Fabulous nanny- school aged child. What should she do with her days?

[Anonymous]

I have a fabulous nanny who has been with me for over 4 yrs. I still need her in the mornings to help my first grader get to to the bus stop and I need her in the evenings for bus stop pick up until I get home. My son is going from a 5 hr school day to nearly 8 hrs out of the house. I need the flexibility of my nanny for 1/2 days, sick care, school holidays, snow days etc... What do I do with her during the days? She already does laundry, light cleaning, can pick up dry cleaning, can do some grocery shopping. I need some more ideas.... Any experience with this would be helpful. Thanks

[Anonymous]

What would she enjoy doing?

[Anonymous]

If she's already doing laundry, light cleaning, running errands, and grocery shopping, the only thing I would consider adding is some meal planning and prep. She could start dinner in a slow cooker or wash and cut up veggies for dinner, etc. She might also be able to take on small house projects, like reorganizing a cabinet or your kid's closet.

[Anonymous]

ours also does gardening b/c she loves it, and then the sports driving picks up.

[Anonymous]

Look up "household manager" positions on agency websites. You might ask her if she's interested in transitioning to that role, too, if those are tasks that would be useful for you.

[Anonymous]

Did she tell you she's bored?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Look up "household manager" positions on agency websites. You might ask her if she's interested in transitioning to that role, too, if those are tasks that would be useful for you.

She's already doing that job. Maybe she'd want to be the housekeeper?

[Anonymous]

Ask her what she would like to do. Our nanny added family meal cooking/prep and it has been a godsend for our family. However, I have no problem with having her do nothing or personal business in her downtime as I feel I am paying her to be on-call. She has been our nanny for over ten years!

[Anonymous]

Yes, talk to her.

I know a nanny who's been with the same family for over 12 years; both children are now in middle or high-school. She does the basic housekeeping and food prep and is then invited to lounge by the pool, watch tv, etc. Now, that isn't standard, but it is the reason she's stayed so long. She wants to nanny, not garden, so if they didn't need her to do household management she'd just switch to a family with younger kids. Your nanny might have something in mind she'd enjoy doing to help out but you'll have to ask her. Please don't try to compile a list of chores for her, sit down, have a discussion about your needs and her preferences, take some time reflect, then chat again to go over what you'd like her days to look like.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, talk to her.

I know a nanny who's been with the same family for over 12 years; both children are now in middle or high-school. She does the basic housekeeping and food prep and is then invited to lounge by the pool, watch tv, etc. Now, that isn't standard, but it is the reason she's stayed so long. She wants to nanny, not garden, so if they didn't need her to do household management she'd just switch to a family with younger kids. Your nanny might have something in mind she'd enjoy doing to help out but you'll have to ask her. Please don't try to compile a list of chores for her, sit down, have a discussion about your needs and her preferences, take some time reflect, then chat again to go over what you'd like her days to look like.

This is about your needs, not hers. Figure out what you need the person in her position to do now that your kids are getting older, write up a new job description, tell her you love her and would like her to stay if she is interested. If she's not, you've outgrown each other and it's time for you both to move on. But no, she doesn't get to select her duties. This is a job, not a country club.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, talk to her.

I know a nanny who's been with the same family for over 12 years; both children are now in middle or high-school. She does the basic housekeeping and food prep and is then invited to lounge by the pool, watch tv, etc. Now, that isn't standard, but it is the reason she's stayed so long. She wants to nanny, not garden, so if they didn't need her to do household management she'd just switch to a family with younger kids. Your nanny might have something in mind she'd enjoy doing to help out but you'll have to ask her. Please don't try to compile a list of chores for her, sit down, have a discussion about your needs and her preferences, take some time reflect, then chat again to go over what you'd like her days to look like.

This is about your needs, not hers. Figure out what you need the person in her position to do now that your kids are getting older, write up a new job description, tell her you love her and would like her to stay if she is interested. If she's not, you've outgrown each other and it's time for you both to move on. But no, she doesn't get to select her duties. This is a job, not a country club.

Yes, this is a job but OP also wants the stability of her nanny for her children. She needs the nanny to do pick up and drop off as well as be available for holidays, vacation days as well as sick days at a moment's notice. This is a nanny job - and you cannot ask your nanny to wash your car or mow your lawn just because she has a few hours free.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, talk to her.

I know a nanny who's been with the same family for over 12 years; both children are now in middle or high-school. She does the basic housekeeping and food prep and is then invited to lounge by the pool, watch tv, etc. Now, that isn't standard, but it is the reason she's stayed so long. She wants to nanny, not garden, so if they didn't need her to do household management she'd just switch to a family with younger kids. Your nanny might have something in mind she'd enjoy doing to help out but you'll have to ask her. Please don't try to compile a list of chores for her, sit down, have a discussion about your needs and her preferences, take some time reflect, then chat again to go over what you'd like her days to look like.

This is about your needs, not hers. Figure out what you need the person in her position to do now that your kids are getting older, write up a new job description, tell her you love her and would like her to stay if she is interested. If she's not, you've outgrown each other and it's time for you both to move on. But no, she doesn't get to select her duties. This is a job, not a country club.

Yes, this is a job but OP also wants the stability of her nanny for her children. She needs the nanny to do pick up and drop off as well as be available for holidays, vacation days as well as sick days at a moment's notice. This is a nanny job - and you cannot ask your nanny to wash your car or mow your lawn just because she has a few hours free.

Exactly. As a nanny, I will not morph into a housekeeper any more than my doctor will morph into my chauffeur.

[Anonymous]

Do you even have enough household duties to occupy her for a full eight hour school day?

Perhaps she can do some more chores, like ironing and organizing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a fabulous nanny who has been with me for over 4 yrs. I still need her in the mornings to help my first grader get to to the bus stop and I need her in the evenings for bus stop pick up until I get home. My son is going from a 5 hr school day to nearly 8 hrs out of the house. I need the flexibility of my nanny for 1/2 days, sick care, school holidays, snow days etc... What do I do with her during the days? She already does laundry, light cleaning, can pick up dry cleaning, can do some grocery shopping. I need some more ideas.... Any experience with this would be helpful. Thanks

Sounds to me like she's already quite busy. Is your husband thinking it's not enough work? What's her hourly rate for all this work? $16/hr. or closer to $25/hr? Maybe she'll be ready to move on rather than do your full house cleaning.

Nannies don't do that. Just tell him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, talk to her.

I know a nanny who's been with the same family for over 12 years; both children are now in middle or high-school. She does the basic housekeeping and food prep and is then invited to lounge by the pool, watch tv, etc. Now, that isn't standard, but it is the reason she's stayed so long. She wants to nanny, not garden, so if they didn't need her to do household management she'd just switch to a family with younger kids. Your nanny might have something in mind she'd enjoy doing to help out but you'll have to ask her. Please don't try to compile a list of chores for her, sit down, have a discussion about your needs and her preferences, take some time reflect, then chat again to go over what you'd like her days to look like.

This is about your needs, not hers. Figure out what you need the person in her position to do now that your kids are getting older, write up a new job description, tell her you love her and would like her to stay if she is interested. If she's not, you've outgrown each other and it's time for you both to move on. But no, she doesn't get to select her duties. This is a job, not a country club.

Yeahhhh, did you read what I wrote? "Have a discussion about YOUR needs and HER preferences." Reading comprehension fail.