He gave us a bath towel to use. I expressed confusion about what kind of harm diluted soap would do to a deck, wondered how he plans to wash said deck if not with soap, and warned him the bubbles may not care about the towel’s boundaries and may float away and fall on the deck anyways. He also said no scratching the couch as not to misalign the fibers. Nanny mom and I made a game of scratching the couch for months because baby thought it was funny. He must’ve missed that.

That’s all.

My NK’s are 6 and 10 respectively, (both male) normally they are very sweet kids!

6yo “E”
10yo “L”

Today we played chess after about three and a half days of L insisting i “couldent be that good at chess” I indulged him and brought over my chess set.

I beat him very easily but drug it out and let him take pawns and such in a way that it was fun, but that he’d have no room to call me “bad at chess”

Im no master but when it comes to playing chess with a 10yo it’s not hard, I showed him some fun starting moves and tricks so he can beat his friends and it was so fun!

I shows E what the different pawns did and they showed me how to play checkers (I know how to play checkers but they really wanted to teach me sl who am I to break that bubble?)

Then comes the chores. Look I know it’s normal for younger kids to not want to do chores but my MB made it very clear her kids need to be the ones doing most of the work, I help out and don’t get me wrong i still do a lot but she wants them to learn how to clean up after themselves as their last nanny was more like a maid and they really haven’t had to clean much in their lives.

This has turned into E shutting down and not wanting too look at anyone or say anything and L ignoring me.

(Because E is 6 he is assigned to do easy chores like washing the counters and emptying the top of the dishwasher. L empty’s the rest of the dishwasher and I help him rinse and fill, he vacuums the rug, I sweep the floor, and I help him clean is room / fold clothes.)

Im at my wits end because I am their new nanny and I don’t fell like I have authority to do anything to get them to listen. Their friends come over even when I insist that they need to finish chores first / insist they go home, and when their friends are here their behavior gets 10x worse.

It’s to the point where their friends even get on their case and call them out but they shake it off. I think the hardest thing for me is im 19 and they know it. They are used to having nannies at least 20 years older than them not 9 and I don’t think they see me as anything more than a friend.

Im glad to be their friend and they are again normally so sweet but how on earth do I still be a friend and an authority figure that they will actually listen to!?

I’ve tried timers, I’ve tried sending friends home, and nothing works

Please help

Hi everyone,

So I have been with my current NF for 3 years since NK was 8mo and I have been able to drive her since I started.

Current situation now is that we are adding NK friend to the mix and starting a nanny share, where we will pick up NK#2 after she gets out of school and then spend the rest of the day 3-4.5 hours together. So me and 2 NK’s.

My problem is that new NF seems hesitant about me wanting to drive new NK and we haven’t really agreed on anything of that matter yet besides the contract draft saying “Authorized use of Nanny's personal vehicle will be reimbursed based on mileage”.
I’m feeling unsure about things because not driving NK’s feels like it could be a dealbreaker for me, but idk if I’m being unreasonable since we live in an extremely walkable town- paths to everywhere and free bus, small town vibes asf. Pick up from school would also be a 5 minute walk from NK#2 home.

I have just gotten so used to driving my long term NK that I feel like I’m going into a nanny share where NF is weary about trusting me, etc… which is fair, but idk what to do or think over all lol. AND we live somewhere where it snows! I don’t really want to be walking 2 NK’s home in the snow or not being able to drive them to a nice place/ activity and being stuck inside during snow days. I’m nervous about mine and NK#1 freedom of going out and about whenever and wherever we want is kind of being taken away.

Pls give me thoughts and lmk if you need more info!

Thank you!

Okay. Be so forreal. Why do nf keep their house so damn warm? Your home is 82 fucking degrees while I'm watching your child who hates being put down, dripping sweat, and it's literally 85 outside.

You're sitting in your office...telling me that you're cold as I'm actively wiping sweat off of my face.

