Ever take a nanny along?

[gigi1313]

we'll be in the world for ten days at the end of september...

we're hiring a new nanny the first week of sept for 2 days/week (mil will watch the baby the other days) and we're considering inviting her to join us for a few days of our trip...

i'd love for anyone that has done it to share their pros/cons... also if you haven't, why not?

we are a family of five, dd is 13yo, ds is 11 and baby will be 6mos... we will have two rooms at the beach club for nine nights... the nanny is in her early twenties and the daughter of a good friend/coworker of mine... we also go to church together...

thoughts? ideas? feedback? experiences?

please & thank you!

 

[stella27]

We haven't ever taken a nanny along, although with a 1 year old, 5 and 7, I would LOVE to! Will you get her a room? The cost of an additional room, airfare, meals and park entrance is definitely the sticking point for us, even though I can think of a certain teen-ager I would love to bring along with us!

I think it's a great idea.

 

[mjkacmom]

It would be nice to bring a nanny - do expect to pay for her room, flight, park passes, food, and her regular pay.

 

[weloveprincesses]

We have taken a sitter with us twice when the girls were younger. It was great! Yes, we did pay for her airfare, food and normal pay, so that's a bit tougher on the budget, but it made it where I had an extra set of hands so if one of the girls was getting to do something fun with a character I could focus on that event and not worry about the other one wandering off or crying or whatever. Yes, I did have my husband with me, but...you know boys. As they've gotten older we've not taken one for awhile and I've done Disney twice just the girls and I (dh was princessed out!) and while it was GREAT, I could have used another person as one dd is older and brave so she wants to ride some of the other rides that the other dd is scared to. I've contemplated doing it again if dh doesn't want to go along next time.

I think it's a good idea if you can swing it financially, like the girl and she knows that while she's on a vacation, she still is working. That may be the toughest obstacle. I try to make it where the sitter has fun too, but since I'm paying her, that doesn't mean she just gets to ride all the rides and get her picture taken. kwim?

Good luck and HAVE FUN!!!
Maggi

 

[happymommy]

I don't think most people would require a nanny with your children's ages. The older ones obviously can take care of themselves a bit, yes? So it's only the baby.

I took my kids alone (left DH at home) to WDW a few times, the first being when they were 4 and 6. It was so easy! At WDW, as you know, it is so family friendly.

I have a friend who has a sister who took a helper (college student) along on a cruise to help with her youngest who has autism. That way the older 2 could do things later at night while the youngest was watched over by the sitter. It did cost them the extra cabin (it was a Disney cruise as well). That sounded like it made the whole vacation more stress-free for them.

You could take turns staying with the baby in the evenings, so the older ones could be taken out later, which is what my sister did when we went together in 2007 (she had kids ranging in ages similar to your kids, but 4 kids total).

I find for us, we are usually tired after a long day at the parks and swimming, so we don't usually go out late anyway at WDW.

If you do decide this, I would also assume you would pay for the nanny's airfare, a room for her, meals, and a park ticket. But also, you would have less time with your baby. Isn't that what a family vacation is for? If you work and leave the baby during the day already, I would think you'd all want to spend time together on the vacation.

There are nanny services you could contact to watch the baby while you go out in the evening also. Much cheaper alternative. Also, can't your oldest stay in the room one night to watch the baby while you go on a date night?

 

[Kaler131]

No, but if you are offering we'll take her! LOL!!!

 

[Ellester]

If you do decide to take her, I would just recommend going over the schedule with her beforehand. I would certainly not expect her to to be on call 24/7 while you are there. I would make sure she knows your expectations for when she is "on duty" and when she has some time to herself.

If you can afford it, it would be nice to have someone you trust to watch the baby while you and dh are able to spend some "big kid" time with the older ones.

 

[gigi1313]

thanks for all the feedback...

the things that we think she would come in handy for are things like the big kids want to do a fishing excursion... we loved it when we did it two years ago, if it were just the five of us, the baby and i would have to skip it... dh/i want to have dinner at cali grill and the big kids aren't interested, but would *love* to sit poolside and order pizza... i wouldn't leave them on their own yet (we'd take baby w/us) and they are too old for kids' clubs...

as far as room goes, we're getting two rooms at the beach club, hopefully connecting, and if C (the nanny) were to join us, she would share w/dd (13yo) and dh/ds/baby/i would be in the other room... i would definitely supply her park tickets... and her meals... as far as airfare goes, it would depend on what she's planning to do before/after she spends a few days with us (she may vacation elsewhere w/out us w/her fiance), although i would likely offer to at least split it...

in a perfect world C would only be w/us for a few of our ten days... i don't think i could stand anyone outside my immediate family w/me in such close quarters for too long...

 

[gigi1313]

There are nanny services you could contact to watch the baby while you go out in the evening also. Much cheaper alternative. Also, can't your oldest stay in the room one night to watch the baby while you go on a date night?

i'm not ready (will i ever be?) to leave the baby (or any of my kids) w/a stranger in a private setting like a hotel room, regardless of how well recommended they are... a kids' club would be a different story, but my kids are either too old or too young!

we do not allow dd to babysit the baby... she babysits for the neighbors all the time, but their kids are bigger and not her baby brother... i would never forgive myself if something were to go wrong and she would be saddled w/a lot of guilt for a very long time, kwim?

