go beyond direct interaction with the kids. Since a sitter typically works on an occasional or very part time basis, she is generally less integrated into household operations and, thus, is expected to do less than a nanny in terms of wrap-around care like children's laundry, cleaning and organizing toys and gear, meal planning and cooking for the kids from scratch (though most sitters do reheat meals or prepare simple things like spaghetti as directed by parents). Most sitters are expected to read or watch tv while the kids sleep, whereas most nannies are expected to perform other child-related tasks, such as those listed above, at that time.

+1

If a sitter is with a child only occasionally, or very part time, her advice is presumably more of a general nature, seeing how she has less opportunity to really know the child as well as the full time caregiver would. No?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's different to everyone. In general, a nanny has more job related knowledge, is more experienced, and costs 20-30/hr. A sitter is usually closer to 15/hr.

Here we are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's different to everyone. In general, a nanny has more job related knowledge, is more experienced, and costs 20-30/hr. A sitter is usually closer to 15/hr.

Here we are.

I pay my nanny $12 an hour so there goes your theory.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's different to everyone. In general, a nanny has more job related knowledge, is more experienced, and costs 20-30/hr. A sitter is usually closer to 15/hr.

Here we are.

I pay my nanny $12 an hour so there goes your theory.

Call her Alice if you like. Whatever. None of us knows, who you're calling what.