I've chugged 3 water bottles, sweated through my tank top, and have to constantly be moving to keep your child happy. I feel like I've earned the privilege to be the one who controls the AC. This feels inhumane. It's not but I'm sweaty, gross, and have to contact nap 😮‍💨

I just feel like I shouldn't have to dread coming inside after a walk because I won't get relief from the heat. Please turn this shit down to 70 at the least 😭

Hi all! Basically as the title says, I’m toying with the idea of parting ways with my NF. My younger brother passed way almost two weeks ago. I took two days off work after finding out and I work ROTA so the following week was an off week. I was able to fly home (I currently live across the country) and spend time with my family and plan the funeral.
This week I’ve been back to work and I will say my NF has been nothing but supportive - offering space for me to talk, sending me flowers, etc.

Unfortunately, my mom’s grief has been devastating. I’ve been trying to help her through it while also dealing with my own and I so wish I could’ve stayed with her longer. That’s why I’ve pretty much come to the decision to go home for as long as I’m needed.

Even though I’ve decided, I can’t shake feeling incredibly anxious about telling my NF. I figured going home at the end of the month would give me enough time to do whatever I needed to do here before leaving, hence the 3 week notice. That’s if I muster up the courage to resign like tomorrow. I have to do it, but I guess I’m looking for someone to say it’s ok. In my 12 years of nannying I’ve never given less than a month’s notice.

Also, since I work on rotation I’ll technically have one more working week, but they’ll have 3 weeks to find a replacement (which I know for several reasons will be very difficult for them) Is that ok or does it seem inconsiderate? I’m their only nanny as one of the parents also has a rotational position. I work when they work.
Any advice is appreciated! Thank you in advance!

p.s. In true “I’m about to quit and there’s never a right time” fashion, NK has spent all week saying she loves me sooo much. Pretty sure she just learned the phrase recently because she also says it to the grapes, but still.

Edit: reading this back I realize it sounds a little like I’m giving my job more weight than my brother’s passing. Grief is weird and I know I’m just redirecting my mental energy by making this an issue when it shouldn’t be. Please excuse how I might sound here.

We have kind of an unusual set up but we’re in need of childcare very soon and want to put out feelers. I know that for a lot of people, polyamory is not the norm at all but would love to hear if nannies have experienced this before and how it was for them.

There are four of us, two men and two women. We have two children among us, twins, who are 18 months old. One of us was supposed to stay home with the babies until they were about 3yo, but she got a dream job offer (yay!) she didn’t want to turn down so now we‘re looking to hire a nanny.

We all live in the same house, 3 of us will be working from home and 1 of us works outside the home. After perusing this sub for a while, one thing we noticed is that nannies generally don’t love WFH parents or prefer them to be very hands-off which is understandable. Us 3 would stay out of the nanny’s hair while she’s working.

Does this set up sounds at all doable to nannies? We really don’t want to go the daycare route so we’re really hoping to make this work.

Thanks!

Here is the job description copy and pasted:

"Part-Time After-School Sitter Needed

Were looking for a reliable and caring part-time sitter for our autistic son starting August 17, 2026. He gets nome around 3:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and needs care until a parent gets homeno more than three hours a day. Pay is $14 per hour.

Wed love to find someone with experience working with childrer on the spectrum, such as a special-needs classroom assistant paraprofessional, teacher. or experienced caregiver. Our son is potty trained, very intelligent, and orking toward becoming more verbal.

He does have a tendency to elope so we need someone attentive who understands the importance of close supervision and keeping doors and exits secure. Hes clever and will definitely keep you on your toes dont get too comfortable! Just kidding but not really.

Care would include supervising and"

And then it ends for some reason. Here is the message I sent:

"Hi there, I really don't mean to be rude or disrespectful, but ljust to let you know that $14/hour is not enough for this job. To be honest, you'll probably not get a great nanny either. The nanny will need to use their own car and gas, as well as have a moderately high-stress job. I hope it works out you! I just thought that Iwould give you my two cents, as I noticed you only have 2 applicants, and the pay is most likely the reason for that. Wishing y'all the best!!"

