Schedule for nanny: A Day in the Life of a Professional Nanny Here at All About Nannies

A Day in the Life of a Professional Nanny Here at All About Nannies

A day in the life of a professional nanny—include fun times at the park too!

Ever wondered what it’s like to be a nanny for the day? We can’t wait to share the day in the life of a professional nanny. Their routine is impressive and they still make time for the most special moments and teaching times with the children. Most nannies work daytime hours but there are also those that are live-in nannies, night nannies, or newborn care specialists that will work through the night or even in 24 hour shifts! We will be discussing day nannies that come to the family’s home during agreed-upon daytime hours.

A day in the life of a nanny involves many tasks and can be so much fun! I got a chance to interview a nanny and she gave me the scoop of her daily routine with the children she cares for: ages 3 and 7. Her schedule is Monday through Friday from 7:30 am-4:30 pm. The mother of the family works from home in her home office but also travels a lot. The father works locally but is gone throughout the day while the nanny is there to assist.

Morning Routine

When I arrive at the family’s home at 7:30 am I immediately start the morning by getting the young boy (7 years old) ready for school. I get him up, have his clothes laid out (I do that a week in advance and have them all laid out on his chest of drawers), and get him downstairs ready to eat breakfast. I let the girl (3 years old) wake up on her own but if she’s not up by the time to leave for school, I’ll grab her out of bed and move along. I also pack the boy’s lunch and have his bookbag ready to go. We leave the house altogether in the family’s SUV (the family provides me with a vehicle to use) and drop him off at school. I then return back to the family’s home to fix the toddler’s (3-year-old girl) breakfast and start a few morning chores.

The morning chores consist of making up beds, cleaning up kids’ rooms, tidying up the playroom, unloading and loading the dishwasher, and putting in a load of the kids’ clothes in the wash.

Then we play! How fun, right? We love doing arts and crafts and will usually make something with play-doh, moon sand, or do some type of coloring or painting. Often times we will bake too! The little girl loves to make homemade brownies and cookies, which is so much fun to do. After a couple of hours of playtime, arts and crafts or baking, I finish up the laundry and start prepping for lunch.

Mid-Day Routine

After cleaning up lunch, the little girl will watch TV in the playroom for a few minutes while enjoying some milk. I then put her in her bed for a nap. During nap time, I finish up laundry and any other housework that needs to be done whether that’s laying out things for the next day or some cleaning. This is a time where I also have some free-time and can sit back and relax for a few short minutes.

Afternoon Routine

Naptime is over! The little girl is refreshed and ready to go! Now it’s time for me to grab a snack, hop in the car, and go pick up the little boy from school. After pickup around 3 pm, I usually take them to the local playground/park for them to play for about 30 minutes or we’ll go home and play ball outside. I like for them to be able to burn off a little energy and it’s a fun time I have with them! We will then return back to the house where I help the young boy with his homework and play with them some more. The mother is finished with work by 4:30 pm and relieves me so I can go home. I’ve now finished my workday and will return to my home. This is a typically day my life as a professional nanny.

The Nanny’s Perspective

I honestly love what I do. My daily routine as a nanny is apart of my everyday life now. I get to be apart of a family and help them with their two blessings. The children are very receptive of me and love when I’m there. I’ve even heard the parents say they miss me on the weekends. I love working for this family too as they allow me to take the kids to fun places and they will provide the funds to do so. We have a lot of fun going to fairs, playgrounds, indoor play arenas, movies, mall, and library. This job is rewarding and pays well too! I also love the hours as I still get the weekends off to see family and friends and have some time to relax and get ready for the next busy week!

Let Us Help You!

As you can see the daily schedule of a professional nanny looks busier than most imagine! Yet they are nurturing, caring, and lots of fun. If you are wanting to have more intentional time with your kids, need help with their care and household items, then give us a call at All About Nannies so we can help you find the perfect nanny for your family. To see more information check out our Family Section.

Also, if you are a nanny looking for that perfect family with perks like discussed, take a look at our Nannies Section and fill out an application today.

We take pride in providing the very best nannies to our families and vice versa. We are firm believers in a positive community and support system for each nanny and family we work with at All About Nannies.

Hi! I’m Kayla, the owner/director of All About Nannies! We provide experience, trust, and service to AZ families and nannies.

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Here 4 Sample Schedules for Your Vacation Babysitter or Nanny

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When you’re bringing a nanny or babysitter with you on a family trip, use this information to help schedule days.