 

[stace1214]

I have a good friend who is a nanny and has gone on several vacations with the various families she has worked for. Typically, a nannny is given her own room and has all expenses paid for to cover the days she is working (meals, tickets, airfare) with the expectation that on her day off she would be responsible for paying for her own recreation and meals. But, that being said, if your nanny will be staying in Florida for a vacation after working for you, I think it's definitely resonable to ask her to cover part of the cost of airfare. What ever you decide- have a great vacation!!

 

[zurgswife]

I brought a teenage babysitter many moons ago and I provided airfare, food, tickets and lodging. It sounds has you have a professional nanny. I would expect that she would not be required to share a room with your children. If you take her plan on getting her a separate room during the days that you want her to join you.

 

[carj]

Since you only want to have her for part of the trip, and you are thinking that she might combine it with a separate vacation, then I would make sure that you are very clear on your terms to prevent any misunderstandings.

I would give her your plans, spell out exactly her duties, pay etc... and exactly what you are paying for. Then I would tell her to read it over, sleep on it and give you an answer in a few days. Give her a way to bow out gracefully. (If I were a nanny and someone offered a trip to Disney, I might jump at it and then reconsider once I had a chance to think about all that was involved.) I just think that it would be best for all parties.

 

[squirrel]

Sounds like a nice idea. I wish I was offered that when I was a nanny. As long as she gets some free time to visit the parks-it sounds fair to me. I wouldn't mind sharing a room with a 13 yr old when in DisneyWorld and as you pointed out it is for a few nights, not a week.

 

[gigi1313]

thanks again all... i think it might work... she just stopped by to visit and was very excited at the thought of a few days in WDW w/us... she's not "professional" as in Nanny911 type, but the college aged dd of a friend who will be nanny'ing for our baby a few days a week when school starts... she teaches dance at a few studios when not w/us, so we are not her only source of income...

from our most recent conversation, it sounds as though she's thinking that she's tagging along as a friend and will hang w/the kids a few times w/out us*, which is perfect imo
(*but as everyone suggested, we will discuss fine details in the very near future!)

 

[happymommy]

If you are bringing her as a friend, then go for it. Don't expect anything. If you have specific days and hours she's "working" then you need that in writing. It needs to be clear she's going as an employee part of the time.

You will give up some privacy - I would definitely want her in her own room personally. I don't want to be that close - imagine in your pj's and all. That is just me.

Since the baby really won't remember this trip at all, and you want quality time with your older children, what about having family take care of him (he is a boy right?, sorry) at home for a few of the days? Can your MIL do that? I know a few families that have done this option - including me. My folks live in Naples during the winter, and when my daughter was one and a half and son was 3, we left my daughter with them for 3 days and drove over to WDW (GF). She was taking long afternoon naps, playing with grandma, and never asked where we were (and she had just weaned). Another friend of mine took her older two kids and left the baby with the family babysitter. She said it was great to give the older ones more time and attention.

I also really don't think there is anything wrong with your older kids getting their own food by the pool. I would let mine do that, and they are 2 years younger! As long as they have their phones (we have chaperon feature) and stick together, they are fine. It's good for them to learn independence. Of course there is danger everywhere, but I feel that they are safer sticking together. I've let my son run to the shops in the disney resort himself since he was 8. It gives him a great sense of responsibility. My daughter HAS to stick with her brother at all times.

 

[KEH113]

We brought along our Au Pair a few years ago when our DD was 6. She lived with us full time in our home. We offered to get a separate room for her, but she actually chose to stay in the same room with us. She ended up sharing a bunk bed with DD. We spoke to her about the trip ahead of time and told her exactly what we expected if she decided to come along. In the end the only real "working" time she had was accompanying DD to the pool a few times, and one night when DH and I went to dinner alone.

 

[justhat]

I have never taken a nanny, as I don't have one, but I think it would be great if you can. I went with some friends in June and one friend brought her nanny and it was great. Her kids were 1yo and 7yo, so when the baby got tired, the nanny took her back to the room and put her to bed, leaving the mom to spend time with the 7yo. When the baby needed a diaper change, the nanny took care of that so that the 7yo wasn't forced to stop too.

Granted, you'll have your husband there, but I'm sure your kids will appreciate getting some time with both of you, since I'm guessing at home at least one of you has to do a lot with the baby. Older kids still want time with both mom and dad so why make them choose if you have another option?

And the fact that you work, well, your older kids are away from you too, so I don't get the rationale that because you work you leave the baby and therefore should be with him at all times on vacation. The older kids are away from you just as much and I'm sure their lives have changed since getting another sibling so they're probably love some time with both of you.

As for the pool, well, my kids are only 4yo and 2yo right now, but I would much rather have someone watching them swim than leave them alone. Sure they're older and I'm guessing can swim fine, but accidents can still happen so why not have someone around to watch them?

I think you'll appreciate the nanny being there for part of your trip. If you don't use her much for babysitting, at least you still have another set of hands and eyes to help with the kids.