Archive for the ‘Nannies’ Category

Have You Had A Current Flu Shot?

Thursday, February 4th, 2010

Some recent articles suggest that nannies who have had their H1N1 flu shot are finding jobs much faster than those that have not had it.  While in some cases it may be true, the real advantage is to protect the Nanny.  As we are all aware, children are more prone to catching a cold or flu than an adult.  Once a child has the flu and passes it on to their nanny the problems are significant for everyone involved.  It is not just the child and their household that is affected, but the nannies household can be affected too.  If the nanny gets sick and misses work it can be devastating, as most nannies do not get paid if they are not at work.  Of course the family will have its own problems filling in for the nanny when they too need to be at work. 

The bottom line is for both nannies and families to make sure that they are all up to date on their shots to prevent serious issues from arising.

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Happy Holiday

Wednesday, December 24th, 2008

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our clients, nannies, housekeepers, chefs, managers and all of the other many wonderful people that have helped us grow this past year. 

Dedicated Domestics wishes all of you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Best Wishes,

Eloisa and Jeff Nelson

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So you want to hire a Nanny? Now what?

Thursday, November 6th, 2008

The first step is to decide what your real needs are.  Be realistic in what you are looking for.  Most household employees are looking for full time work.  Some will be willing to work for two days with one family and three days with another, while others prefer to work full time for one family.  The more challenging the schedule the more difficult it will be to find someone to fill your position.  It is customary for nannies to request higher salaries to work odd hours, just like any other field.  Sometimes, we have found that a family can hire a full time nanny for only slightly more than an odd schedule might cost.  It really does pay to think through your needs carefully since hiring around a standard schedule can give you greater flexibility at home, increase you selection of nannies and sometimes even save you some money.  

Besides the schedule you should consider what you need the person to do. 

·         Do you just need someone to watch your children or do they need tutoring skills to be able to help with the homework? 

·         While most nannies will help with light housekeeping, they will not scrub you bathroom.  If deep cleaning is what you really need, you may want to find a good housekeeper.  And while some housekeepers will keep an eye on older kids occasionally, I am sure you do not want someone with chemicals on their hands from scrubbing the toilet to start changing a diaper.

·        Does the nanny need to drive the kids anywhere or to run errands?

·        Will they need to use their own car or will you provide a car?

·        Have you planned on a mileage allowance, insurance or both?

·        Do any of the children have special needs that a nanny should be prepared for?

·        Are you a stay at home mom that just needs extra help or are you planning to be out of the house and need a full charge nanny?

·        Does the nanny need a passport to travel with the family?

·        Will the nanny need to be flexible for overnight stays?

 

As you can see, there are many questions to think about before hiring someone.  The above is just a short list of common questions.  The more you think through what you are looking for in a nanny or housekeeper the easier it will be to find the right person for you.   Give us a call at Dedicated Domestics and we will be glad to review your needs and help point you in the right direction.

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Happy Halloween

Friday, October 31st, 2008

By now you have the kids all ready to go trick or treating and you are just squeezing into your own costume.  Just a few quick things to remember.  Kids will be running all over the place and crossing at the corners is the last thing on their mind, so if you are driving be very, very careful.  If you are not driving, still stay aware to be able to watch for some of the kids that may not notice they just stopped in the middle of the street.

To kids all candy is good, but make sure at the end of the night you go through the candy to make sure it is all good.  Sometimes candy can sit for too long and may look pretty gross.  When in doubt, throw it out.  Keep some of your own candy to switch with the kids so they don’t feel cheated.  You may also want to dole out the treats over several days to avoid stomach aches.  Then of course the best thing may be to donate all the candy and get the kids to enjoy some healthy snacks.  Good luck on the healthy stuff. 

Seriously, have a great holiday and try not to over do the candy.

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Professional Nannies Can Make A Difference

Saturday, September 27th, 2008

Many families are turning to in home childcare to help watch their children, giving the parents the ability to continue their careers.   This is certainly nothing new.  In-home child caregivers commonly referred to as nannies or babysitters are just a personalized version of a daycare center.  The nannies provide much closer supervision then the six or eight to one ratio of most daycares, while keeping the children in the family home where they feel more secure. 

However, once a family has this extra pair of hands in their home, they assume they should be kept busy every minute.  To keep them busy they start coming up with long lists of chores so the family thinks they are getting their monies worth.  The reality is that taking care of children is a full time job.  Ask your mother if you aren’t sure.  Keeping track of a child’s activities and being prepared for sudden and unexpected behaviors is not hard, but does require constant monitoring and a high state of awareness.  Most nannies will take care of cleaning up after the children, preparing their meals and even doing the children’s laundry.  But you do not want them kept so busy with household work that they neglect the children.  After all the whole reason for having a nanny is to take personal care of the children. 

