1. Qualifications and Experience: When entrusting someone with the care of your children, it's crucial to assess their qualifications and experience. Look for candidates who have relevant training in childcare, early childhood development, or related fields. Previous experience working with children of similar ages can provide valuable insights into their ability to handle various situations that may arise.

2. References and Background Checks: Request and thoroughly check references from past employers or families for whom the nanny has worked. Positive references can provide reassurance about the candidate's professionalism, reliability, and interactions with children. Additionally, conducting background checks is a standard practice to ensure the safety and security of your family.

3. Compatibility and Communication: Effective communication and compatibility between the nanny and your family are essential for a harmonious relationship. During the interview process, discuss your parenting style, household routines, and expectations openly. Gauge how well the candidate aligns with your values and preferences, as this will contribute to a positive and productive working dynamic.

4. Flexibility and Availability: Consider the candidate's availability and flexibility to accommodate your family's schedule. Discuss their willingness to work on weekends, evenings, or during holidays if needed. A clear understanding of their availability can help avoid potential conflicts down the road and ensure your family's needs are met consistently.

5. Skills and Additional Responsibilities: Beyond childcare, consider whether you require the nanny to handle other tasks such as meal preparation, light housekeeping, or tutoring. If specialized skills like first aid, driving, or language proficiency are necessary, ensure that the candidate possesses these qualifications.

Finding the right nanny involves more than just reviewing resumes and conducting interviews. It's about establishing a trusting relationship with someone who will play a vital role in your children's lives. By carefully considering the candidate's qualifications, references, compatibility, availability, and additional skills, you'll be better equipped to make an informed decision that brings peace of mind to your family's daily routine. Remember, investing time and effort in the hiring process ultimately leads to a nurturing and positive environment for your children to thrive in.

Word of mouth, referrals from a family, childcare matching sites, and agencies, and are just some of the ways families can find their ideal caregiver. And, each way has it’s own pros and cons.

Unfortunately, Social Media is a hard one for families and nannies to get right - mostly because it is such a wild west.

What should I post? Where should I post? And, how do I take the next step is just some of the questions that will probably cross your mind.

But, families are finding exactly who they are looking for to provide amazing care for their children with each of the ways mentioned above everyday.

Social Media, as I mentioned, has it’s own pros and cons but it is truly a great place to dip your toes in the proverbially caregiver waters and see if it is warm for you.

Social Media: PRO = Free. CON = Zero guidance.

Every recruiting platform has its own best practices to gather amazing nanny talent.

And, no matter how you do it, there is a bit of a learning curve for a family doing this all for the first time. HOWEVER, don’t let that get you down, as they say, “it takes a village to raise a child,” and that village is on social media.

As the owner of I have a lot of advice built on years of experience but the best instant advice I can give you, before you spend days researching how to find a nanny on social media, is… Just go for it.

Posts are free and as you meet nannies (or don’t meet nannies) you’ll refine your post and then you’ll share it again. Every sales company spends tons of money on copywriters to choose the exact right words to lure in their target market and make a sale. Similarly, you’ll want to be luring in the right nanny (not just any nanny) to apply to work with your family.

Overall, finding a nanny on your own is about persistence.

WRITE YOUR POST

Your family isn’t the same as the family next door. Every family has different needs and they require a nanny with skills and experience best suited for their role.

You might be looking for a nanny with a clean driving record because you’ll need them to drop off and pick up your children from school. Or, maybe you need a nanny that knows how to cook because they will need to assist with making meals for your children. There are no rules on what a nanny must be able to do or where their expertise stops. Yes, You can find a nanny that knows how to drive, do laundry, and help tutor your little ones in math.

There are the 3 sections for a post that are complete game changers and gets nannies to click and DM you.

Most people instinctively do one or two of the sections to find a nanny on social media but something magical happens when you use all 3… nannies read it and then they reach out to you.

The sections below can be used in any order.