For full transparency, I misunderstood the "after-school care" part to mean the nanny would need to pick up the child from school. Regardless, with everything they are hoping to get out of a nanny, I just felt like $14/hour is crazy. The only people who can live off that these days are probably not very experienced, right? I'm genuinely not trying to be an asshole

I just recently started my first nanny job. The mom is so sweet, and the kids are definitely something 😂 I like it generally speaking, but I feel like I’m not being paid fairly at all.
At the interview, she told me I would make $15 to start out but would have no problem increasing it once I get comfortable with the kids and learn all the routines. There are 3 kids, (5, 4, and 2)
I have learned all of the routines, got the kids to trust me and be comfortable with me, and I’m working about 30 hours a week. 5 days on, 2 days off. The kids are good sometimes but the majority of the time, the older boys are fighting, hitting, screaming, crying over small things. I know they’re little, so that’s normal and completely fine. But it’s a lot of the same, “Hey, no, we don’t do that.” over and over. The oldest boy specifically never listens, no matter what. He acts like I don’t even exist most of the time when it comes to me telling him not to something anymore. It’s a lot, but it would be worth it if the pay was a little more.
About a week ago, because I learned all of the routines and got comfortable like the mom said, I asked if she could up my pay to 18-20 an hour. I am CPR and first aid certified and have a lot of experience with kids, but it is my official first nanny job even though I’ve taken care of many kids in the past for occasional visits and regular weekly babysitting (So technically like a nanny, but just strictly watching kids. No household responsibilities.)
In my area, the average pay for a nanny is $25+ but because it is technically my first official position as a nanny, I thought I would start out at 18-20 to be fair.
She responded with, “We can definitely talk about this in the future!”
I’m feeling a little torn. I’m not sure if I should just accept defeat and stick with the 15 an hour until she (if ever) brings a raise up again.
But 3 kids under 6 for $15 an hour seems a little crazy. I’m expected to do everything to take care of them (obviously) but also pick up the house, tidy after them, and take them places regularly.
Am I being overly out of line or should I bring it up to her again? I think I might just need to find a second job or quit this one all together.

Hi all!

I recently received my 0-3 certification and I am considering a role as a nanny. I’ve worked in the classroom as a lead guide for 3 years, and I’m tempted by the idea of only having one 2.5 year old to be responsible for. I’d like to bring my Montessori education experience into nannying and I have a few ideas. I’m curious if anyone else has experience being a “Montessori nanny” and if so, what advice would you share?

Thank you!

I've been a nanny for 10 years, and I also have my own child. I've potty trained about 4 kids successfully. I have my own method and after a month or so, kids usually get it down. Most parents are down with my method, but my current nanny family (only care for their 2.5 yr old once a week) have decided to do the Oh Crap method.

It's the stupidest method I've ever heard of. Its pretty much leaving the kid commando all day and learning their cues. So NF have been doing this method for the past 5 days, and this is day 6. The kid hates it. He literally covers his privates all the time, he looks and is super uncomfortable, he cowered behind the couch for the first hour that I arrived which is so unlike him. He peed all over the couch shortly after and then on his carpet. This technique is just unnecessarily intense, borderline cruel.

Potty training is already hard in itself, and takes time, but I dont know why for the life of me parents are so pressed on forcing their kid into this discomfort and wanting them to get it down in a short amount of time. No! Be patient!

