Any Nanny's or child care providers?

[Ansley]

I have an interview on Monday for a job as a nanny to a family with a 7mo, 2yo, and 7yo. I am excited and hopeful that I will get the job! Right now I work as an administrative assistant during the day Mon-Fri, and I have a part time job at the mall that I work in the evenings/weekends 3 to 4 days per week. The nanny job would be Mon-Fri only from 8am-6pm and would pay just $20 less than what I make each week with my two current jobs combined. BUT I won't have to work when I should be home with my daughter AND I will have every weekend off. The main thing I am super excited about is I will have more time with my daughter...but I was thinking. Should I even ask if I could also bring my daughter with me each day? Spending all day everyday with my daughter sounds so wonderful, plus I would still be bringing in income. So would you or would you not ask to bring your child along?

Also, any advice on what to expect during the interview would be greatly appreciated. I love children but haven't really been around any other than my DD, neice and my nephews.

[Super~Single~Mama]

I would not ask to bring your child along, unless you are willing to take a deduction in pay, honestly.  You would be a nanny for 3 children already, and if I was the parent I would want to know that your attention was focused on my children - not your own child.

The exception to this, of course, would be if the employer had known prior to setting up the interview that you were looking for a job that your child could tag along to.

Good luck!!

[Ansley]

Thanks... my way of thinking was that in addition to not having to send my daughter to daycare, their 2yo would also have a playmate during the day (my dd is also 2). The 7yo will start back to school next month.

[indiefolklore]

I let all potential families that i nanny or babysit for that i will be bringing my son along.

The whole point is so i do not have to put him in daycare. I would think that most families would be very understanding of this, i would imagine the point of them hiring a nanny is to keep their children out of a daycare as well so that they do have more attention given to them. Compared to being in group of 10+ at a daycare i really don't think having your own child takes away from this at all. One of the biggest advantages for the family is that at least one child will have a similar age playmate as you mentioned.

If a family isn't okay with this then i look for a family who is a better fit helps me keep my son out of daycare while i help them do the same.

[GuildJenn]

Originally Posted by Ansley 

The main thing I am super excited about is I will have more time with my daughter...but I was thinking. Should I even ask if I could also bring my daughter with me each day? Spending all day everyday with my daughter sounds so wonderful, plus I would still be bringing in income. So would you or would you not ask to bring your child along?

Also, any advice on what to expect during the interview would be greatly appreciated. I love children but haven't really been around any other than my DD, neice and my nephews.

I look for someone who is professional, caring, who listens to me and who puts up with my paranoid questions. :) Things I ask about: discipline, how you would handle things, etc.

If you want to be a nanny who brings her child, then there will be families for you I'm sure but I'm not sure mine would be one of them. I think it sets up a different dynamic and part of the reason for hiring a nanny, for me, is to place my kids and their schedule/ages/needs at the centre of the day, as well as getting a certain amount of control over location, times, etc. So I think it depends on how urgently you want to get this job. If this is your first, and you really need the experience in order to break in, that's something to consider before you ask about bringing your child.

I also agree that I would reduce the rate I was willing to pay, because I would think of it more like a nanny-share.

[JudiAU]

Our nanny sometimes brings her daughter with her when she is on vacation from school or for extra fun. Our kids love her. But that is the result of our experience with them both, over time. And even now, I wouldn't want her here ever day. My childcare provider is here to care for my children. It totally changes the dynamic of the day and it isn't necessarily easy on the kid.  I wouldn't have hired her if she had asked as part of the interview.

FYI, there are situations where this would work well but just FYI, the pay would probably be much lower.

[Ansley]

GOT THE JOB! Yay! And I can bring my DD along as well. They have a curriculum they would like me to follow with their 2yo which would actually work great if he has another child learning with him. I am SO excited!!

[ihugtrees]

Congrats on getting the job :)

I just wanted to comment on the above poster who said they consider it a nanny share...I have been a nanny for six years. When I had my daughter, I only accepted interviews from families willing to allow her along. Considering a nanny with a child like a nanny share doesn't work for two reasons...1 being, on the salary I make, I would NOT be employing a nanny or doing a nanny share. I would be putting my child in a very cheap daycare. So to make me 'pay' half of my salary for childcare...well, it just wouldn't be worth it to me to nanny, when I could make more elsewhere and just pay for daycare. Two, I wouldn't want to work for a family that considered my child to be a negative (ie, deducting pay for her being there.) The families I have worked for considered my daughter coming along as a bonus...socialization for the kids, plus all have remarked how much safer they feel having another mommy care for their children. In my area, the going rate for a nanny with my experience is $16-20/hour. I charge my current nanny family $15/hour and would honestly not go much lower than that because I know I am giving them $15/hour worth of care. Just my thoughts for any future readers of this thread :-D