Bedrest with new nanny

Hi There,

I'm stressed out about the turn of events in my house. I have a two year old and planned on having a nanny start several weeks ago... She stood me up, so I started the hiring process and finally hired a different one that started on monday. That same day I was ordered to go on bedrest due to rising blood pressure. The nanny has some good qualities... She's EXTREMELY neat and tidy and she's friendly but I'm afraid that she's so neat that she's not paying enough attention to my toddler. Today when DH came home, my son had an extremely bad diaper rash and old poo stuck to his bum. Obviously the nanny wasn't changing him enough and/or properly. Also, she took him out for a walk and fed him giant cupcakes.. Afterwards, she was surprised when he went bonkers in our living room due to a sugar rush.

She told me that she took care of a toddler in the Phillipines. I wasn't able to check that reference, but I checked another one where she looked after two older boys. I'm starting to think that she may have no experience with babies or toddlers.

I'm getting a bad vibe from this lady, but I'm not 100% sure about her. I've never had a nanny before, so I'm not sure what to expect. I was hoping to have this all sorted out long ago in case I had to go on bedrest. It's really stressing me out! Any advice?

 

I was a nanny for over 5 ½ years ( I stopped working to be a stay at home mom). I would suggest that you go over you expectations with her again and make them as detailed as possible. Perhaps you and your DH could make a schedule for her (if you haven’t already). If after that you still are not a hundred percent sure about her then by all means find someone else. Did you hire her through an agency? If not that might be something to consider if you have one in your area. Most agencies (if they are good) do thorough background checks and will guarantee their services (ie finding you the right nanny). There is a fee involved but it might be worth it to reduce your stress.
I hope I was helpful good luck with what ever you decide to do.

 

I would detail out your expectations as much as possible. My nanny is receptive to that.

 

I second what the others' said as far as laying out what you expect and need from her. I also have a 2 year old and went on pretty strict bedrest over the weekend. I'm really struggling to figure out what to do with him during the day since I am pretty unable to do anything. It's nice that at least you have someone in your home where you are too, I hope it works out for you!!

 

Thanks for the tips. I actually went through my expectations with the nanny again today and things went a lot better. I still had to be on top of her to change diapers but she tried really hard to do everything right. I figure I will give her a while to see how things go... I'd love for it to work out and it seems as though my son likes her. if there continue to be problems I will start trying to hire again and include more candidates from agencies... I never imagined the nanny hiring process to be so stressful!