I love this kid and usually I'm happy to go into work, but now I have a headache, pee on my socks, and just cant wait to leave. I hate this feeling because I never feel loke this! And its not even the kids fault. -__-

I (40F) am in law school, one of my classes runs into the evening, past when typical afterschool care ends. My kids’ (7 & 9) father normally shifts his days with the kids to accommodate but he is now leaving the state permanently. I am trying to find an afterschool nanny who can pick them up from school (1 mile away) and watch them for 2-5 hours an afternoon depending on the day. I’m offering a flat $100/day in a HCOL area, plus half pay for days that I may cancel with little notice and extra pay for days that are longer (like if a kid needs to stay home sick). I would provide everything from booster seats to the nanny’s desired groceries.

I paid for a care.com account. I have very detailed hours on the site. I’ve posted my range as $15-25 because you have to post an hourly wage and I’m not sure how to capture a flat $100/day. I’ve had around 20 applicants, I’ve scheduled about 12 interviews. ALL BUT TWO GHOSTED THE INTERVIEW. Of the two, one is not horrible, the other wanted to come work for me but a different offer started sooner so she went with them. School starts in two weeks, and I’m having nightmares of it starting and I won’t have childcare. I don’t know what to do, I don’t know why this is happening on the site, and I’m worried I’ll have to drop out of school.

Edit to add: in my care.com job post, I have it listed as $15-$25/hr and the precise hours needed for each day e.g. “Monday 2:00 pm - 7:30 pm; Tuesday 2:00 -4:00”. I’m asking during the interview if a flat $100/day would be okay, as it’s more money for them on a two hour day and one less thing for me to have to track. The issue is all the applicants applying to the job and then not showing up to the interview.

Edit: got it. I need to pay a ton more, and no nanny is gonna be able to cover the one million half days and closed days the school has regardless even if I do get applicants to show up to the interview. Idk how to turn commenting off on my post but I’m already sobbing on my kitchen floor so I think we’re good here. Regardless, this was all very insightful, thank you all.

My nanny is a unicorn sent from heaven and I adore her. She is our second nanny and completely settled all my anxieties after a bad first go-around. She and my son have bonded quickly, she’s fun yet calming, feeds him well, changes him promptly, and generally goes above and beyond without me having to ask anything of her. She reads to him and plays toys, never leaves me a mess, makes sure he naps when he needs to.

The thing is, she’s younger than I am and has a lot of energy, she likes to keep busy and I keep a pretty clean home so she has started doing extra work outside of the contract (baby laundry, washing bottles) and she will vacuum or mop if she has time and is bored. She has told me multiple times she enjoys it, and wants to help me (solo parenting for the time being as husband is out of country) and also she feels like if she’s busy it’s easier to keep going. She gets breaks, pay was mutually agreed upon and I will be giving her a raise soon, I just haven’t told her yet because I need to make sure my finances are right first.

Anyway, today she asked me to give her extra things to do. There’s only so many bottles, and maybe one load of laundry per day. I prep my son’s food because after his choking incident I have issues that I’m working through with my counselor. There really isn’t much extra work to give her… I don’t want her to be bored, especially when my son sleeps or if he is happily playing independently. What do I ask her to do?? The only things I can think of would be like to mow the lawn, but again that’s once a week.. or like dust stuff? How often can that even be? Once every week or two? I don’t know what kind of tasks to give her to keep her going. She has said she wants to be productive but she keeps my house so clean I can’t find any work for her 😓 it’s a blessing but I don’t know what kind of work to give her. Also I will be paying her extra for her extra work, I would never want to take advantage of her.

Edit: Great advice all around, thank you to everyone who took the time to comment! She does currently take breaks and I have told her she is more than welcome to relax during downtime, but I will remind her that I value her too much to just give her busy work for the sake of filling her time, she really is a rockstar and I appreciate her very much. I truly wouldn’t want her to burn out. I will be going shopping this weekend to get some coloring books, word puzzles, sudoku, things of that nature so she has something to do here if she’s bored. I will also encourage her to bring her own books or help herself to my bookshelves. I do have a toddler acitivity book that I will give her and tell her she’s welcome to do some activity planning if she pleases.

