~ Yesterday + Today Were SO Hot.......

[Anonymous]

I am currently a full-time Nanny to an almost four year old little boy.

I currently work every day for ten hours excluding Wednesdays & weekends of course.

I live in San Diego where the past two workdays have been really H-O-T. There is a heat advisory in place and the daytime temps have set records in the area that I work in.
Today and yesterday easily in the triple digits.

Well my employer's family lives in walking distance to many things that no driving is required.
I.e., the beach, park, library, kiddie music classes, etc.

I take my charge out daily which has always been appreciated by his Mother since she likes him to be active during the day so he can get in a good nap for the afternoon.
However both Monday as well as today were miserably warm outdoors. Even at 8AM, it was already sweltering.
Since my MomBoss had the A/C on and the house felt really good, I asked her if it would be okay to stay in for the day.
She answered laughingly "No way.....If he doesn't get out today, he won't take a good nap and I don't want to deal w/a cranky kid after work!"

So I ended up taking him to the park which was pretty much deserted due to the extreme heat. (The play structures were all in the sun.)
And the few families that were there didn't stay very long due to the hot temperature.
My charge was miserable, he didn't want to play at all & kept asking me when it was time to go home.
After about an hour, we left.

The streets to get back home are all pretty much uphill which was no fun.

Back in air-conditioned comfort, my charge was obviously in much better spirits.

My question is:
Was it rude + inconsiderate of my MomBoss to insist I take him outdoors in this extreme heat??
I am totally dreading going in on Thursday if this heat doesn't dissipate.

Or is it my duty as a Nanny to simply follow any and ALL instructions given even if I do not agree w/them and do not think they are in the child's best interest?

Any advice welcomed.
Thanks!!

[Anonymous]

I don't understand. If there are all sorts of indoor activities as well as the beach within walking distance of the house, why would you go to the park?

[Anonymous]

I'm in LA where it's been in triple digits for multiple days (but it's the norm for this time of the year, our fall is always hot).

When it's so hot that it's dangerous, we do a lot of indoor activities like mountain climbing (aka piles of pillows), obstacles courses, red light green light, hide and seek, ice play.

Also if we need to get out, we go to lunch. It's indoor so it's cool.

I would explain to your mb that in triple digits it's just not safe to be outdoors for extended periods of time. With the playground in the sun, the equipment is too hot to even touch.
If your mb doesn't understand what you are saying. Ask to drive to activities (indoor play places, because of the heat). And try to explain again.

But don't fret, cooler weather is coming.

[Anonymous]

Another LA nanny here- Your boss is nuts. It was 105 on Monday and 100 yesterday, and we hibernated all day. The only time we left was to pick up the older kids from the bus. Sports practices were also cancelled due to extreme heat. Your boss is an asshole. Next time don't say anything and just stay home! I hate when parents ask you to do things they'd never do themselves. I'm sure she enjoyed her air conditioned office while you were melting outside!

[Anonymous]

I'm in SF and a MB. I think you shouldn't have asked. You should have told her "Since there's a heat advisory we're not going to play outside today. Instead, we're going to the indoor pool/library/wherever with AC."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand. If there are all sorts of indoor activities as well as the beach within walking distance of the house, why would you go to the park?

OP Here:
The library didn't open until later in the day & the kiddie music class is on Fridays.
My MomBoss doesn't allow me to take my charge in the water @the beach, we usually go & he brings his bucket + shovel and plays in the sand but it was TOO hot to do that Monday and Tuesday.

[Anonymous]

OP Here:

Thanks for the responses my fellow Cali posters.
So glad you all understand just how hot it was/is.

Keeping my fingers crossed for cooler weather as PP mentioned!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm in SF and a MB. I think you shouldn't have asked. You should have told her "Since there's a heat advisory we're not going to play outside today. Instead, we're going to the indoor pool/library/wherever with AC."

+1 You are justified in wanting to be somewhere that is not insanely hot and your MB is justified in wanting her child to have enough activity in the morning to be willing to nap. The two don't need to be mutually exclusive, so figure out what can work (even if it's indoor pillow mountains as a PP mentioned) and suggest that. If you MB is opposed to all suggestions and just wants you to be outside when there's a heat advisory, then she's nuts and you should be looking for a different job.

We're in south Florida and I would never expect a nanny to spend much time outdoors when it's hot, but I would expect my kids to be occupied and active no matter what the weather.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm in SF and a MB. I think you shouldn't have asked. You should have told her "Since there's a heat advisory we're not going to play outside today. Instead, we're going to the indoor pool/library/wherever with AC."

+1 You are justified in wanting to be somewhere that is not insanely hot and your MB is justified in wanting her child to have enough activity in the morning to be willing to nap. The two don't need to be mutually exclusive, so figure out what can work (even if it's indoor pillow mountains as a PP mentioned) and suggest that. If you MB is opposed to all suggestions and just wants you to be outside when there's a heat advisory, then she's nuts and you should be looking for a different job.

We're in south Florida and I would never expect a nanny to spend much time outdoors when it's hot, but I would expect my kids to be occupied and active no matter what the weather.

Totally agree with the bolded. Get the child out of the house in ways that will exhaust him. That doesn't have to mean outside. Or, get your employers to get a kiddie pool and/or fun little sprinkler that you can use in the yard.

[Anonymous]

Eww....Florida can be quite hot.

And San Diego has not cooled down yet & tomorrow is Friday.

[Anonymous]

As a toddler nanny you should have plenty of activities to fill your week no matter what the weather is. I used to have a calendar for my charge in his room filled with activities and I didn't even drive. We had music class, play dates, library, museum, aquarium, zoo, community gardens, mall, the park, pet store, animal shelter, cooking, movie, show at the apartment Recreation center, gardening, catching ants in grass, nature walk.... I can go on all day. All these places I either took metro or walked. We had great adventures. And I was such a social nanny I made lots of friends that met up and kids played together all the time. Weather was never an issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As a toddler nanny you should have plenty of activities to fill your week no matter what the weather is. I used to have a calendar for my charge in his room filled with activities and I didn't even drive. We had music class, play dates, library, museum, aquarium, zoo, community gardens, mall, the park, pet store, animal shelter, cooking, movie, show at the apartment Recreation center, gardening, catching ants in grass, nature walk.... I can go on all day. All these places I either took metro or walked. We had great adventures. And I was such a social nanny I made lots of friends that met up and kids played together all the time. Weather was never an issue.

OP Here:
Unfortunately the public transportation system in San Diego is just awful plus my MB doesn't allow me to take him too far, that is why I always have to walk for our outings.

[Anonymous]

OP, you need to find a way to make this work, within the guidelines your employer has laid out, or you need to look for another job.

A child does need to get out of the house, and San Diego, while having had a heat stretch (which I was in) also has one of the most temperate climates in the country. So if this is an ongoing problem then I am inclined to think that you and this employer are not a good fit.

Your job is to find solutions that provide outside time for the child. Your employer's job is to support reasonable solutions for that. If you two can't be a team then you should move on.