POST Part 1: Share Who You Are.

Tell us about your amazing family. What do you like to do for fun? What does your partner like to do for fun? What is the latest silly little thing your youngest started doing?

Sharing about who you are draws nannies in. You next nanny isn’t going to only be looking for hours or pay; they are looking for the right family dynamic and showing off your personality is a big help.

3 Examples on how to show off your personality:

1) We love the outdoors and we are looking for a nanny that can keep up with our 3 little ones on a hike.

2) If you like swimming and maybe consider yourself to be something of a mermaid, our 4 year old daughter is going to have to meet you.

3) Calling all music lovers. Extra points if you like the Beatles and play guitar… our 7 year old is training to be the next Ringo Star and he is looking for his Paul, John, and George.

POST Part 2: Share the position details.

A complete job description is important. Everyone will want to know…

• How many children are they going to be looking after and what ages are they?

• What are the day to day duties?

• Are their speciality responsibilities?

• What are the hours?

• What is the pay range (to encourage fairness, and probably an open mind, most groups don’t let posts share compensation details so end your post with… “DM me for more information.”)

An Example of Nanny Position Details:

Schedule

Monday thru Thursday: 8am to 4pm and Friday 9am to noon.

Duties and Expectations

• Physical care of the infant (bottle feeding, diaper changing, dressing, sometimes bath as needed).

• Establish feeding and napping routine.

• Play and read with the baby, doing age appropriate activities such as tummy time, reading, singing/listening to music, going for walks, etc.

• Someone who can curate care activities to meet infant milestones. 

• Washing bottles.

• Keeping the baby’s area tidy. 

• Baby laundry.

• Clean up with the children.

• Treat the home as if it was your own.

• Must be able to drive (Family or Nanny may provide the vehicle)

BE ACTIVE IN GROUPS

For every position fills, we reach out to about 300 nannies… minimum.

You MUST stay active in the groups you are posting in. Even the best post might not attract the right nanny for your family.

Reach out to nannies posting in the groups.

An Example of Reaching Out to Nannies:

Hey, we are looking for a nanny for our family and we’d love to speak with you about what you are looking for in your next position.

4 Ways to avoid missing an opportunity to connect with a potential candidate.

Don’t let a great candidate slip through the cracks.

1. Reply to every post comment.

2. Check your friend requests.

3. Check you message requests

4. Respond in a timely manner.

to learn more about 91Լ�� with zero obligation.

91Լ�� believes families are one nanny away from happiness. Get premium childcare and have to-dos taken off your plate. Stop worrying about the little things and grab me time without feeling like your forgot to sign a permission slip. Our nannies understand how to empower your children with your values so they always say please and thank you. You have all the power in your family’s care.

Learn more about 91Լ�� at www.unitednanny.org

Effective January 1, 2022, all Chicago employers of nannies, care workers, and home cleaners must provide their workers with a written contract in their preferred language. You can find sample contracts . (91Լ�� also offers adjustable contracts to fit anyone’s needs to its families and caregivers.)

Per Chicago Municipal Code, , any domestic worker, regardless of status (employee or independent contractor), must be provided a written contract as of January 1, 2022. 

In Chicago, you must be paid at least $15 as of August 1, 2021, which is the  (higher than the ). If you work more than 40 hours in one week, you are entitled to overtime.

Learn more at: https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/your-home-is-my-workplace/home/domestic-workers.html

WHY is Onboarding important?

Here is why I am about to tell you all of this. When I was in high school I bought my friend a fish for her birthday. She had never had a goldfish before so I knew it was the perfect gift. I gave it to her and she loved it. But, a week later when I asked how the fish was she told me it died. I was blown away. But I shouldn’t have been. She never had a fish before. So while she thought she was being the best fish mom ever, cleaning the tank every day, changing the water every other day, she was actually killing her fish. And, unfortunately, when I got her the fish I never told her how to take care of a fish and this is exactly what happens when families hire nannies. They spend all their time finding the nanny but they never really learn how to employ one. And, I get it, no one ever told you being the best nanny boss was a skill.