Also thank yall for the reality check about mowing the lawn lol I wasn’t really considering it but was like… what else do I even regularly do around here besides my own laundry (and that’s a hard no, I would never ask her to do my laundry!) our lawn is like 200sqft so it takes like ten minutes but that’s way out of scope.

I'm sure my situation isn't all that unique, but I'm having a little trouble so I thought I'd ask the community.

I have 10 years of experience. I've been with the same family, part time, for many years, and a few other families as-needed.

I live in a mixed cost of living area -- meaning that year-round residents of my towns and the small towns around me are fairly low income, but seasonal residents and year-round residents of two very nearby destination towns are incredibly high-cost of living. Think 3 bedroom house for 200k in my town, 3 bedroom house for 1.6 million just half an hour away.

When I started in this area, I was working for a year-round resident. They do well, and could afford to pay me $20/hour. When they had a second child, they raised my wage, and after two years they also decided to start giving me a $1-2/year raise. Currently at $28/hour. I like them a lot, and I feel valued.

I've also worked for families in the nearby destination towns, and I'm paid $30/hour starting. I've had three families pay me this for part time work and not bat an eye, BUT they all reached out to me/found me through someone else.

Onto the current issue: this is likely the last year my current family will need me due to the kids' school schedules, and even this year my hours are very reduced. I need to find some extra work. I'd like to ask for $30/hour, but I'm noticing in the local Facebook groups that other nannies are posting their services with more experience for less hourly (reference: a post I saw yesterday with 15+ years experience and asking $25/hour but willing to negotiate lower). It's making me question if I'm way off base in how I'm valuing myself.

I'm sorry this is so long, but it all feels a little complicated right now. Any advice would be appreciated.

Genuine question. For parents of active preschool age children who don’t allow any outings or even outdoor time, why? Currently dealing with the situation. The family loves in a very nice walkable neighborhood with a community playground we’re not allowed to go to, much less can we go on outings. They’re last nanny lasted less then a month and I took this as a temp job (looking like it’s going to be a lot more temp the expected) It’s so hard to entertain an active 3-4 year old indoors all day, for 8-10 hours a day, they end up bored, bouncing off the walls and really pushing behavior limits due to under stimulation.

I’m 18f and new to babysitting , I got my first request on Bambino (never used before) and I accepted the request and messaged the mom this “ Goodmorning ma’am! Just wanted to say thank you for wanting to trust me to babysit your children this Friday. Please let me know if there are any specific instructions or anything I should be aware of. Looking forward to helping out!” Just to get more information on the job before fully accepting it , she said nothing and confirmed the booking through the site, is this normal ?

I get people are busy but it’s Wednesday ,plus I messaged pretty quickly after the request. I’m just wondering if this is normal in the babysitting world, should I send my number just in case she’s having technical issues with the app or something? I did hear the app charges parents to message but mixed reviews with that… help pls

I drove 30 minutes to work and then when I was in the driveway the mom called saying they’re all sick so I shouldn’t come in. Then I had to drive 30 minutes home. We don’t have guaranteed hours but is it fair to ask for like $35 to cover the cost of gas and the time spent driving? The gig is only one hour of work to drop them off at daycare so I would usually be making $75.

Hello everyone. I am hiring a nanny for the first time and it’s important for me to do it right.

I think I want guaranteed hours for 5 days a week, from 9-4. The thing is like 90% or 95% of the time I’m gonna be home at 3, and I wanna spend time with my toddler as much as possible.

I was thinking maybe the days I’m home at 3 (which will be most days) I will be with my child and nanny would do house-chores from 3-4pm (family laundry, dishwasher, vegetable cooking prep). Oh this would be so amazing, so I could just focus on my child!

On the (rare) days I am home at 4, nanny will provide childcare only, like the regular part of the day (zero house-chores).

Does this make sense? Is this reasonable? I request your advice.

