Can we ask the nanny to make enough food to last for DD for the weekend?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nanny here and I personally don't think it's that big of a deal. I make food and leave it in the fridge for the weekends for my charges all the time. I also made all of their baby food and did it 2 days a week (Tuesday and Fridays) so that it was always freshly stocked for the weekend.

Now the compromise is that if I am not feeling well or have an exceptionally busy week my employers are 100% fine with preparing food on the weekends. I also always have things in the freezer that are easy to pull out.

Not OP but what do you make fresh that you can freeze for toddler meals?

Not pp but
-turkey meatballs (I usually add spinach or pureed carrots/sweet potatoes and the kids never know!)
-mini quiches/fritatas (with quinoa, cheese, ham/turkey, veggies, ect)
-muffin tin lasagna/ shepherds pie/meatloaf
-pasta sauce fortified with veggies
-large batches of pancakes and waffels
-large batches of pasta like penne and farfalle
-steamed veggies cut toddler sized
-falafil
-homemade chicken tenders and fish sticks
-mac and cheese with green veggies (peas, broccoli, spinach)
-soup, especially chicken noodle/rice and very midly spiced chilli

to name a few things. Basically anything that can be made in a large batch, cooked in a muffin tin, and then frozen individually for easy thawing/reheat

I'm the pp you asked and I do almost all of these things too. I like Weelicious if I'm needing inspiration and she often has freezing and reheating instructions.


Some of our favorites from there that I've frozen well:

Apple/Banana Muffins
Strawberry Muffins
Ham and Cheese Muffins
Cheesy Turkey Meatballs
Meatloaf Bites
Lasagne
Mini Chicken Meatballs and Wagon Wheel Pasta
Cheddar Broccoli Patties
Chicken Nuggets
Mini Quiches
Fish Tenders
Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas

PP with the other list, I love the enchilada idea!
I, as I'm sure you have as well, found that toddlers will eat anything as long as they can use their hands and it seems like it is sized just for them! I have never had a problem with pick eaters because I give babies/toddlers a huge variety of foods, all of which I would eat myself, as soon as it's age appropriate. Eating can actually be enjoyable and not a constant power struggle resulting in giving in and making grilled cheese and hotdogs every other day!

[Anonymous]

The weekends are not her responsibility OP.

Sure, you can ask....No one is stopping you literally.

But it is unfair to do so.

If you want her to do this for your family, at least be decent about it and offer her more money.

[Anonymous]

To those saying that this is NBD because your nanny does it without being asked, you are missing the point. I am a part-time nanny who regulary prepares food for meals and days when I am not on duty, without being asked and without extra pay. BUT, I do so because it is convenient for me, and because I enjoy cooking. I also sometimes fold a load of the parents' laundry when I have time and can see that they are behind. I do not particularly enjoy that, but I do it occasionally ro be nice. If my boss came to me with an attitude like OP's and said that she "doesn't have time" to fold her own laundry and can't I just do all the laundry since I am already washing the kids' stuff, I would be very annoyed.

This is a 4-day-per-week nanny, and OP wants her to make meals for the entire week, very close to doubling the amount of work. Also, as others have pointed out, there are many solutions. The obvious one being get your shit together ao that you have a spare 15 minutes on a Friday to steam some vegetables. But even if OP is truly as busy as she claims (working 5 jobs? Suffering from a debilitatin illness? Leading a double life as a superhero?) she could order via peapod a bag of "steam in bag" mixed veggies and some commercially packaged purees and greek yogurt. Or she could be respectful of the fact that this is NOT the nanny's job and offer a small increase in wages to symbolize that the nanny is being asked to do more than she is obligated to.

[Anonymous]

Nanny probably thinks your requests are ridiculous and wants to see how much you enjoy making homemade greek yogurt. You are awful, op. Do your own food prep!!

[Anonymous]

OP's request is a bit baffling. You can put veggies in a steamer while you shower or wash dishes or do many other chores. My only thought is that maybe OP is not a naturally organized person, like maybe she realizes she needs the veggies 15 minutes before dinner and then finds her freezer is actually empty because she forgot to make groceries. If that is the case, then you are smart to outsource to someone who is better at getting meals together. However, you really should pay for the convenience with a proportionate bump in weekly pay. Also keep in mind that monday is the best day for making purses because it ensures the nanny will have enough food for her time there. If she makes food later in the week and you pack it all for you long weekend away then she will have nothing to feed baby on Monday, plus she will have to cook twice per week instead of once.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My nanny always does this! She even makes a meatloaf every Thursday for a weekend meal.
We help each other where we can. When I get home a couple hours early, I let her go instead of keeping her. I think this give and take is what makes us a good pair.
OP, do you do "extra" for her where you can?

