Nanny expectations re: food prep

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People who want better than average, pay better than average.

$25-30 per hour is better than average.

$20-$25 is also "better than average. OP is already paying a very competitive rate. The issue is not that she isn't paying enough, it's that she didn't clarify cooking expectations up front, and no one takes kindly to having their workload increase without pay.

Exactly.

For $22/hr the OP should be able to command a highly qualified, experienced nanny for whom meal prep is a non-issue.

I do meal prep, but earn $28/hr.

Do you work full-time? How long have you been with your current family? How many kids do you watch?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nanny here. I love to cook and make all food for my charges from scratch (and we go grocery shopping weekly so that I can get anything I need to make their meals). I use nutritional guidelines from the AAP to plan their meals.

Sounds good to me.

I bet your employer is paying you more than OP is paying her person.

OP here. I suppose pay is certainly relevant to this discussion! We pay $22/hr for one child. Does that change anyone's answer? I feel better after reading some of these replies- and this isn't something we clearly discussed or put in the contract, so I think I'm not going to push it too much.

OP, for $22/hr for only one child, you should expect home-cooked, nutritionally solid meals. With the type of attitude to food and cooking you've described, I think you're overpaying unless your nanny is amazing in some other way that makes you overlook her ineptness in this thing called cooking and eating that probably has more to do with your child's health and future habits than anything else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Of course you compensate for what you get in return. Don't be so ridiculous.

OP's pay rate is only average, good enough for an average nanny. My rate is much higher.

I don't think you understand the meaning of "average". "Average" doesn't mean "what I consider mediocre."

Average means you add up the daily rate of all nannies in a given area and divide it by the number of these nannies.

If you think the number you get this way in DC is $22/hr, you're out of touch with the market.

[Anonymous]

Pay depends on where she’s from. You can’t say she’s over paying her if you don’t know her location. Also, pay depends on experience, education, number of children etc. If you didn’t specify in the beginning what you wanted her to cook then it’s not her fault. Talk to her about it and make sure to add it to the contract.

[Anonymous]

My nanny only needs to wash and cut up fruit to go along with the meals I provide her to heat up for DD. She does DD’s laundry and that’s it for domestic chores.

[Anonymous]

This is years old…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does your nanny prepare meals for your child? If so, what does "prepare" entail exactly? Our nanny will give our (2-year-old) DS things she finds in the fridge/freezer- a typical breakfast will be Cheerios with milk and a banana. Typical lunch is yogurt, frozen chicken nuggets, and fruit. I don't really have an issue with any of the food she gives him (although she tends to give a lot of "grab and go" snacks- goldfish crackers, fruit that I've cut up and placed in the fridge, cheese sticks, etc.)- but it seems like she gives him kind of a random assortment of stuff throughout the day. I'm curious to see what other families do- should I be expecting my nanny to "cook" more (even eggs, grilled cheese, roasted veggies - simple stuff), or is it my responsibility to prepare all the foods and tell nanny exactly what to feed DS each day? I don't want to micromanage her, but I also feel like she could be putting in a little more effort in the kitchen...

You are crazy. Complain and be prepared to look for a new nanny. I doubt that you do half this for his for him