I watch twins who are currently 17 months old. I started when they were 8 weeks and from day 1, MB told me to feel free to take them on personal errands as she wanted them to get out of the house and be able to do things like that. When they were that little, I didn't do many errands with them as they were still unpredictable but once they hit the 6 month mark, we started taking trips to Target or CVS, etc. Now that they are older and don't like being confined as much, we don't do many errands but I still will make a Target trip occasionally or swing by the bank if we are out, etc.

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny runs errands if she needs to. I don't have any problem with it. She asked the first time and I told her to do whatev
er she needs to. PP is right that is goes a long way toward goodwill. She has been with us for years now and will often text me when they are out to ask if I need anything while they are out running errands. This is not at all part of her job description. It's a nice thing she does.

Perfect example of a mutually respectful team approach to the work of caregiving. Kudos to the above poster. Others should learn from her.

It is wrong that she didn't ask. But it would be nice to allow her to run errands when she's with a newborn all day. It was quite isolating when I was with a newborn all day.

Our nanny runs errands if she needs to. I don't have any problem with it. She asked the first time and I told her to do whatever she needs to. PP is right that is goes a long way toward goodwill. She has been with us for years now and will often text me when they are out to ask if I need anything while they are out running errands. This is not at all part of her job description. It's a nice thing she does.

I often go to the grocery store during the day to buy lunch. The grocery store is way cheaper then eating out. I don't have kids so I don't cook every night at home. I do get a couple items for my house if I am there already. I would not shop solely for my house but I also would not feel I was crossing a line to pick up a couple items at the same time.

OP can you be more clear whether she is doing large trips or just picking up a couple items? I can get in and out of a store in 10 minutes to buy my lunch.

It would all depend on how YOU feel about it OP.

For instance, I once worked for a family who told me I could do any errands I wanted during the day with her child such as shop at Target, etc. so I had her permission and knew it was okay.

But if my employer was not okay with it, then it would not be acceptable and it sounds to me like you are not okay with it.

I would let her know this. Perhaps there is a miscommunication issue here. Or maybe she did her grocery shopping with her old nanny position and is just assuming she can do the same thing with you.

It is best to discuss these things now and iron out the kinks early on.

I don't run personal errands right now because I am only working part time and don't really drive the kids anywhere outside of activities (working in a rural area), but I fully plan to run a few errands when I am working full time in a city next year. My reasoning is that I'll be working from 6:30 AM until late evenings every single day. That means everything will be closed before I go to work and after I leave with the exception of grocery stores. I don't plan on buying groceries because I would only be able to purchase things that wouldn't need to be kept cool.

I think it's important for children to be exposed to these normal, "boring" kind of trips that are a part of everyday life. I don't think it's healthy for a child to think that each time they get into a car it is to go on some fun adventure. It's a great learning experience for children to learn how to behave in grocery stores, at banks, etc. when adults can't have their full attention on the child. I think you are doing a huge disservice to your child if you basically hire someone to be on top of them like a hawk giving them their undivided attention for 50 hours a week.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny used to do this when DC was little and I never asked her to stop, but it did annoy me, mostly because she never asked. She didn't lie about it (ie: if I called her and she was in a store she said where she was) but it was a little odd and it felt unprofessional, although we were happy with her otherwise so it didn't seem worth making a big deal over. I had the sense that she did stop for a little while when DC was a toddler and had a lot of plans scheduled throughout the day - it was just that much harder to justify a trip to the store when he wanted to go to the park. I noticed also, that her stopping doing her own errands correlated to her making friends with other nannies at the park, etc. Now that DC is in pre-school part time, she does some of our errands as part of her job - mostly grocery shopping. If she then picks up stuff for herself, I don't really care as long as it doesn't impact her day with DC.

At least she told you the truth. Our nanny tells me she is in the park when I know she is somewhere else... This is very unprofessional.

Uhm lying about her whereabouts while with her charge would be grounds for termination as far as I am concerned. If you can't trust her to truthfully tell you where they are, you have to wonder what else she isn't truthful about ...

Anonymous wrote:Our nanny used to do this when DC was little and I never asked her to stop, but it did annoy me, mostly because she never asked. She didn't lie about it (ie: if I called her and she was in a store she said where she was) but it was a little odd and it felt unprofessional, although we were happy with her otherwise so it didn't seem worth making a big deal over. I had the sense that she did stop for a little while when DC was a toddler and had a lot of plans scheduled throughout the day - it was just that much harder to justify a trip to the store when he wanted to go to the park. I noticed also, that her stopping doing her own errands correlated to her making friends with other nannies at the park, etc. Now that DC is in pre-school part time, she does some of our errands as part of her job - mostly grocery shopping. If she then picks up stuff for herself, I don't really care as long as it doesn't impact her day with DC.

At least she told you the truth. Our nanny tells me she is in the park when I know she is somewhere else... This is very unprofessional.

Our nanny used to do this when DC was little and I never asked her to stop, but it did annoy me, mostly because she never asked. She didn't lie about it (ie: if I called her and she was in a store she said where she was) but it was a little odd and it felt unprofessional, although we were happy with her otherwise so it didn't seem worth making a big deal over. I had the sense that she did stop for a little while when DC was a toddler and had a lot of plans scheduled throughout the day - it was just that much harder to justify a trip to the store when he wanted to go to the park. I noticed also, that her stopping doing her own errands correlated to her making friends with other nannies at the park, etc. Now that DC is in pre-school part time, she does some of our errands as part of her job - mostly grocery shopping. If she then picks up stuff for herself, I don't really care as long as it doesn't impact her day with DC.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For $16-18/hr, you need to understand that your helper will do what she wants. That's why it's so much better to hire a true professional who will cost $25-35/hr. Most people on DCUM can't afford that.

Just stop it. You are boring. YAWN

Exactly. And NO, she will NOT do what she wants because she will get fired.

Anonymous wrote:For $16-18/hr, you need to understand that your helper will do what she wants. That's why it's so much better to hire a true professional who will cost $25-35/hr. Most people on DCUM can't afford that.

Just stop it. You are boring. YAWN

I agree that the occasional errand is no big deal, though I appreciate that my nanny asks if it means going out of the way of their usual routine.

However, once my kids were toddler age, most errands would have taken the place of playtime. There's just not that much time between naps and meals. If your nanny is doing full-on grocery shopping, I'd want her to understand that she couldn't count on doing that during work time forever.

With an infant, however, errands can also be a way to get out of the house and have a change of scenery. Babies love to look at people and new places. She may be running errands just because it seems like a good activity.

For $16-18/hr, you need to understand that your helper will do what she wants. That's why it's so much better to hire a true professional who will cost $25-35/hr. Most people on DCUM can't afford that.

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for the replies. This nanny works 40 hours over 4 days/week (10 hours/day), so she has three days completely off to run her personal errands.

No, OP, your nanny has no right to run personal errands while she is working. Just set your expectations straight with her and see what happens. If she cannot comply then she needs to be fired.

As a nanny, I have never taken my charges on my personal errands but I would take them to child-related places outside of the home. With my new job, my MB (who was a new mother) didn't want me taking the baby to any indoor location where the baby (under 6 months) might be exposed to the flu last winter. No library, no play centers, no kiddy-gym - I thought it was over the top but I did as she requested because she is my boss and this is her child.