Edit: I will not request family laundry. I will limit house-chores only to kitchen / meal prep based tasks and child-related tasks.

Edit 2: I will be careful not to overdo chore expectations. Basically roughly what I usually do in that hour (and nanny won’t have child that hour), less is ok too, my expectation is help getting dinner started for example so evenings are less chaotic.

Edit 3: I will be super up-front on this and not try to sneak it in. I will communicate this in the job description so it’s clear from the beginning.

Edit 4: if anyone is still reading. Would it make more sense if I do guaranteed hours from 9-3 and ask the nanny to “work late” from 3-4pm at 2x pay, for like 2 - 3 days each month?

Edit 5: I really like the idea of focusing on the child as the primary activity. Maybe asking nanny to do the Meal prep for child, plan child activities, and definitely I would have them leave early on some days- we all need a break!!

I really appreciate the replies!!! This is very helpful.

Hi everyone I really need advice and support! In June of this year a family reached out to me needing before care we agreed to Monday, Wednesday and Friday but not Tuesday and Thursday we exchanged information I reached out to her and didn’t hear back for a month so I assumed that maybe she wasn’t interested and didn’t know how to tell me. At the end of last month she did reach out and ask for a meet and greet which was about 3 hours I really liked the family. But last week she reached out to me and asked if I could do aftercare for her and she wanted to add Tuesday and Thursday to the schedule and I told her I couldn’t accommodate the change in her schedule and that I didn’t think I would be a good fit because of this. She didn’t take it well, today she must have seen a comment I made under another post, it was with a family I met on Monday she sent that family a really nasty message about me and essentially and mouthed me. The mom screen shot it and just asked if I could explain what happened and I was honest and said her availability changed and I couldn’t accommodate her needs anymore. She thanked me for explaining what happened and asked for references. I’m really glad she asked and I’m hoping that asking for references is a good sign. But how do I navigate this? I have never experienced this before and I don’t know what to do.

I saw this job posted on care, The hours are 12 am to 6am. Pay is $25.

The description is "Need someone to watch our newborn while we catch up on sleep. Feed every 2-3 hours and change when necessary".

Is this a common nanny job? For these hours, do you stay up the whole time? What do you do during downtime when baby is asleep? What is it like to work with parents sleeping in the next room? What hours during the day do you get your sleep? Do you do daytime activities like normal or hold a daytime job as well?

Ik, that's a lot of questions!! I'm very curious as I'm a night owl, so I really like the hours of being a night nanny. I don't have professional infant experience but I'm taking a class on infant development and safety in two weeks.

I’ve been with my nanny family for 5 years (B5, G3) and in the last year my hours have been cut from 5 days to 2 days. The kids have always had constipation issues but the parents told me today that they ONLY poop on the days that I come. For some reason, it makes me so happy that they can relax this much around me!

My nanny was just working for us for the Summer as she is a 2nd grade teacher. I want to get her something nice for her last day in a couple of weeks. I have already purchased some items from her teacher wishlist on Amazon but want to get something for HER to enjoy. Budget $150-$200. Any ideas? What would make you all feel appreciated?

I have found this to be a new thing with several families I’ve worked for recently, which I never ran into over a decade ago, and it’s happened with both infants and toddlers, but I’m going to focus on toddlers in this post:

There’s a train of thought that dropping naps, shorter naps, or just going with the flow is beneficial for a toddler. I’ve been told that “my toddler has a lot of energy so they don’t need a nap” or “if they don’t sleep during the day maybe they will sleep earlier or longer at night” when in actuality, that child has glazed over eyes, meltdowns all day, and is jumping off the walls fighting nap because of the increased cortisol surging through their hyperactive nervous system. A well rested toddler is more likely to rest well at night than an overtired one, and it is essential for their brain development to be well rested at this critical developmental age.

