Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for your responses. Let me ask a couple of follow-ups.

Would your answer change about wanting that job if one of the parents worked from home full time?

Would it make a difference to you if the reason that the parents wanted/needed you at 5:30 was because they were going to work out as opposed to going to work at that hour?

Is having pets an issue for any of you? We have two dogs and two cats. I wouldn't expect you to do anything with the animals but it would be helpful if you at least liked them.

I would also like those hours, OP, as long as the end time was set in stone except for emergencies.

1) I am fine with WAHP if there are firm boundaries, if the office is away from the living area and not near the baby's room, and if there is open communication and the parent is willing to listen rather than become defensive.

----Boundaries - I need to know that I am in charge while I am working. If you are working from home, please work. Don't come rushing out to take over if the baby/toddler/child makes an odd noise, or you 'hear something strange'. Trust that I am fully capable of doing my job, and that I will yell for you in case I *need* your help.

----Your office - Basement, bedroom away from where I am playing with your child or where she sleeps. Any other place where you can be "Out of sight, out of mind". What will not work - living room, kitchen table, room next door to the baby's room during naps when you are on the phone, etc. YOU need privacy to do your job, I need calm and quiet to do my job.

----Communication - You have been coming up for lunch with your baby and me for months. All is wonderful, then separation anxiety hits. You come up for lunch and leave, and your child becomes hysterical. This happens all week. I ask to speak with you the following Monday, and after the meltdown, I put baby to bed, and we talk. I ask you tactfully and politely to consider not coming up for lunch for a few weeks, since baby gets so upset when you leave. If your response is, "Well, shouldn't you be able to calm her down? I want to see her, and it's your job to cope with her being a little sad when I leave." then we have a big problem. If, OTOH, your response is, "I was actually thinking the same thing. Should we give it 2 or 3 weeks then try again? What could I do to help her feel less anxious when I have to walk away from her? Can we brainstorm about that this week?" then you might be in the running for employer of the year.

2) If you are paying me for my time, feel free to work out, work, take a nap, go shopping.....you get the picture.

3) I like animals just fine. I know other nannies who are allergic, or just don't like dogs and/or cats. Mention your pets in your ad and in your initial phone conversation with candidates, and you should be fine.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for your responses. Let me ask a couple of follow-ups.

Would your answer change about wanting that job if one of the parents worked from home full time?

Would it make a difference to you if the reason that the parents wanted/needed you at 5:30 was because they were going to work out as opposed to going to work at that hour?

Is having pets an issue for any of you? We have two dogs and two cats. I wouldn't expect you to do anything with the animals but it would be helpful if you at least liked them.

I'd absolutely take on that schedule. It wouldn't matter to me if the parent spent that time at work or at the gym. Truthfully, I would not want to work for a parent who worked from home full time. Pets are an issue for me because of allergies.

OP here. Thanks for your responses. Let me ask a couple of follow-ups.

Would your answer change about wanting that job if one of the parents worked from home full time?

Would it make a difference to you if the reason that the parents wanted/needed you at 5:30 was because they were going to work out as opposed to going to work at that hour?

Is having pets an issue for any of you? We have two dogs and two cats. I wouldn't expect you to do anything with the animals but it would be helpful if you at least liked them.

Another nanny who would love that shift. Minimize commute time and I can easily schedule appointments and run errands during business hours. Sounds awesome!

yes, night nurses and others would like that.
lots of jobs have "odd" shifts.
lots of people wake up v early.

I'd love that job!!

Nanny here love to work early and get off early.

And another nanny who would LOVE that schedule.


Good luck!!

Nanny here. I would love that schedule!

Longtime nanny here. I'd LOVE a schedule like this!

Yes you can find someone for that shift. I had a job for radio hosts that was 4:30am-11am some days until 1pm

there's someone for every job. A woman who wants to be home when her kids get home from school might love it! Or someone wanting to pick up extra hours with an after school gig might similarly find those hours attractive. Personally, I would HATE getting up that early and wouldn't apply. You just need to make sure you are really really sure about the end time because a person looking to work those hours probably has a reason to leave on time.

I think you could find people who would work that schedule OP. Especially someone who might have older kids. A job like this would give her full-time income but also let her be there when her kids get home from school.

It's definitely at least worth trying OP. Start asking around on your listservs, other parents you know, etc...

Congrats on the baby! I hope everything goes smoothly.

No, pretty hard to get up for work at 5am after a hard night of partying.

We are adopting a baby, but he/she isn't here yet but I have a question for nannies out there.

Would there be any nanny willing to work from about 5:30am until 2:30-3:00. I know that an hour or so would be OT? For a variety of reasons, this works with our schedule, so I'm wondering if there are nannies out there that would be willing to work this kind of schedule.