Hiring a travel nanny or babysitter during your family vacation can be the perfect way to balance time spent with your children and meaningful moments alone with your partner (or by yourself!).

[LEARN MORE: Why you should hire a travel nanny]

But you and your caregiver should discuss and agree upon daily expectations for this working arrangement.

Plan Ahead

Outline a vacation schedule before you go — to avoid dealing with miscommunication or conflict during precious vacation time. Be careful that she’s not on-call all of the time, which means she’ll get burnt out and you’ll end up paying her lots of overtime. Read the rules about nannies and overtime.

When planning, think about what’s important to you. Are you and your partner anticipating the luxury of sleeping in each day? Are you planning on enjoying some adults-only dinners (or daytime adventures)? Do you expect the sitter to take a more hands-on approach at certain times, and function as “back-up” during others? Most importantly, how will you determine what on-the-clock vs. off-the-clock time will look and feel like?

Sample Schedules

Here are four sample schedules for inspiration (on-the-clock time is in bold). You can either repeat the schedule that works for you each day, or alternate between schedules through the trip — it all depends on the type of vacation you have planned, personal needs and habits, the kind of kid-free time you’re envisioning and your children’s ages.

And don’t forget that this is a vacation — as long as your sitter is clear about expectations, you both might find that some flexibility will be a welcome asset from day to day!

Schedule 1
7 a.m. – 10am. Breakfast on your own
10am – 12pm. Morning activities with child(ren)
12pm – 2pm. Lunch on your own/Free time
2pm – 3pm. Accompany family on activity
3pm – 5pm. Do activities with child(ren)
5pm – 6:30pm. Accompany family to dinner
6:30pm – 8pm. Handle bedtime with children
8pm – 7am. Free time/Sleep

Schedule 2
7am – 8am. Get up with children
8am – 9am. Breakfast with kids (parents sleep in)
9am – 12pm. Family activity
12pm – 1pm. Take children to lunch
1pm – 6pm. Free time
6pm – 8pm. Parents’ dinner date/put kids to bed
7pm – 7am. Free time/Sleep

Schedule 3
6 am – 9 am. Get up with children and feed them breakfast (parents sleep in)
9 am – 11 am. Free time while family goes on activity
11 am – 12 pm Accompany family for lunch
12 pm – 3 pm. Take children on activity
3 pm – 5 pm. Free time
5 pm – 6 pm. Feed children dinner
6 pm – 8 pm. Watch children while parents go out
8pm – 6am. Sleep (on-call if kids wake up)

Schedule 4
6 am – 7 am. Get children ready for day
7 am – 8 am. Breakfast with family
8 am – 11 am. Activity with children
11 am – 12 pm. Lunch on your own
12 pm – 2 pm. Kids’ naptime (on-call if they wake up)
2 pm – 5 pm. Entertain children
5 pm – 7 pm. Cook dinner while parents have time with children/eat Dinner
7 pm – 6 am. Free time/sleep (parents will put children to bed)

Alexandra Kadlec is a freelance writer. When not writing, doing crossword puzzles or playing competitive games of Scrabble, she is known to get effusive about modern art, Jane Austen and karaoke.

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Schedule and pay for babysitting.

How to hire a nanny

Babysitting conditions and daily routine: find the best for your child

Time management is a sore subject for babysitters. Each family is individual: some parents need to leave the child with a nanny for 2-3 hours a day, others – for the whole day. And this creates problems. Having decided on the daily routine for the nanny and the child, the employer will create comfortable conditions for cooperation and get closer to achieving educational goals. Discussing the work schedule with the nanny is important and necessary: ​​this will allow the babysitter to avoid emotional burnout and chronic fatigue syndrome.
In the article we will tell you how the daily routine of a nanny and a child depends on the conditions: with homestay, full day, 2/2 schedule and free, babysitting on vacation, and also give an approximate daily routine.

Babysitting conditions affect the daily routine: options

The daily routine of the assistant and the ward depends on the working conditions. For example, living in the family of the employer, the babysitter can devote all his free time to raising and caring for the baby. Working on a 2/2 schedule, a nanny can combine babysitting and study, personal life.
There are five main employment options:

• full-time with accommodation;
• free schedule;
• schedule 2 through 2;
• full day without accommodation;
• work on vacation.

