Anonymous wrote:OP - do not let others make you feel bad. PPs - no one will want to ask advice if you jump all over them for simply asking. OP admits she is new to this !!
It is nt common to make a nanny wait a year before taking vacation. If your contract says it accrues at a certain rate per pay period you could require her to accrue it first though. Otherwise I think it is reasonable of her to assume it is to be used any time in the year and she has waited a respectable time to request vacation after starting. She is also asking to use it during a normally quieter time of year (for most) and giving you tons of heads up. The only thing that you may have overlooked was that it is common to make 1 week of a Nanny's 2 weeks be at the family's choice. But if you did not specify that up front then it is now too late to switch it.
There are some things that common sense and courtesy ought to make clear. Not understanding market rates, typical duties, or whether a nanny can be paid hourly or salary, that is perfectly reasonable as most people new to this wouldn't know it. Thinking your nanny shouldn't take any leave for an entire year? You're either stupid or a cold hearted task master who fails to see her nanny as an equal or a human being for that matter.