Mom of twins here. One thing that really helped was my nanny saying things to me directly like, "We really need to figure out how to babyproof the house because they are getting bigger and they need more space, particularly as winter approaches. Can we babyproof the XXX room and put a baby gate or two in the doorways?"

As a mom who was not normally home with them by myself, I didn't get whatever the current challenge was because I wasn't seeing it. The other thing is that as FTPs, you don't really get how quickly needs changed. What worked last winter isn't going to work this winter. It's helpful to have that spelled out.

Anonymous wrote:Career nanny here. I learned the most from the jobs that kicked my a$$.

Thanks for this! I am definitely learning to do without some tools I have had in the past! I love this perspective.

Career nanny here. I learned the most from the jobs that kicked my a$$.

Anonymous wrote:MB here - why are you making food for the weekends? It's one thing if you're making a big pot of yogurt to make some extra. Or oatmeal. Because there's really no extra work to make that for the weekend. But if you're making applesauce that's extra apples you're cutting, etc.

Stop making weekend food.

I assume because it's part of her job?

Anonymous wrote:MB here - why are you making food for the weekends? It's one thing if you're making a big pot of yogurt to make some extra. Or oatmeal. Because there's really no extra work to make that for the weekend. But if you're making applesauce that's extra apples you're cutting, etc.

Stop making weekend food.

I make everything ahead and freeze. Parents are both on specific diets so don't do family meals and kids are too young to eat a lot of things anyway (not very many teeth).

Anonymous wrote:Keep working or quit.

Super helpful!!!

MB here - why are you making food for the weekends? It's one thing if you're making a big pot of yogurt to make some extra. Or oatmeal. Because there's really no extra work to make that for the weekend. But if you're making applesauce that's extra apples you're cutting, etc.

Stop making weekend food.

Keep working or quit.

Ask the parents to get some extra panels to make it bigger or baby gates so they can have a bigger area.

Anonymous wrote:Can you have a convo with the parents about making an area more child friendly. Frankly they should be able to play independently (supervised) at this age and you shouldn't have to worry about a crystal vase or toppling the TV over (or whatever the space issues are). A concrete plan to makeover a room to accomplish this might help you feel less stressed. I suspect stress is the real culprit here.

This is probably what needs to happen. The issue is that their play area consists of a 6' octagonal play yard. It's just not enough space for two active toddlers, so they are constantly crowding/shoving each other, throwing things over the side and crying about it or trying to climb out or tear down the gates. I've mentioned that it's tough but I think on weekends the parents don't really keep them in there. They each supervise one and let them walk around the house, which ai can't do because the rest of the house is not babyproofed and they are like raccoons.

Can you have a convo with the parents about making an area more child friendly. Frankly they should be able to play independently (supervised) at this age and you shouldn't have to worry about a crystal vase or toppling the TV over (or whatever the space issues are). A concrete plan to makeover a room to accomplish this might help you feel less stressed. I suspect stress is the real culprit here.

I hope you make $25 an hour and overtime.

Yes, I knew the hours. I have worked longer hours with twins this age and younger before, and I have been in this job for over a year. It is a combination of a tough age and the fact that there is no space in the house that they can play without constant supervision. There is no place where I can let them play for more than a few minutes without running up against trouble keeping them safe, so my only time to relax is naptime and that is also the only time I can be productive getting anything else done.

Did you know the hours when your started? Realistically you are working 50 hours a week which is a lot but normal for nannies that work for working parents.
If you are really feeling burnt out you could ask if they can get a sitter one evening a week instead of you staying until 8pm. Assuming you are getting OT for 10 hours a week though you probably dont want to lose the extra income.

I work 7am-8pm 3 days per week, with two "light" days of only 7 hours. Toddler twins. I do all their laundry and make all of their meals from scratch, including prepping food for weekends. I also do all the grocery shopping. The house is small and not well-designed for kids and these twins are super active so we spend as much time as we can out and about to wear them out. I love them and the parents are awesome but I am permanently exhausted. I don't know if I am asking for help or just venting but it feels good to put it out there.