personal errands on the job

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We often go to a near by mall on rainy days. The kids need to run and the mall we go to is full of "grandma and grandpas" who love the little kids walking by and smiling and waving. We go to the toy store. Then usually do a loop of the mall. End with a smoothie.

A previous job was with a 4 year old boy with an extreme behaviour disorder. We would go to the bank every single week. We spoke about how to behave in a bank, what behaviour to use ect... We would also visit a restraunt once a week to practice being customers. Obviously these things were nice for me too but it was still work! I must say... His mother can now take him to a restraunt and he now knows how to behave properly!!

I think we can all agree that teaching someone with an extreme behavior disorder is a special case and there was a mutual benefit to the parent and nanny. These outings are referred to as CBI's, "Community Based Instruction". Most errands are not structured like CBIs.

A good nanny should know how to make almost any errand as a CBI.

There are a lot more to CBIs than explaining what you are doing and why to children on an errand. However, a nanny using errands as a teachable moment is a good thing and I wish I saw more nannies doing this on their errands.

[Anonymous]

I think the most important for kids to learn is, as some pps have said, that the child(ren) is not the center of the universe. Sometimes things don't involve him/her and that's okay. Children with nannies often always need a 'playmate' this is really a detriment to their future.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a WAHMB, I have a 2 1/2-year-old son and a 5-year-old daughter. I decided to go back to work when DS was 6 months old, and we have had the same nanny since then. When she first started (at age 19) I had no complaints, other than the fact that she took a little too much time off. We addressed it, she changed immediately. Since then, she has really been excellent.

95% of the time, her schedule is something like this:
8:00-8:30- Arrive, sit with DS if he is finishing breakfast, or take him up to get changed, or somehow else distract him so I can take DD to the bus stop and then sneak to my office.
8:30-9:00 or 9:30- 3 mornings/week DS has classes (fun classes, like bounce class to work on motor skills) at 9, so nanny takes him. If not, this is usually a time nanny uses as a "circle time," like preschool.
9:00 or 9:30-11:00- Class or out to the park or other play activity.
11:00-12:00- Come home, eat lunch
12:00-2:00ish- Nap, nanny usually straightens up the house (she chooses to do this, I do not ask her to) and then does school work, as she takes online classes.
2:00ish-2:30- DS wakes up and usually needs 15-30 mins of "quiet play" to transition. Nanny watches while he plays on his own, or sometimes he'll ask her to read.
2:30-3:30- Usually an art activity/science experiment.
3:30-4:00- Nanny and DS walk to the bus stop to pick up DD and they pay outside until I come out of my office at 4:00.

She also is working on potty training with him throughout the day. Today, she and DS had gone to the mall, which contains one of the playgrounds they frequent. I noticed 2 bags of clothing when I came up to eat lunch (she and I usually eat together in the kitchen while DS naps), and I must have looked puzzled, because nanny said, "Oh, I had ordered some things online and shipping was free if I picked them up in the store. I figured it would be okay since we pass right by it in the mall to get to the playground." I'll admit, a red flag did go off in my head, telling me that she had perhaps done some actual in store shopping today, but I let it go until I saw the accessory she had picked up for DS. She said it was right by the counter and he liked it, so she got it for him, but it made me wonder how much of her time with my son is spent shopping rather than playing in a kid-friendly area, where he should be. I voiced my concern and she showed me the receipt, which matched her confirmation number for her online order, and she also showed me pictures of DS at the playground that day, but I feel uncomfortable now and I don't know what to do with this.

You know, it sounds like you two are not a good fit for each other. I would let her go. Then she will see how hard it is to find another job where her employers trust and respect her judgement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is ridiculous. Obviously it's bad nanny judgement to drag a child around the mall while you contemplate your new spring wardrobe and aimlessly wander the stores. I don't think anyone on here is suggesting that is how they "do personal errands" with charges. Nobody is arguing that this is an acceptable thing, what's being argued is "is it ok to stop for 5 minutes and pick up something at a location my nanny was already at for my child" ... I think if you don't realize the obvious answer here (a resounding YES) then you need to step back and think of the reasons this bothers you so much...

Lets all grow up and use common sense to understand what our peers are saying, and be respectful of those who have differing opinions, how can we teach children to be respectful and polite when half of us can't manage to talk to our peers that way.

Very well said. I couldn't have said it better!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not going to a mall is now living in a bubble? Nannies need to get a grip that you are being paid to do a job not go shopping. Most employers are fine with an occasional errand, especially if you work long hours, but mall shopping is completely unnecessary.

Wow. Just wow. I hope karma is good to you people.

[Anonymous]

Nannies need to understand that there is an opportunity cost associated with taking your charges to the mall. In the mom's mind, your time with the children may be better spent at a playground, reading books, working on crafts or sports, or on any number of other things. It may be that the mom has to take the kids along on errands at night and on weekends, and she wants them to have a balance of activities. If it is really a 15 minute errand here and there, very few moms would have a problem with that. But taking your charges to a mall so you can shop for clothes? Not appropriate, unless you've cleared it with the parent in advance. It just isn't up to you to decide that the child needs to learn waiting skills by getting dragged around on your personal business.