Like a lot of skills you don’t notice how good someone is at it when they are amazing but you’ll notice how bad someone is when they leave much to be desired. So, you probably never analyzed how your favorite boss was transparent and clearly communicated with you, was autonomous in making decisions, and didn’t micromanage you. And, even if you are doing those things as the nanny boss you are or are going to be, you can always level up.

Every Best Nanny Boss Ever reader pats themselves on the back by page 3. Why? Because, I wrote and told them to do in the book, because they are doing it, they are making an effort to be a good boss, which isn’t easy, especially when you thought you just needed to be a parent. 

I truly believe that a good nanny brings happiness into a home and while they take so much off your plate, give you security in great and personalized childcare, they are invested into you, your children, and your family, and your home, all while removing stress, giving you back me time, they do put a few things on your plate. Payroll. Onboarding. Management. 

Those 3 things alone sound crazy but they aren’t. So many other families have nannies so you’re not alone. Honestly, if they can do it, so can you. You can probably even do it better because you’re here. You got this. 

What is Onboarding?

It is “Specific direction on how to accomplish the nannies’ role to the satisfaction of the principals. Get up to speed on and learn how to best apply their skills.” That is word for word from 91Լ��’s Nanny Profection class, which every single one of our placed nannies takes. 

Where do you start?

Well, if you have signed up to our email list to get Best Nanny Boss Ever, then you might have already received your copy of our not just or BNBE guide, you probably got our bonus Family Manual because you get an email with a link to it the very next day

So, what is the Family Manual and why will it help me, well it is your secret weapon for onboarding your nanny. The manual lays it all out. It is the rules, policies and procedures for how your home and family work. You can add the standards you hold for your nanny, plus some extra handy information like, their PTO (paid time off), What to do when they are sick (do they stay home, or come in? These are all decisions you’ll have to make.) 

My favorite way to get a nanny introduced to your family and how your household works is to show them around. Take a day to, maybe a weekend before their first day, and show them around your house - if you don’t know what to say that’s ok, just go room to room and point things out, a ton of information will come flooding in. Like, “Oh, don’t let the kids touch that, here is where we keep that thing we always use, be sure to check this if that isn’t working. This random information is like gold to a nanny. 

See, every family is different but you don’t realize that because most likely you aren’t that close with another family to know, sure maybe your siblings and their family but you are going to have a similarly run household. Picture this, every family has a utensils drawer but every one puts their silverware in a different order and you’ll be surprised when you learn they keep the servingware in a drawer or closet all the way across the house. Nannies are the only ones with this bird’s eye view. Really, this is one of those, “you don’t know what you don’t know” things. So the more you can share with a nanny the better. 

So take that day, go room to room and then everyone get in the car and go to the store, yeah, this is a good day to go shopping, then the dry cleaners, then grandma and grandpa's house, then to the school, the soccer field that practices are at, the music store for music lessons, the little swimmers academy for swimming. Bottomline, go everywhere. And in your new trusty family manual write down all these addresses. 

What else will improve the way I employee a nanny?

Click to Grab Your FREE Best Nanny Boss Ever Guide HERE.

Top 5 things to share with you nanny.

1. Expectations for them and your children. 

2. Emergency contact list. 

3. Indoor Orientation (location of First Aid, dishware, frequently used items wifi password)/

4. Community Orientation (school, daycare, doctor, dentist, practice and lessons, parks locations).

5. Parental Insights (those things only you know about your family that might help. Ex: indicators your little one needs a nap.) 

Subscribe and learn more from Be The Best Nanny Boss Ever podcast. Available on your favorite podcast platforms.