Professional nannies that are given the time, can really help your child grow and prepare them for the next stage of their life.  By reading to toddlers and playing games with them helps develop skills that will prepare them for school.  With older children, helping with homework or even just making sure that the kids have the quiet time they need to study will help.  While some nannies will be able to help with some tutoring, I wouldn’t expect a nanny to help with trigonometry or advanced calculus homework.  Then again how many parents out their can help with all of the homework our kids bring home?  Okay, don’t be a show off.  I am sure there are some of you that can even help with quantum physics, but the majority of us start to pause when faced with anything above basic algebra.  Good nannies, just as good parents can still help their kids by removing distractions, preparing healthy snacks and providing support.  Most times that is all that a child needs to solve the problems on their own. 

Even for stay at home moms with multiple children, hiring a mother’s helper or nanny can be a very big plus to the growth of the whole family.  For one thing, having the extra help allows parents to spend more time with each of their children individually while the nanny watches the others.  The extra pair of hands and eyes may prevent accidents since the kids are being watched and cared for while lunch is being prepared or the laundry being done.  Not to mention the time the stay at home parent saves by being able to complete more tasks during the day so there is more time for the family at night. 

So when you think that hiring an in-home child caregiver, nanny or mothers helper, remember you might benefit even more than your children.

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Part time salaries can be more than full time?

Saturday, June 21st, 2008

First remember that most but not all household employees are looking for full time work.  Some will be willing to work for two days with one family and three days with another, while others prefer to work full time for one family.  The more challenging the schedule the more difficult it will be to find someone to fill your position.  Just like any other field, it is customary for nannies to request a premium or higher salary to work odd hours.  Sometimes, we have found that a family can hire a full time nanny for only slightly more than an odd schedule might cost.  It really does pay to think through your needs carefully since hiring around a standard schedule can give you greater flexibility at home, increase your selection of nannies and sometimes even save you some money.   For example at Dedicated Domestics we had a request from a family for an almost full time nanny to work 8 hours per day on Mondays and Thursdays and 6 hours per day on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and 4 hours on Friday.  Due to the two six and one 4 hour days, the nanny knew she could not fill in her week with another job so she requested a premium of just $3.00 an hour more to compensate for the odd schedule.  Based on her experience and what the family was expecting her to do, the nanny would have charged $600.00 for a standard 40 hour work week which is $15.00 per hour.  The schedule that the family wanted worked out to 32 hours at $18.00 (with the $3.00 premium) or $574.00 per week.  After we spoke with both the nanny and the family, they agreed on $600.00 a week for a simple 40 hour schedule.  For just $26.00 per week more the family now has extra help and flexibility when they need it and the nanny is more comfortable with the full time salary.  It is good to remember that while the cost of gas has gone up dramatically over the past year a small increase in a full time schedule will cover the higher prices.  But, when a part-time employee is working only 4 hours with one family and then commutes to another family for 4 more hours the gas cost doubles and will represent a larger part of their salary.  The agency you work with should be able to steer you in the right direction so you get the best value for your money.

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Do I really want a Nanny?

Monday, April 7th, 2008

Many parents struggle with what kind of help they want for their children.   The first priority is to determine what you are looking for help with and for how much time.  If you are looking to hire a nanny, list what you want them for.  Does the nanny have to drive to pick up the kids from school or take them to after school activities?  Do they have to help with homework or do you prefer some help maintaining the kid’s rooms or possibly some light housekeeping?  Do you want them every day or just a few days a week?  There are many questions that you should ask yourself so you can find the best person for your situation.  While most professional agencies can help you find the right person, they cannot tell you what is right for your family.  Once you determine what your real situation calls for you may find that you don’t want a nanny after all.  Possibly, you just need to readjust your schedule and you can handle it yourself.  Or, you might find that a housekeeper or a chef might be more helpful to the family.  The more you can decide what you want help with, the easier it will be to determine whether a nanny is right for your situation.

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Great News

Wednesday, March 5th, 2008

To better serve our families, nannies and applicants, we have moved our office to a more convenient location in Newport Beach.  Our new office is centrally located across the street from “Fashion Island” on Newport Center Drive.  For any of you that have had experience moving, you can understand the turmoil of the past two weeks.  It is amazing how much “stuff” we can save and pack away over the years.  Luckily everything went well and we are up and running. 

