Anonymous wrote:PP you have more than just a bit of time for yourself.

You are trying to dupe MBs if you think that tidying and organizing the closet is something that is done daily for 10-15 hours a week. Organizing play dates? Please, you have got to be kidding.

Anonymous wrote:OP is just pissed off that she can't find an easy job that doesn't require much work. The employer sets the job description and you are free to decline the job IF its offered to you. You don't get to dictate what an employer includes in the job description.

Nannies don't provide superior care than SAHM parents or even daycare. The value of a nanny is that a child gets more individualized attention than in a group setting, the child gets to stay in their home environment, the child can have smaller play dates with friends when they are older, the parents don't need to take time off from work every time the child has a cold, AND light house working chores like all laundry, unloading the dishwasher, and grocery shopping gets done during the day so the parents can spend the evenings and weekend time with their child.

The nannies on this thread are just plain lazy. If they cared one ounce about child development they would quickly acknowledge that its preferable for the parents to be spending their non-woring hours engaging the kids not doing the laundry. Instead these nannies zealously guard their multi hour break to surf the web and watch TV during the day with a bunch of bull shit.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My baby and toddler use dishes and silverware, so emptying the dishwasher pertains to them. Also, they need to learn to play somewhat independently - you don't need to watch them right there every second. If you're getting paid that much money it would be great if you were being useful during naptimes too. How hard is it for you to just make a bed?

"Independent Play" is not unsupervised play. Would you ever send your toddler to a preschool where the teachers allowed your toddler to be alone or with another toddler in a room where no one was watching them?

Second, for a babies under six months old have no "object permanence" - when the baby cannot see you, hear you or feel you you no longer exist and they are alone. Studies have proven that after ninety seconds, the baby's pulse quickens, their eyes move more rapidly and their body temperature rises - all signs of stress and anxiety.

Third, no matter how safe you have made your play area, little ones can get into trouble. I was sitting right next to a ten-month-old charge when he spotted an unassuming cricket before I did and had it in his hand on the way to his mouth before I could stop him.

Make you own bed, Angel.

I would be very worried leaving a child in your care when you don't seem to posses basic reasoning or problem solving skills. PLENTY of tasks can be accomplished that allow a baby/toddler to "play" independently while you are still within immediate supervision range (not to mention, how do some of you use the bathroom throughout the day??). Since many of you nannies don't seem to be able to work this out, I'll give you a few hints:
-put baby in a highchair with toys or a snack while emptying dishwasher
-baby can be in the kitchen playing on the floor (a blanketed floor if they are not yet mobile) while you complete other tasks
-laundry is portable and can be folded in just about any room of the house
-time your day intelligently, throw in a load of laundry and start the dishwasher when baby goes down for their nap
-clean up after yourself as you go; vacuum/sweep after each meal, wash large dishes and load the dishwasher as you use things, enlist the help of older charges with room clean up

It blows the mind to think that so many "nannies" try to dupe parents into thinking the quality of childcare will suffer if they are occupied with anything else at all. The truth is, you just aren't very good at multi-tasking and/or are lazy.

It blows the mind to think that so many "nannies" try to dupe parents into thinking the quality of childcare will suffer if they are occupied with anything else at all. The truth is, you just aren't very good at multi-tasking and/or are lazy.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My baby and toddler use dishes and silverware, so emptying the dishwasher pertains to them. Also, they need to learn to play somewhat independently - you don't need to watch them right there every second. If you're getting paid that much money it would be great if you were being useful during naptimes too. How hard is it for you to just make a bed?

"Independent Play" is not unsupervised play. Would you ever send your toddler to a preschool where the teachers allowed your toddler to be alone or with another toddler in a room where no one was watching them?

Second, for a babies under six months old have no "object permanence" - when the baby cannot see you, hear you or feel you you no longer exist and they are alone. Studies have proven that after ninety seconds, the baby's pulse quickens, their eyes move more rapidly and their body temperature rises - all signs of stress and anxiety.

Third, no matter how safe you have made your play area, little ones can get into trouble. I was sitting right next to a ten-month-old charge when he spotted an unassuming cricket before I did and had it in his hand on the way to his mouth before I could stop him.

Make you own bed, Angel.

