Anonymous wrote:Has anyone hired a younger relative, to work as a nanny and did it work out well (or badly)?

My husband and I are expecting our first baby next summer. Since I'm still in the first trimester, we haven't seriously explored childcare options yet, but were contemplating the idea of hiring either my sister or perhaps (but less likely) my niece as a nanny for the short term (probably 6 months to a year).

Assuming she even wants to do it, my sister seems like a great choice: she lives in the area and will just have graduated from high school but isn't planning to go to college yet as she's a little burnt out from school. We'd give her free room and board in addition to her salary, and she could take evening classes if she wanted, to keep from getting too far off the college track. Only potential downside in my view is that she doesn't have a lot of childcare experience, but she could presumably live with us for the final month of my maternity leave to get acclimated.

If my sister didn't work out, my husband is also interested in possibly hiring our niece, but this is much less likely due to major reservations on my part.[i]

I'm curious if anyone else has done something similar and if there are any pitfalls here that I am missing?

Why is your husband so interested in your niece, and what are your reservations?

nannydebsays wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Even so-called nannies walk out on you, so that's no guanrantee. I'd rather entrust a known relative than a total stranger off the street.

Absolutely. But would you rather trust an uninterested and potentially incompetent young relative, risking long-term damage to the relationship and who knows what sort of slow start for your growing infant, or a "stranger" who you interviewed 2 times, with verifiable references, experience, and maybe even a college degree in a field related to child development?

Me? I'd take a stranger over a relative any day.

Did you miss the first few posts advising OP to
1) first discuss it with her
2) get first aid and CPR training
3) become a Mother's helper
4) get babysitting experience
THEN you consider your best option for your child, after you evaluate the big picture.
What kind of damage do you think is caused by revolving door nannies who have no "connection" or longterm stability with the baby? No amount of education or experience automatically produces a good nanny, or even a good teacher, for that matter. You know that, right?

Anonymous wrote:Even so-called nannies walk out on you, so that's no guanrantee. I'd rather entrust a known relative than a total stranger off the street.

Absolutely. But would you rather trust an uninterested and potentially incompetent young relative, risking long-term damage to the relationship and who knows what sort of slow start for your growing infant, or a "stranger" who you interviewed 2 times, with verifiable references, experience, and maybe even a college degree in a field related to child development?

Me? I'd take a stranger over a relative any day.

In most cases, I'd say hiring your sister is a terrible idea.
Like others have asked, does she even like kids?

How does she handle criticism? What happens if she's on her phone too much (for example)? Will you feel comfortable telling her that that is not acceptable? Will you have rules on overnight guests? Drinking?
Keep in mind if you hire her, you won't just be her sister -- you'll be her boss.
Could be great, could be very messy.

To the pp some people even relatives don't know how to take care of a baby daily also relatives can and have abused children. Just because someone is related to you doesn't always mean they will treat your child better than a stranger.

Personally I could never work full time for family especially a niece or nephew. I find working for family even just baby sitting extremely difficult and more frustrating than Jane doe I just met

I think it depends on her experience and maturity. Let's face some 18 year olds are clueless and would probably take advance of the situation. If you think she will be great them go with it but I'd be wary of leaving a newborn with someone who has little to no experience with that age and is still a child themselves.

The end of my sister's maternity leave coincided with my with my winter break from college. So I happily watched my niece for the 6 weeks of my break. I love kids and already had a lot of experience at that point though, so it was a no-brainer for all of us. I agree with PPs that how successful this will be is dependent on how much prior interest/experience your sister has with kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never mix business with relatives.

Why not allow a committed, loving related care for your child? You sound unhinged.

relative

Anonymous wrote:Never mix business with relatives.

Why not allow a committed, loving related care for your child? You sound unhinged.

Never mix business with relatives.

Even so-called nannies walk out on you, so that's no guanrantee. I'd rather entrust a known relative than a total stranger off the street.

Does your sister like kids? Does she like toddlers and babies? Does she (or has she in the past) babysit regularly for other people?

Those are the essential questions to ask yourself before asking your sister to be your "nanny". If she isn't into kids, and has no idea of how boring/frustrating/heartwarming/boring/isolating/amazing childcare can be, then I think hiring her is an awful idea.

However, if she loves kids, babysits frequently, and has some idea of what she's agreeing to do, ask her if she'd be interested.

Unless she is 110% committed, I would have a back-up plan in place - it would deeply suck for you to have been back at work for a month, your sister walks out, and you have to find something ASAP.

She can even start out being a Mother's helper.

Sounds like a good plan if she's interested. Ask her. She can get her first aid and CPR training now, and start babysitting.

Has anyone hired a younger relative, to work as a nanny and did it work out well (or badly)?

My husband and I are expecting our first baby next summer. Since I'm still in the first trimester, we haven't seriously explored childcare options yet, but were contemplating the idea of hiring either my sister or perhaps (but less likely) my niece as a nanny for the short term (probably 6 months to a year).

Assuming she even wants to do it, my sister seems like a great choice: she lives in the area and will just have graduated from high school but isn't planning to go to college yet as she's a little burnt out from school. We'd give her free room and board in addition to her salary, and she could take evening classes if she wanted, to keep from getting too far off the college track. Only potential downside in my view is that she doesn't have a lot of childcare experience, but she could presumably live with us for the final month of my maternity leave to get acclimated.

If my sister didn't work out, my husband is also interested in possibly hiring our niece, but this is much less likely due to major reservations on my part.

I'm curious if anyone else has done something similar and if there are any pitfalls here that I am missing?