Updated on July 19th, 2021

It’s no secret that kids of all ages love summer vacation – the warm weather and change in routine bring adventure and imagination into their days. As parents, however, it’s common to be concerned that your child isn’t being challenged and presented with new learning opportunities while they are out of school. 

Rest assured, there are many ways kids can turn their education and playtime into outdoor learning – right from their backyard. Activities like backyard camping, gardening, and birdwatching provide endless teaching moments while still creating experiences in nature and the outdoors. So whether you’re trying to avoid summer boredom or looking for new, unique ways to teach your kids, we’ve put together a list of 8 ways to create the ultimate backyard retreat to keep your kids engaged, entertained, and active this summer.

1) Transform your backyard into a campground

Backyard camping is an activity the whole family can take part in. Let your kids set up camp with a tent, pillows, blankets, or sleeping bags. Keep the campsite equipped with flashlights, a picnic table, and camp chairs. Consider building a  with stone or brick that’ll last all summer long. That way you can have your kids help with cooking classic camp food, such as hotdogs and s’mores without needing a full-fledged outdoor kitchen. 

Teach your family new skills and explore your backyard with activities such as bird watching, stargazing, and looking for bugs. You can also whip out a deck of cards, board games, or lawn games to have some competitive family fun together. Then, end the night huddled around the fire telling stories and singing campfire songs as you roast marshmallows.

2) Construct a treehouse getaway or a charming playhouse

A treehouse is the perfect backyard retreat for families with children of all ages. Before beginning the project, you’ll want to make sure that the tree you choose has a strong foundation. Your kids can learn math skills as they design and measure walls, ladders, doors and windows. Once the treehouse is complete and safe to enter, the whole family can help furnish and decorate the interior.

Not only will the treehouse give kids a place to get lost in books in their very own , play with friends, or boost motor skills through climbing and imaginative play – there’s no doubt that the memories a child will make in their treehouse getaway will stick with them as they grow older.

If building a treehouse is not possible, you can spark your little one’s imagination by buying or building a backyard playhouse to call their own. No matter the style – from traditional playhouse to fort – your children and their friends will likely spend hours on end playing pretend and making memories.

3) Plant an edible garden in your backyard retreat

Do you have unused space in your yard that can be converted into a garden? Then there’s no better time than now to plant an edible garden or try out . This can be a spot where the kids will not only have fun playing in the dirt but also learn responsibility and can take pride in something they created. Choose a small plot for your kids to plant fruits and vegetables, herb plants, and perform tasks like watering and pruning. Consider starting your beginner garden with a few types of plants that are easier to take care of, such as basil, carrots, and cucumbers. 

4) Have a backyard BBQ

Kids love to help out with all sorts of adult tasks – one of them being cooking. Have your kids help with making a salad, picking herbs and vegetables from your beginner garden, and assembling side dishes such as chips and dip. Just remember to always keep an eye on the children and have them steer clear of the grill. A backyard BBQ is a great event to gather around the table to enjoy the food you prepared together.

5) Host an outdoor movie night

Does your family love to watch movies together? Kick movie night up a notch with an outdoor movie screen, because let’s face it – nothing is better than an outdoor movie as the sun begins to set. 

You and your kids can build a collapsible DIY outdoor movie screen with a couple of PVC pipes and a plain white sheet. Connect your laptop to a portable movie projector with speakers using an extension cord plugged into a surge-protected power strip. 

Next, create a cozy seating area with blankets, floor cushions, and hang string lights to create a cozy ambiance. Plant pots and buckets can be used as drink coolers and snack stashers that you can pass around during the film. Gather friends and family for a movie everyone can enjoy. And don’t forget the popcorn!

6) Create a backyard water park

For younger children, a water table, kiddie pool, and sprinklers are as good as any water park without needing to drive or encounter crowds. For older children, consider a larger blow-up or quick-set pool available in a variety of sizes, depths, and styles. Some even come with pumps, filters, and covers that keep your water fresh and clean throughout the season. Typically, these more expensive features reduce maintenance and water usage.

