1. To be a nanny, you must be willing to lose your entire wardrobe to glue, glitter, markers, paint, spit-up, throw-up, food fights, drool, snot, and other bodily fluids and craft supplies.
2. Patience is a daily prayer.
3. Need practice for parenting, without having to deal with the long-term ramifications? Be a nanny.
4. Always be willing to chase, run, and just... go. Attention spans are short.
5. Theme your days. It helps you to be creative, and encourages the kids to contribute ideas, even come up with their own themes! - Polka dot day (ideas: "spot dogs" instead of hot dogs, wear polka dots), picnic day (everything you do is on a picnic blanket), paint day (paint your bread with peanut butter and jelly, paint pictures, faces, arms, anything!)
6. Be willing to be whatever you need to be - a listening ear, playmate, nurse, and whatever make-believe character the kids want you to become.
7. DON'T let the kids watch tv all day. You will be bored and they will never develop imaginations and they will be fat and lazy and boring. Limit it to one or two shows per day.
8. Keep tissues, water, and band-aids in your purse (or man-purse). You never know when you'll need them.
9. Let the child direct their own playtime (even moreso if they are older) - studies show that free-play is more important in a child's development than directed play.
10. Have fun! You may need a survival guide, or you may be able to write one after nannying for a while, but make sure you're enjoying yourself. If you're not, the kids probably aren't either.
One last thing - Don't nanny under the illusion that it's anything like babysitting. Babysitting means feeding a kid a meal, watching a tv show and going to bed. Nannying is a conglomeration of playing, planning, teaching, baking, cleaning, and so much more. Get ready :)
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