Anonymous wrote:I don't see why you think your base pay includes hours of downtime and you should be paid extra to not sit on a couch. Parents set rates based on the market, affordability, and financial planning. We had no problem finding great candidates that didn't object to light housekeeping and had done it in previous jobs.

Parents and nannies need to be upfront on what is being required and what is being accepted. However, the job needs do change. Nannies know very well that some tasks go away and others will replace those tasks. Nannies also know how much kids nap which many first time parents don't realize.

Anonymous wrote:I don't see why you think your base pay includes hours of downtime and you should be paid extra to not sit on a couch. Parents set rates based on the market, affordability, and financial planning. We had no problem finding great candidates that didn't object to light housekeeping and had done it in previous jobs.

Parents and nannies need to be upfront on what is being required and what is being accepted. However, the job needs do change. Nannies know very well that some tasks go away and others will replace those tasks. Nannies also know how much kids nap which many first time parents don't realize.

Anonymous wrote:OP is just pissed off that she can't find an easy job that doesn't require much work. The employer sets the job description and you are free to decline the job IF its offered to you. You don't get to dictate what an employer includes in the job description.

Nannies don't provide superior care than SAHM parents or even daycare. The value of a nanny is that a child gets more individualized attention than in a group setting, the child gets to stay in their home environment, the child can have smaller play dates with friends when they are older, the parents don't need to take time off from work every time the child has a cold, AND light house working chores like all laundry, unloading the dishwasher, and grocery shopping gets done during the day so the parents can spend the evenings and weekend time with their child.

The nannies on this thread are just plain lazy. If they cared one ounce about child development they would quickly acknowledge that its preferable for the parents to be spending their non-woring hours engaging the kids not doing the laundry. Instead these nannies zealously guard their multi hour break to surf the web and watch TV during the day with a bunch of bull shit.

Anonymous wrote:OP is just pissed off that she can't find an easy job that doesn't require much work. The employer sets the job description and you are free to decline the job IF its offered to you. You don't get to dictate what an employer includes in the job description.

Nannies don't provide superior care than SAHM parents or even daycare. The value of a nanny is that a child gets more individualized attention than in a group setting, the child gets to stay in their home environment, the child can have smaller play dates with friends when they are older, the parents don't need to take time off from work every time the child has a cold, AND light house working chores like all laundry, unloading the dishwasher, and grocery shopping gets done during the day so the parents can spend the evenings and weekend time with their child.

The nannies on this thread are just plain lazy. If they cared one ounce about child development they would quickly acknowledge that its preferable for the parents to be spending their non-woring hours engaging the kids not doing the laundry. Instead these nannies zealously guard their multi hour break to surf the web and watch TV during the day with a bunch of bull shit.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Helping out with household chores doesn't mean the child is any less well cared for. Not being willing to unload a dishwasher is completely independent of the quality of child care you provide. In fact, I think it's better for a child not to ways be the focus of adult attention and to learn independent play. If my choice is a nanny who strictly limits her work vs a sitter who is generally helpful and hardworking, I'll hire the sitter any day. (And Id definitely pay her more!)

So when you go to work, MB, do you wash your boss's car during your lunch hour? Do you vacuum your office while thinking about your project or empty the waste-baskets when talking to a client? Why not?! I'd definitely hire someone who is generally helpful and hardworking!

And, no - you know very well you would not pay a sitter any more - who are we kidding here?!

Of course id pay more for someone who will do a wider range of work. I'm just not going to get hung up on what you call yourself. Look, if you honestly feel you are working hard, outside of breaks, for the time you are being paid, and you are doing an excellent job at what you do. Great, more power to you. I happen to know the needs of my one child, and know what can be accomplished in a day at home. I work part time shift work, so I'm doing the same job myself 5 out of 7 days. And no, for my household, someone who strictly limited themselves to childcare wouldn't work well for us.

I just think it's silly to try to justify the work you want to do by defining the title "nanny" by what you won't do and then pretending that adds some sort of value!

(And, yes, I empty the wastebaskets at work if they are full, I wash dishes in the break room, I load the copier, and I don't whine that an MD doesn't do those things!)

Anonymous wrote:My baby and toddler use dishes and silverware, so emptying the dishwasher pertains to them. Also, they need to learn to play somewhat independently - you don't need to watch them right there every second. If you're getting paid that much money it would be great if you were being useful during naptimes too. How hard is it for you to just make a bed?