Homestay

Full day with accommodation – a work schedule in which the nanny is with the child around the clock. In friendly and welcoming families, she becomes a full-fledged member of the family.
The employer provides the residential babysitter with access to all facilities. Free food and accommodation affects the babysitter’s salary – he works at a lower rate.
Live-in babysitting requires stamina and psychological stability from the nanny, and far-sightedness and composure from the employer. Parents and nanny should support each other, discuss professional tasks without hesitation.
The more parents are afraid for the upbringing of their baby, the more requirements are placed on the nanny. Accordingly, the fees for her services are also growing. However, not all babysitters can withstand the expected load.
A live-in nanny must be:

• modest, inconspicuous, able to blend into the team;
• mobile – a good babysitter quickly responds to any incidents in the house, helps to find a solution to the problem;
• unperturbed, tactful: in the course of work, the babysitter will have to deal with the private aspects of family life;
• discreet: work with residence obliges the specialist to comply with professional obligations, among which – not to disclose details of the life of employers;
• non-contentious, flexible: the ability to keep disputes to a minimum is always appreciated.

Living conditions put the nanny in an advantageous position: the babysitter does not have to spend time moving around the city. In addition, the need for rented housing and food costs disappears.
Residential babysitting starts with a trial period. Its duration is 3-7 days. During this time, parents observe the nanny, her professional skills and personal qualities. Grandparents come to the rescue, who worry about the baby no less than parents.
A live-in nanny is always a risk. To respect the rights of the employer and the babysitter, video cameras are installed in the house. They must be reported to the nanny.
Living in a family, the nanny changes her lifestyle 360 ​​degrees. Namely, he loses his personal life and free time. Often this ends in burnout. Parents of the child should be interested in the feelings of the helper, offer her help and rest.
There are cases when the nanny becomes to some extent a slave. Real life story: Victoria, a mother of two sons aged 2 and 6, hired a live-in babysitter. The duties of a nanny included the upbringing of an older first-grader child. The woman had to accompany him to school, to carry out small errands around the house. The second child was taken care of by the grandmother. Feeling the support of the nanny, she decided to put all her duties on her shoulders: she asked to take the baby to the hospital, cook dinner for the whole family, and clean up before the arrival of guests.
After 3 months, two children and the whole house became an unbearable burden for the nanny. The worker was embarrassed to discuss this with employers, so she silently endured all the hardships.
After another 7 months, she was fired, citing the fact that the eldest son stopped receiving proper care and attention. As a result, the woman began to doubt her abilities. This story left a serious mark on her further professional career.
Thus, you need to discuss with the nanny everything that happens during the day. If she feels exhausted and overwhelmed, it is worth asking her about the reasons for this condition.

Full day without accommodation

A full day without accommodation is the optimal schedule for most babysitters. This format is popular with parents who work all day.
The main mission of the nanny is the upbringing and care of the baby during the day. Working hours: from 9 to 18. Weekends – Saturday and Sunday.
As practice shows, with such a work schedule, conflicts rarely arise between the parents of the baby and the nanny.
Full-time babysitters follow a set schedule. For example, in the morning they ask the child what he would like to do today, what games to play. Further, the daily routine is agreed with the parents, and they calmly go to work.

Free schedule

Flexible schedule for busy babysitters. For example, babysitters who are studying at the same time or looking after their own child, elderly parents.
The free schedule provides for 2-4 working days a week for 4-6 hours a day. Weekends are floating. A floating chart can be absolutely anything. The main thing is that he suits the parents of the baby and the assistant.

More on the topic:

The free schedule includes combined. Its meaning is that the babysitter goes to work depending on the state of health of the ward.
For example, a child is in 2nd grade. After school, his nanny meets him and accompanies him home. There she looks after him until the arrival of his parents from 13:00 to 19:00. If the child is ill, the babysitter looks after the child from morning until evening.

Schedule 2/2

Schedule 2 through 2 or shift work is round-the-clock child care. This service is popular with parents of infants or children living away from the city where the parents work.
Schedule 2/2 is babysitting for 48 hours. As a rule, several babysitters look after the child at once. Such a schedule will allow you to achieve any educational goals. For example, the first nanny entertains the child for two days and teaches him English. The second – walks with the ward and does homework with him, puts things in order.

Leisure work

An accompanying nanny or babysitter can work on vacation for certain tasks. This option is more likely to be a part-time job than a full-time job.
Parents seek help from a nanny as needed. For example, they need a person who will accompany the child to extracurricular activities, prepare meals and clean rooms.
Working on vacation usually involves a non-standard schedule. So, it is possible to work on holidays, weekends, at night. Such work is paid at a higher rate.
An accompanying nanny is a responsible adult who picks up a child from school, kindergarten, escorts them to classes, and helps with homework. The average employment is 2-5 hours per day.
It is desirable that the accompanying nanny be under 50 years of age. The babysitter will have to actively move during the day. Ideally, you should have your own car. In his absence, parents are required to compensate for the cost of public transport.

