And you do not want to make the wrong choice when it comes to the care of your child. The wrong choice could leave you feeling unsettled and anxious every time you leave your child. And you DO NOT want that at all.

Today I want to share with you six things that you DO NOT want to do, when hiring a nanny.

1. Do NOT hire an inexperienced nanny.

When you hire a nanny, you want her to have the experience caring for a similar aged child, and the same number of children. For instance, do you have twins? Its best in that type of situation that she has cared for twins and their special needs before.

• Do NOT neglect calling references.

�����鶹 performs lengthy phone interviews with each candidate’s references and provides a detailed report on each conversation, but we suggest you do additional reference calls to ask your own questions as well!

Calling a nanny’s references will quickly get you the facts on that nanny’s previous work experience.

Ask questions to get the facts. Such as …

“How did you come into contact with this nanny?”

“Would you hire this nanny again?”

“How many days did she call in sick, or report to work late?”

“What issues (minor ones included) came about with this nanny?”

• Do NOT be vague on your parenting methods and preferences in the interview process.

Your potential nanny needs to fully understand your preferences from the beginning.

During your interview discuss…

Housework- What do you expect your nanny to accomplish around the house. And when should she do them.

Media Usage- Are you comfortable with the nanny using the Television, computer, or phone during hours she is caring for your child? Or do you want her to only use those during specific hours during care.

Sleep training and routines- Do expect the nanny to rock or walk the baby to sleep? Or do you prefer your child to self soothe? Is there a specific way you want your children put to sleep? Do you want nanny to help with a new routine or work on sleep training or do things exactly as you already do?

Nanny’s meal arrangements- Do you provide meals for your nanny? Or will you expect her to bring her own food?

Play dates and activities- Is the nanny expected to arrange play dates? Do you want playdates in your home, or in a public setting? Do you want your child participating in story time at the library or visiting the zoo? Is the nanny okay with driving your children around? Are you okay with driving her around?

Discipline- What methods of discipline do you want implemented for your children?

• Do NOT be vague about pay.

Talk about how many days you expect of her to work a week. Talk about exactly what the schedule will be each day. How many days off she will have in a year, including sick days, and whether or not she will be paid those days.  Professional nannies will expect a standard package of benefits including paid vacation, paid sick days paid legal holidays and guaranteed hours.

Also discuss how she will be paid. Hourly? A flat rate? And how often will pay be received?

• Do NOT neglect to set up working interviews!

You should always ask the nanny to come do at least one working interview where candidates will come perform anywhere from 1-5 complete work days to watch how you take care of your children, what the normal schedule and routine will look like and how you want things done. Walk her through a typical day. Show her how you feed, change, and put the child down for naps. Then let her do those tasks the next day, with you following behind to make sure it is going well. This time will also help your baby adjust to the change and know that this person is someone they can trust.

• Do NOT interview only one person.

While it may be the right person right out the gate, don’t settle for the first person you interview. Make sure you interview multiple candidates. You want to make sure that you have candidates to compare to make the best decision! Make sure to ask the right questions of each person. We will provide you a detailed list of interview questions and what to look for in interviews! Here are some great suggestions to ask candidates:

“How long have you been a nanny?”

“How many children have you cared for at once?”

“How and why did you end your previous jobs?” 

“What activities will you do with my child during the day?”

“Do you have any certifications? CPR, childcare, etc.?”

“Is your schedule flexible?”

“How do you handle sick days?”

In conclusion, finding and deciding on a great nanny can be hard work, and it should be! This is a big decision. You are hiring someone to fill your shoes in your child’s world while you are gone, those are BIG shoes to fill!

Hire experience. Call references. Be clear on parenting methods. Be clear on pay. Do working interviews. Interview multiple candidates.

And before you know it, you will have your dream candidate. Someone matched to meet your needs, the needs of your child and who will become the newest member of your family!

If you need more tips on what not to do when hiring your perfect nanny, feel free to reach out to us here at �����鶹 and we’d be happy to assist! We specialize in long term, career nanny placements and have an amazing relationship with of some of the best nannies in the industry who have trusted us for many years. We can help you in finding placements that are the right fit, for all of your families unique needs. Click here for more information. We would love to help!

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Social distancing with kiddos and quarantine for however long means no playdates, no park visits, no visiting indoor play places, or any other activity where other people are gathered. All in an effort for our society to collectively slow the spread of Covid19. It’s going to be a trying time for many. Especially for those of you that have children that are of school age, or are used to weekly playdates, and daily outings. Don’t worry though, handling quarantine with children is possible!

To help you out, I am sharing my favorite resources to keep your young charges entertained and busy. And to help keep your sanity.

To begin with, I would highly recommend setting up an hourly schedule. Children thrive on routine. And with the normal routine having to be thrown out the window, creating a new one ASAP, will make days go much more smoothly. And it will create a sense of safety and familiarity with your child. 

Below is a sample daily schedule that can easily be adapted to suit your current needs.

Sample Daily Schedule (substitute activities based on your child’s age)

7-9 am

Wake up

Get Dressed

Breakfast

Dishes

Independent Play

9-11 am

Read book

At home school assignments

Arts/Crafts

Laundry

11- 1 pm

Lunch 

Educational Screen Time

If in a situation where people can be avoided, get outdoors

1–3 pm

Nap/ Rest Time

3-5 pm

Independent play

Dishes

Dance Party/ Exercise activity

5-7 pm

Dinner

Kitchen Clean up

Bath Time

Read Books

8 pm

Total House Tidy-Up

Bedtime

Indoor Activities (Toddler)

Indoor Activities (School Age)

While setting up organized, special activities are a great idea, including kids in the normal day to day activities can be a great boredom buster too!

Baking– Try a new cake or bread recipe. Depending on the age of the child, you can include them in most of the process. Let them pour the ingredients in a mixer or even measure out the ingredients. Make it a learning activity.

House work– Assign them household chores that have to be completed every day. Make a chart with stickers for younger children. Set a timer, and whoever finishes their chore before the timer goes off, gets extra screen time.

Yard work– Do you have leaves that need raking? A flower bed that needs weeding? Or a porch to be swept off? Let your children burn off energy in the sun by helping with those chores. Or another idea is to digitally connect with neighbors, and ask if you can bring the kids over to complete yard work for them if they are unable to at this time. Just make sure the neighbor stays indoors!

At home exercise routine– Since you aren’t going to the gym, workout at home with YouTube. And get your kids to workout right along with you. Teach them how to do push-ups, and burpees. Let them have a jumping jack competition. See who can stretch the most in Yoga. The possibilities are endless!

Get creative! This is a challenging and stressful time for all of us and kids sense it. But we can make the best of handling quarantine with children.

Make memories and strive to create an atmosphere of peace and calm.

Ease their fears and worries. Make this a time of fun for your child. And you too!

Also, don’t be afraid if you just need a day or two where you do nothing but sit in front of a screen. Let go of high expectations, and just be.

And drink an extra cup of coffee. Or two. You will probably need it.

Wash your hands, and stay safe friends!

And, if you by chance need a nanny for your kids out of school right now or permanently, go here to look over more information about �����鶹 and fill out an application.

If you are a nanny looking for a position with an ideal family, check out openings here.

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