Our new address is:

Dedicated Domestics

110 Newport Center Drive, Suite 200

Newport Beach, CA 92660

 

Our phone numbers are:

Office:   949.612.1900

Office:   714.557.2160

Fax:   949.612.1998

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Live-in versus Live-out!

Wednesday, January 23rd, 2008

There are many misconceptions about the differences between live-in and live-out Nannies and other household staff.  First, it is important to remember that anyone working in a home is covered by the same laws as any other employee in any other business.  While in-home workers are usually more flexible and the guidelines are not as strictly adhered to, the reality is that any Nanny, Babysitter or Chauffeur that is working in a home is an employee.  There are strict guidelines for employers to follow, especially in California, that require a set amount of breaks and rest time for every employee.  Keeping that in mind, a family can now determine what their real needs are and which type of employee will serve them best.

There are many benefits to hiring a live-in but there are also drawbacks that many people do not always consider.  A live-in is typically going to be more flexible than live-out since they are always in the home.  But, they need to have time off and an eight hour sleep period during every 24 hour schedule.  So while a live-in Nanny can help take care of the night feeding for a newborn, they must be then given time off during the next day to rest.  So while the flexibility sounds great, if you do not need someone to be available for odd or changing shifts, you may find a live-out Nanny serves your purpose just as well.

An important drawback for hiring a live-in for some families is the fact that they are now going to have another person living in their home even on days off.  While most get used to the arrangement, some find the loss of privacy too high.

Another misconception with live-in help is the salary.  Many years ago a live-in would be happy to accept a lesser salary in return for room and board.  An arrangement that helped both the family find affordable help and the Nanny or Housekeeper would have a roof over their head while they saved their salary.   Today there are much fewer Nannies, Housekeepers and other staff that are willing to be live-ins so they tend to charge the same or more than there live-out counterparts.  The live-ins also learned quickly that they could command a premium just for being so flexible.  The higher wages for live-ins is not all bad news for families since they are getting that extra flexibility that an 8 to 5 Nanny may not be able to give.  The unique schedules that can only be achieved by a live-in are very important to many professionals with varied schedules like Doctors or anyone that has to travel often. 

The most important thing to remember when selecting a schedule for your domestic staff is to really understand what your needs are first, so you can find the right fit for your unique situation.

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Nannies, Babysitters, Mothers Helpers, Oh My!

Wednesday, January 16th, 2008

With so many titles how does a Mom know who to pick for what?  Over the years many people doing similar jobs have been labeled with so many different job titles that even the industry has difficulty making a distinction between some positions.   All of the positions involving the care of children can and often is referred to as simply “child caregivers”.  But most families will request the services of a Babysitter or Nanny.  The two titles are so intertwined that most families, caregivers and even agencies have been using the terms interchangeably. 

In general a Babysitter is a person that is hired for a temporary situation, like having someone watch your child on Saturday night so you can go out.  Whereas, a Nanny is the title used most frequently when wanting to hire a person for full or part time child care so you might go back to work.  The title Mothers’ helper is much easier to understand since as the name implies, it usually will refer to a person who is helping mom take care of her kids while she is around.  Many times “stay at home moms” with multiple children have found that a little extra help can be very useful.  While occasionally a Mothers’ helper might watch the children for short periods of time, their job is mainly to provide additional support for a mom.  Mothers’ helpers tend to be entry level positions or positions for a person that prefers not to have all of the responsibility themselves. 

Another title that is often overlooked in the United States but is still very important around the world is a Governess.  Generally, a Governess will be equivalent to a private teacher.  They will usually have the added responsibility of etiquette training as well. 

While Nannies remain the most flexible of titles the important part is determining what your family needs and not being as concerned with the title.  While some Nannies are college educated with teaching credentials others may barely speak English but have many years of experience handling young children.  It is important to remember that a Nanny is not a replacement for a Mom.  A Nanny with teaching credentials might be perfect for helping with homework or for home schooling but they generally will not help with housekeeping too.  Then there are some Nannies that have little formal education but have a wonderful way with kids.  Some Nannies may also specialize in newborn or infant care.  While other Nannies will prepare dinners for the whole family but may not be able to drive. 

There are way too many possible areas that a Nanny can help a family with to list here.  The most important item of course is peace of mind.  Whatever your needs are, never hire anyone that you do not feel comfortable with.  Since you and your family will be working closely with the caregiver and you will entrust them with the care of your son or daughter, you need to know that you can trust and rely on the person you choose above all else.

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