Set up a daily routine for the child and the nanny together

When developing a work schedule, you need to listen not only to the opinion of the child, but also to the recommendations of the nanny.
When drawing up the daily routine, it is worth considering:

1. Season. Namely, summer. This time is the most unforgettable in a child’s life. To properly organize his leisure time, you need to coordinate all the nuances with the nanny. For example, to determine in advance how much time the babysitter will devote to the ward, the amount of his salary. If you plan to travel abroad, you should name the dates.
2. Weekends and holidays, overtime. There are cases when parents are delayed at work. The working day of a nanny, for example, ends at 19:00. It’s 20:30, but the parents are still not there. In such situations, the employer must be sure that the babysitter is ready for overtime work. And the worker, in turn, is that his work will be paid at its true worth.
3. Vacation. The standard duration of a vacation is 28 calendar days. When signing the contract, it is important to discuss in advance what days the nanny will rest, how much vacation pay.
4. Downtime. If the nanny works full-time, and the family suddenly decides to go to Germany to visit relatives, you need to compensate for downtime. The nanny is counting on employment and wages under the contract, so she does not intend to waste time through someone else’s fault. A tactful way out of the situation: notify the babysitter about the trip and compensate for downtime at least half of the standard wage.

When discussing the work schedule, the parents of the baby and the nanny should clearly state in the contract when the assistant should begin her duties. It is advisable to record how much time it takes to change clothes, wash hands, and prepare for classes.
A nanny’s salary is directly proportional to the number of hours she works. Logically, round-the-clock childcare pays better than 2-3 per day.
According to statistics, it is the most difficult to find part-time babysitters. Professionals flatly refuse to work for several hours a day. Salvation will be students or people living in the neighborhood.
According to personnel specialists, the ideal work schedule for a nanny is 5 days a week, no more than 6 hours a day.

Write a rough plan for the day

The ideal way to prevent conflicts is to agree on a daily routine in advance.
The approximate plan of the day is discussed with the parents individually. If the child is studying at school, it should be drawn up so that the ward has personal time for walks and sections. The routine for babies is easier, but caring for them is more difficult.
Sample schedule for the day:

• rise: 8:00 – 9:00;
• babysitting visit: 9:00;
• breakfast: 9:00 – 9:20;
• educational games and activities: 9:20 – 10:45;
• first walk: 11:00 – 12:50;
• lunch: 13:00 – 13:30;
• sleep: 13:45 – 16:00;
• afternoon tea: 16:00 – 16:20;
• educational games and activities: 16:20 – 16:50;
• second walk: 17:00 – 18:45;
• waiting for parents: 18:45 – 19:00;
• dinner: 19:00 – 19:30;
• games: 19:30 – 20:00;
• bathing: 20:00 – 20:30;
• bedtime story: 20:30 – 21:00;
• going to bed: 21:00 – 21:30.

Discuss with babysitter and make changes

As soon as the approximate daily routine for the nanny and the baby is ready, you can safely test it. This will take several days. This time the child will spend with a new friend who will get used to the new regimen with him. For parents, this is a great opportunity to test the professionalism of the babysitter. It is important that the child is not afraid to be alone with a stranger. At the end of the day, parents are strongly encouraged to ask the baby about his feelings, ask if he is tired.
You also need to watch the nanny. At the end of the working day, it will be seen whether she is tired or full of energy and ready to continue raising the baby. It would be useful to ask her about the achievements of the child, to find out how he behaved.
When testing a new daily routine, the babysitter should ask for instructions from the parents. They know best what time their baby is comfortable to wake up, eat and play. In addition, be sure to ask about how to calm the child, distract and occupy.
Adapting to the new schedule, the babysitter should have all household items on hand – the so-called nanny kit. Parents should be instructed in the preparation of mixtures, talk about the child’s allergies, his taste preferences.
If the mode does not fit, it is worth making small adjustments. The main thing is that they do not cause fatigue, drowsiness and poor health of the nanny and the child.
It is recommended to introduce a system of rewards for good work. For example, if the nanny sticks to the intended course for a long time, you can reward her with a day off with pay, a bonus, or a small gift. The situation is similar with fines: being late and not showing up for work should be stopped.
Nanny Time Management Tips :

1. The babysitter should have his own idea of ​​the daily routine of a child of a certain age. Knowledge can be obtained in courses or from books on psychology.