A backyard water park isn’t complete without a sandbox to provide a sensory lab for kids who love digging, sifting, and burying. For much-needed shade from the sun, an umbrella and seating — either in the form of lawn chairs or a blanket on the grass — will give adults and children a place to rest and relax. Keep snacks and drinks nearby in a cooler with ice packs or, if power is available, a mini-fridge.

7) Learn about the wildlife that inhabits your backyard retreat

Feeding chirping birds and discovering animal tracks can be fun, educational, and therapeutic for people of all ages. Together, your family can build your own birdhouse or feeders to attract birds. Many children probably can’t recognize the difference between a cardinal and a robin, so examining different types of birds up close can teach your kids more about the wildlife in their hometown. Encourage kids to keep a journal, writing down and drawing pictures of all the types of birds they see. 

If you live in an area, such as the Pacific Northwest or , where it’s common to spot deer, ducks, rabbits, squirrels, or owls wandering in your backyard, discovering animal tracks can be an exciting activity whether the animal hops, walks, or flies. Or maybe you live in an area like  where you may even see an alligator wandering around. Regardless of your home’s proximity to wildlife, finding paw prints from a neighbor’s dog or cat is an opportunity for your kids to recognize the difference between these patterns. 

8) Get active and utilize your outdoor space to play games

One common learning style is hands-on learning, or experiential learning – the act of doing, manipulating, and playing. And what better place to practice this form of education than your very own backyard retreat?

There are several different activities and games to play outdoors to keep your kids engaged:

• Create a rhyming scavenger hunt to practice problem solving and teamwork. Add in some rhyming to up the fun as the kids hunt for their treasures.

• Play I spy to discover otherwise overlooked details in your backyard and strengthen memory.

• Prepare a treasure hunt to explore the backyard. Indulge their imaginations and interests as you create the theme, write the clues, and don’t forget to find a tricky spot to hide the treasure.

• Play Simon Says to improve listening, body awareness, and motor skills.

• Play a sport outdoors to practice hand-eye coordination. Basic sports gear, like basketball hoops, volleyball nets, and soccer goals, can be purchased at big box stores or online retailers.

• Build an obstacle course to encourage thinking, problem-solving, and good exercise. There are countless DIY options for creating an obstacle course such as utilizing painter’s tape, sidewalk chalk, cardboard boxes, pool noodles. You can also incorporate hula hoops, water balloons, and baskets.

• Play yard games for some family fun, such as bocce ball, badminton, bean bag toss, and more.

You can easily turn your outdoor space into a backyard retreat that’s engaging for kids – and adults – of any age. That way you can spend more time in your  while teaching your kids new skills and curing summertime boredom.

Being a caregiver is hard and often seemingly under appreciated work. Thanks to Hollywood, caregiving is seen as what an unemployable 22-year-old does when she has to get a job because her trust fund ran out of money. That is the actual premise of “Uptown Girls.” But that movie could not be further from the truth. Caregivers come in all shapes and sizes with a varying degree of experience. Many individuals are career nannies, meaning caregiving is their skill, expertise, and lifetime occupation. Unlike the movies, most nannies are not stepping out of the 9-5 work force to figure out their lives.

When it comes to parents, let’s face it, more often than not, parents do not realize hiring a nanny means they are now a boss. Many families get in before realizing the responsibilities they have as an employer and I don’t blame them, there is no one to tell them. This realization is not the easiest to come to and is hardly shameful. Families do need to educate themselves on the Schedule H form for taxes and to get an EIN from the government. For many this process is easier than figuring out Microsoft Excel and with resources like CareNectar available there are plenty of ways to learn everything there is to know without the fear of messing up.

The at-home caregiver industry is a mystery for most. Most often families and caregivers alike are left figuring it all out in a vacuum. Even when you think your nanny hire and boss skills are amazing, still, things slip through the cracks. It’s, of course, completely unintentional but because families rarely hone their skills and learn about how to be an executive, they settle with learning on the fly which leaves a lot for both parties to be desired. 

