Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you ever had a newborn before? When my daughters were newborns I sometimes spent up to an hour and a half trying to get them calmed down enough to sleep. The work was non-stop. When the baby slept, I did laundry, pumped, ate, cleaned, prepped food for later, etc. It's a LOT of work.

My 2.5 yr old can play in her room for ten minutes while I shower. She takes a solid two hour nap each day after lunch. Very different in terms of physical involvement.

Thank you for your reply. nanny only job is to care for the baby no house work. $20 an hour full time is a lot.?

Not necessarily - if she's bilingual and educated and has years of solid experience then $20 an hour seems reasonable. And it'd be silly to not have the nanny doing baby laundry.

Why would you care if she's bilingual if her charge is an infant? Seriously, taking care of an infant doesn't require extensive education. The usual rate in DC of $16-18/hr is appropriate for the job.

Fool alert.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you ever had a newborn before? When my daughters were newborns I sometimes spent up to an hour and a half trying to get them calmed down enough to sleep. The work was non-stop. When the baby slept, I did laundry, pumped, ate, cleaned, prepped food for later, etc. It's a LOT of work.

My 2.5 yr old can play in her room for ten minutes while I shower. She takes a solid two hour nap each day after lunch. Very different in terms of physical involvement.

Thank you for your reply. nanny only job is to care for the baby no house work. $20 an hour full time is a lot.?

Not necessarily - if she's bilingual and educated and has years of solid experience then $20 an hour seems reasonable. And it'd be silly to not have the nanny doing baby laundry.

Why would you care if she's bilingual if her charge is an infant? Seriously, taking care of an infant doesn't require extensive education. The usual rate in DC of $16-18/hr is appropriate for the job.

Newborns are a whole lot of work! Everyone charges differently, though. $20 an hour seems like a lot, but if she has experience and education, it's worth it.

Anonymous wrote:because nannies will milk you for all you're worth, and this has become an acceptable cost structure.

Shouldn't your baby be the one milking you?

because nannies will milk you for all you're worth, and this has become an acceptable cost structure.

I dunno. My maternity leave has been the easiest time. Hang out with the baby, breastfeed, nap, that's pretty much all they need. I had the baby sleep on the terrace so didn't even have to go for walks if I wasn't in the mood. My daughter was a good sleeper and a well tempered baby, though.

Anonymous wrote:Newborn baby just eat, poo, pee and sleep for two or three hours YET I need to pay $20 dollar an hour! Why?

Would you leave a newborn with a 12 or 13 year old sitter? Generally not. But many parents do leave a 2 or 3 year old with a young sitter. Think about it.

Personally, I don't work with young infants because the parents tend to micromanage and question everything the nanny does. When I know that I will be working with an infant (and I assume a parent who would stay home if they could, but they can't, so they want to be overly involved), I require $20/hour minimum. By the time that kids are 6 months to a year old, most parents have relaxed a bit and aren't going to question whether the nanny really knows how to take the child's temperature.

Hopefully you're paying for the endless patience one needs with a newborn. Your nanny should be calm and unflappable with a newborn.

You don't need to pay $20/hr. You CAN pay that certainly - and you can command a top dollar nanny at that rate, but you can also find good childcare (and yes - infant care) for less than that.

Frankly I think toddlers and preschoolers are a great deal harder than infants, but everyone is different in their preferences and skills (and kids vary hugely also.)

Because by nature alone, newborns are much more work than toddlers.

They need to be hand fed and often. They require numerous diaper changes and get cranky easy if they do not get to take a certain number of naps per day.

Also, they must be supervised ALL the time. No exceptions.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you ever had a newborn before? When my daughters were newborns I sometimes spent up to an hour and a half trying to get them calmed down enough to sleep. The work was non-stop. When the baby slept, I did laundry, pumped, ate, cleaned, prepped food for later, etc. It's a LOT of work.

My 2.5 yr old can play in her room for ten minutes while I shower. She takes a solid two hour nap each day after lunch. Very different in terms of physical involvement.

Thank you for your reply. nanny only job is to care for the baby no house work. $20 an hour full time is a lot.?

Not necessarily - if she's bilingual and educated and has years of solid experience then $20 an hour seems reasonable. And it'd be silly to not have the nanny doing baby laundry.

Anonymous wrote:Have you ever had a newborn before? When my daughters were newborns I sometimes spent up to an hour and a half trying to get them calmed down enough to sleep. The work was non-stop. When the baby slept, I did laundry, pumped, ate, cleaned, prepped food for later, etc. It's a LOT of work.

My 2.5 yr old can play in her room for ten minutes while I shower. She takes a solid two hour nap each day after lunch. Very different in terms of physical involvement.

Thank you for your reply. nanny only job is to care for the baby no house work. $20 an hour full time is a lot.?

Have you ever had a newborn before? When my daughters were newborns I sometimes spent up to an hour and a half trying to get them calmed down enough to sleep. The work was non-stop. When the baby slept, I did laundry, pumped, ate, cleaned, prepped food for later, etc. It's a LOT of work.

My 2.5 yr old can play in her room for ten minutes while I shower. She takes a solid two hour nap each day after lunch. Very different in terms of physical involvement.

Newborn baby just eat, poo, pee and sleep for two or three hours YET I need to pay $20 dollar an hour! Why?