This! I have a similar relationship with my NF, it's give and take and we all benefit.
OP, if your nanny is spending the time to make homemade yogurt ect. she likely enjoys it and would not mind making extras at all! I used to love making freezer meals and extra snacks for the weekend (granola bars, frozen yogurt drops, crackers) when my charges were the age of OP. I had the time during the day and, honestly, it was nice to have the extra tasks sometimes...the day goes really fast when you can spend a hour or two of it cooking!

Not OP, but can I hire you????? Our nanny doesnt' cook anything for our toddler.

[Anonymous]

OP here. I asked my nanny this morning and she said "Of course!". She said thought I preferred to make the baby's food myself and that she could just rearrange her cooking schedule to make sure DC's staples were in place on weekends.

I have a great nanny. So sweet. I should have asked her before I ever posted here. I'm sorry.

[Anonymous]

Yes- you can ask the nanny to do this (assuming she has time in the regular work week to do it). You just need to prioritize it over other activities she might do while on the clock and tell her.

For example, she will have 'downtime' when your child is napping but during which she is being paid. During that down time, she can make the food (or do a host of other things like laundry, tidy up etc). When she is making lunch, you can ask her to spend a bit more time cutting up more vegetables and bagging them.

I really don't know what everybody is freaking out about. It's not like you are asking her to clean your toilets--you are asking her to do activities she normally does (cook food) and do it during times when she is being paid and has nothing else to do.

If your daughter does not nap, then you'd be asking her to do that in lieu of watching your child which probably would not work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. I asked my nanny this morning and she said "Of course!". She said thought I preferred to make the baby's food myself and that she could just rearrange her cooking schedule to make sure DC's staples were in place on weekends.

I have a great nanny. So sweet. I should have asked her before I ever posted here. I'm sorry.

THat's lovely.

If I were you I'd reward her. Cash bonus, gift card, etc...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op does she make the Greek yogurt at your house or at hers ? I just googled how to make it and it takes 22.5 hours. Most of that is it sitting in an oven but still wow

OPs a troll so who cares

Yeah, sorry little Sherlock, but I am not a troll.

Nanny makes the yogurt at our house.

So... there is not definite answer to whether or not I can ask her to make enough food for the baby to go through the weekend?

The answer is NO. Feed your own kid when the nanny isn't there. What are you so busy doing that you don't have time to feed your own child?

[Anonymous]

^^ PP here. Your nanny better be more than well paid. and shown regularly how much you appreciate her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. I asked my nanny this morning and she said "Of course!". She said thought I preferred to make the baby's food myself and that she could just rearrange her cooking schedule to make sure DC's staples were in place on weekends.

I have a great nanny. So sweet. I should have asked her before I ever posted here. I'm sorry.

THat's lovely.

If I were you I'd reward her. Cash bonus, gift card, etc...

She won't. OP is a taker. She will take this nanny for all she can, toss her aside when finished, and her " sweet" nanny will know better next time. We all start out this way. I would have done almost anything my first employers asked without a thought to compensation. Five years later I know most of these people dont give a damn about me beyond what I can do for them, and they will pay dearly for that convenience.

[Anonymous]

EXTRA WORK = EXTRA PAY

I do not even understand what the conundrum is here? If you want her to do more work then pay her for the extra work after ASKING her if she is willing to do it..

If you cannot imagine having an adult to adult conversation with her about it, you might try this one:

Hay "nanny" we love and appreciate that you making such healthy and delicious foods for "baby" I was wondering if you would be interested in making more to last us through the weekend, if we payed you a little more each week? If you find that you have any extra time during the week we could pay you $$ extra for the help. I find that I do not have the time to do it during the weekend (for some lazy reason)."

TADAH!!!

[Anonymous]

EXTRA WORK = EXTRA PAY

I do not even understand what the conundrum is here? If you want her to do more work then pay her for the extra work after ASKING her if she is willing to do it..

If you cannot imagine having an adult to adult conversation with her about it, you might try this one:

Hay "nanny" we love and appreciate that you making such healthy and delicious foods for "baby" I was wondering if you would be interested in making more to last us through the weekend, if we payed you a little more each week? If you find that you have any extra time during the week we could pay you $$ extra for the help. I find that I do not have the time to do it during the weekend (for some lazy reason)."

TADAH!!!

[Anonymous]

This is an absolutely reasonable request. There is no harm in asking whether your nanny can make larger portions of the same dishes she is making anyway, so that you can save / store the leftovers. Previous posters are being petty and ridiculous.