Like it or not, it is the employers that are left steering the ship. A family has all the control when it comes to their employer/employee relationship. All of this said, there are ways to a nanny’s heart and successfully perfecting your perfect fit. After all, you probably spent a lot of time finding the right fit and you don’t want to lose them. You probably want to keep them for as long as you can.

The rule of thumb for taking care of your caregiver is to think: what do you wish your boss would do for you? Everyone’s needs are different but good intentions and a few nice thoughts here and there go a long way.  Unfortunately, a lot of people feel their caregiver is beholden to them because they are paid. Paul McCartney said, “you can’t buy love,” but he left out that you can’t buy respect either. This is a partnership. 

I’ll be 100% transparent here…

1)   Communicate.

There is one overarching key to being a topnotch employer: maintain and keep the lines of communication open.

Transparency is my key to success when trying to keep an open-door policy. As a boss or a caregiver, you just want the truth. The honest, sometimes harsh but professionally spoken truth. It is the easiest to navigate. Anything less can manifest drama and, “aint nobody got time for that.” 

For caregivers, transparency means speaking up, saying you didn’t see it when your charge bumps their head on the playground. For parents transparency is sharing that you really appreciate it when your caregiver plans outings but that you would like for them to share what they and the children are doing and where they are going a few days before.

John Mayer may have said it best and most straightforward, in his song, “Say What You Need to Say” when he sang, “say what you need to say” over and over and over… it’s a bad song but you have to hand it to John, and I’ll be 100% transparent here, it is straight to the point and for the transparency lover I am, I give the song a B minus.

The more you share with your caregiver the more they will share with you and that is what you want.  Push through all those icky and uncomfortable moments when you have them, everyone does – this boss thing is new to all of us. Being transparent will get easier.

We caregivers don't hold this against the families either.

2)   Have Things Ready for Your Nanny Before Day One.

There is so much anticipation leading up to day one. 

Day one is go-time. This is not a test. It sets the tone for how your family and your nanny will interact. Set yourself up for success by setting your caregiver up for success, meaning, give them as much information as possible.

Similarly, to being transparent, you want to share but this is that deeper level. Your caregiver doesn’t know what they don’t know and when it comes to how you like things don’t, they have no clue until you tell them. Most people don’t realize every home is completely different, until you work for several families and you see first hand that everyone does their laundry differently. So, we can't hold this against them. This failing to hand over information even happens to families that are on their second caregiver because they forgot to write stuff down the first go around, and now they are needlessly repeating how to avoid all the stumbling from the first hire.

We caregivers don't hold this against the families either. You didn’t realize we would need to know you call a room the “family room” instead of a “living room.” That’s because it only matters when your caregiver is trying to turn on the lights but you have a smart home and Alexa won’t budge no matter how loud I shout, “turn on LIVING ROOM lights to 100%.”

Figuring out all the information you want to share is going to be a little tough but just start by writing down all of the nuances of your home as they come to you. The earlier you start thinking of this the more you will have figured out.

EXAMPLE:

•  What are the rules of the house?

• What are your expectations for your children?

• Who are the emergency contacts?

• What is the daily schedule?

• If you live in a building, what button do you press to let people in the front door?

• What is the code to get in?

• Is your caregiver going to drive your car? If so, where do you keep your keys or will they get their own set?

There are mountains of information you can share with your nanny. The more the better. Take the next few days of your life to be cognizant of how you get things done, where belongings are kept. And be sure to share those insights only you know – like, “we say break time instead of time out,” or, “In our home stupid is the s-word so please replace it with silly,” and jot those answers down.

There is so much parents don’t see and what they do see might not be the best indication of how great their nanny really is.  

3)   Appreciation.