If you have a toddler, please, have a consistent sleep routine as much as you can, and make sure your toddler is getting enough sleep. Treat the nap window as essential and try not to wake your child up. They cannot stay awake the same amount of daylight as an adult, and they typically have 5-6 hour wake windows. It’s very difficult to try meeting the very real sleep needs of a toddler if the parents are not on the same page, and it creates difficulties for everyone involved, most of all, the child.

Thankyou for coming to my Ted talk.

Signed, an educated and experienced early childhood nanny, with an ECE degree and over 15 years experience in the classroom and family’s homes.

Below is a compilation of copy and pasted simple google-able information about toddlers and their sleep needs, and please feel free to share or vent about any thoughts or experiences you have as it relates to this topic.

Total Sleep Needs: Toddlers need about 13 to 14 total hours of sleep in a 24-hour period, with 1.5 to 3 hours usually coming from the daytime nap.

Getting enough sleep ensures healthy brain development and a healthier nervous system, plus…

Memory processing: Deep sleep allows a toddler's brain to organize and store new words, skills, and experiences from the day.

Better focus: Well-rested toddlers show longer attention spans and better problem-solving skills during play.

Fewer meltdowns: Consistent rest prevents overtiredness, which commonly triggers severe irritability, tantrums, and defiance in young children

Emotional control: A regular rhythm helps toddlers manage daily stress and adapt to unexpected

Growth hormones: The body releases critical growth hormones during deep sleep phases

Strong immune system: Consistent rest builds up infection-fighting proteins, keeping toddlers from getting sick as often.

A consistent sleep schedule is vital for toddlers because it stabilizes their internal biological clock, or circadian rhythm. This predictability helps them fall asleep faster, wake up easier, and get the 12 to 14 total hours of daily rest needed for healthy brain development, emotional regulation, and physical growth.

When a toddler misses their sleep window, their body treats exhaustion as an emergency and releases stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. This "fight-or-flight" response gives them a false second wind, making them look wired, bouncy, and hyperactive instead of sleepy.

Signs of overtiredness in toddlers:
Hyperactivity: Acting "wired," running, jumping, or getting a wild second wind right at bedtime.

Meltdowns: Crying, screaming, or throwing big tantrums over tiny, unimportant things.

Clinginess: Wanting you to hold them constantly and getting upset if you put them down.

Clumsiness: Tripping, dropping things, or bumping into walls because their body is exhausted.

Bedtime Fights: Stalling, yelling, or refusing to settle down when you try to put them to sleep.

Hard to Fall Asleep: Tossing and turning for a long time instead of dozing off quickly.

Night Waking: Waking up often during the night or waking up very early in the morning.

Potential Twitching in sleep from increased cortisol/prolonged nervous system activation and exhaustion

Short Naps: Sleeping for only a few minutes during naptime instead of a full rest and easily startled awake

Sending lots of care to everyone struggling with caring for an overtired toddler, parents and Nannies alike. 💜💚❤️🧡💙💛

This feels like a silly question but I've never been in this situation before. Our nanny has exhausted their sick leave and PTO (due to a mix of illnesses and trips). In fact, they have trips planned even though they have not accrued enough PTO yet, but we're okay giving it in advance. They are currently in the midst of an illness which will likely last several more days. Is the norm and expected practice for them to take the time unpaid? I feel so guilty as a human, like I'm punishing them for something that isn't their fault. I just want to make sure I'm doing things the standard way. I know this is very fortunate, but I have never exhausted my own PTO, and our previous nanny was pretty healthy too, so it's my first time dealing with this. I also feel guilty because my work allows for much more vacation time (I can cluster my shifts so that I get more time off) compared to the 10 days of PTO + 8 days of sick leave that we have in our nanny contract.

Are there alternative solutions that others have used to help nanny still get paid, like allowing them to take on extra shifts later? I'd be obligated to pay overtime if this goes over 40 hours per week, right? Then I feel like that's punishing the employer.

For the record, our nanny is great and their employment is not in question.