A “thank you” at the end of the day goes so far and it is absolutely free to give your caregiver. There is so much that the adults of the family don’t see, that’s just part of it; that is why you needed to hire a caregiver. Chances are that your nanny is working really hard all day but you will only see a teensy-weensy bit of that blood, sweat, and tears from them when you arrive home until you send your nanny home for the day.

I admit, it can be a letdown to come home only to see your nanny is less than energetic. We all think caregivers are supposed to be fun, energetic, and almost magical with their ability to play and tend to children all day. But mostly we come home to find the party is over, things have wind down, and there is a sense of calm. If those moments give you pause, remember, it probably wasn’t like that all day. A good caregiver is basically on their feet the entire day and unlike most jobs, nannies don’t get a break time (yes, they are probably still getting stuff done at nap time).

Back when I was the director of a day camp, I would remind my consolers to pump themselves up at parent pick up. Sure, they were run down by 3:00, but those 10 minutes were the only ones where the parents were really able to see their children interacting and having a blast with the counselors. I knew parents would assume the worst and that the staff was lazy, even though it was the first time these counselors sat down all day.

There is so much parents don’t see and what they do see might not be the best indication of how great their nanny really is.  

Say, “thank you,” at the end of the day whether you say it because you see how hard your caregiver works or if you say it because you see all the great attributes your caregiver brings to your home because your child smiles when you say their name. A good ‘thank you,” lets your caregiver know that you appreciate and acknowledge all the wonderful things they do to make sure your family has the best care. 

I’m sure you too would appreciate some understanding at work.

4)   Give Caregivers a Break.

Plain and simple, there are days when not everything gets done. It doesn’t mean your caregiver forgot, didn’t try, or didn’t care. Sometimes there just isn’t enough time in a day to get everything on a parent’s wish-list accomplished.

Hardly ever do days drag on for a child caregiver. Quite the opposite. The days run away, every activity making the day speed up. Wake up the children, make them breakfast, get them ready for school, drop them off, and all of that could be the first hour.

If you want something done, make sure there is enough time for your caregiver to get it done. The standard industry suggestion is to ask yourself, “would I have enough time to do ABC?”

The lesson is, being understanding is what makes a boss great. I’m sure you too would appreciate some understanding at work.  Even the best nanny is going to have an off day.

Now you understand why Mary Poppins was so anxious about taking a “Jolly Holly,” with Burt and the kids, she had things to do. You probably just thought she was uppity like I did before I became a nanny.

Whip out a sash, write boss of the year on it, put it on.

5)   When You Can, Let Your Nanny Leave Early.

Every house has Cinderella’s Pumpkin Syndrome. At the end of every day, just like Cinderella’s coach turned back into a pumpkin, your house becomes your sanctuary where you can let go and be yourself. For many, CPS happens when you want the last few stragglers from your party to go home. For homes that employ a nanny, it is when your nanny’s work day is over.  It is nice to chat for a few minutes, here and there, but the reality is you need your house to revert back from your nanny’s workplace to your humble abode.

Some days CPS begins early. Both adults of the house are home, dinner is made, the children want to eat, and if there isn’t anything left for your caregiver to tend to. Those are the times it is ok to send them home a little early.

Some people are penny pinchers, they want their money's worth and want their nanny to stay until the very last minute. I can sympathize with that concept but the heart of the matter is, do you cultivate a better work environment and stronger professional relationship with your caregiver, or do you want control?  

Next time you look around and see there is nothing for your caregiver to do, whip out a sash, write boss of the year on it, put it on, and send your nanny home a few minutes early. They will be tremendously grateful.

There is no one way to be a boss to your child caregiver. That’s part of what makes having a nanny so wonderful, your childcare is completely personalized for your family and you decide how it is done. Just like you, your caregiver is doing their best. A thank you or letting them leave a skosh early when there is nothing left for them to do will help to keep them happy and keep them around.

*This article is based on the Nanny ABCs Next Step Podcast, Episode 34: