17 Sep 5 Things You Should Do As a Nanny When You Want to Take Vacation (to keep the family happy)
Being a nanny means that you sometimes work 24/7, five to seven days a week, at least occasionally. Our point is that you work very hard, doing everything for your family that you can; including meal preparation, cleaning and tidying, taking the children to school and fetching them after, and arranging play dates in the park. In other words, your duties are far reaching, and can change at a moment’s notice if your employer needs something unusual or specific that you don’t normally attend to.
Sooner or later the idea of taking a vacation, away from the family, will occur to you – and you needn’t feel guilty!
No one should work as hard as nannies do without taking a break; if you do, you risk suffering undue stress, fatigue, and even a little resentment toward your employer.
To head all those negative feelings and consequences off, we’ve got some suggestions for you on how to handle going on vacation. You need to recharge, and it needn’t be a difficult time when you escape to the sun, or back home for a visit with relatives, for a few weeks.
It just takes some forethought and planning, and if you’re an Elite nanny, those are your special skills, right? Right!
Nonetheless, we want to help make the change even smoother for you. Consider these ideas:
1. Talk To Your Employer
Not just weeks in advance – months, if you can manage that. For example, before school begins for the children in September, talk to your employer about perhaps going home this year for Christmas, wherever “home” may be, if that’s important to you. It may not be possible if the holiday season is wildly busy for them and they need you, but perhaps the first two weeks in December, or January, could be arranged. Be flexible, but most important, ask long in advance of the dates you’re considering.
2. Prepare The Children For Your Absence
Once your trip has been approved by your employer, sit the children down and talk to them. Depending on their ages, they will understand, to a greater or lesser degree, why you need a break from work, not a break from them.
Tell them you miss your brothers and sisters, for example; frame the trip in language they can understand and relate to. They will miss you no doubt, but they’ll understand that you have “another” family, or simply want to go away to a beach with a friend. It’s all in the messaging!
3. Offer To Find A Temp
No one can fill your shoes, because this is the family you have come to love and care for each and every day. But you can lessen the burden on your employer by helping to locate a nanny who can substitute, at the very least by doing your daily chores. This is an area in which Elite Nannies specializes, so contact the agency when the need arises and ask for help. That is what we are here for.
Be sure you spend enough time with her in the home, familiarizing her with the daily routines and chores. And above all, spend time with her and the children, together, so they can see you like and trust her with their care. Doing so will help them like and trust her too, more quickly.
4. Promise Photos and Souvenirs
If you’re going somewhere exotic, promise (and follow through, of course) the children you’ll send them photographs from whatever beach you’re laying on, or whatever castle you’re touring.
Perhaps ask them to investigate your destination with you online and at the library before you go. They will get excited for you, and be anxious to see how you’re spending your holiday. Children are far more resilient than we sometimes give them credit for, and they will indeed adjust to your absence. But making them feel like they are in on planning your trip helps them understand why you’re excited about going somewhere new. And bring them toys, or miniature flags, or something that speaks of the destination to which you travelled. They will love it.
5. Make And Freeze Their Favorite Foods and Snacks
Be sure there is a jar of your special homemade pasta sauce in the freezer that can be heated up when you’re gone. Or bake and freeze a tray of cookies you know they adore; anything they associate with you that makes them remember you’ll be back soon. If they don’t eat it for some reason, that’s fine – it will still be there when you get back and need a quick meal in a pinch! You can even leave a corny, mushy “I miss you!” note in their backpack or lunch box, if you have that kind of bond with them. They will love it — trust us!
These are a few suggestions for making your holiday time a smoother adjustment for everyone in the house. Planning, organization, and information: make certain that everyone knows all they need to, well in advance. Don’t even ask your employers about dates until you’ve come up with ideas for a temporary replacement. Taking control of issues like that makes everything easier!
Leaving the running of the household, to say nothing of caring for the children, in the hands of another nanny, will be gut wrenching and emotional, but it can be done!
Your employer knows that you are almost a member of the family, and deserve some “away time,” but that doesn’t mean you aren’t devoted to the children you care for.
But we all need time to ourselves, time to restore and reinvigorate our bodies and minds. And that means leaving work for a while, even when you love your work.
Whatever we at Elite Nannies can do to make your holiday plans unfold smoothly would be our pleasure. After all, leaving someone else in charge isn’t easy, you have to turn over the reins to someone you trust. And who better than someone from our agency, the professional team with highly qualified, experienced nannies waiting to help?
We understand how difficult it can be to leave the home and children you’ve come to love. That’s why all it takes is a phone call, a little information and a consultation about dates, and before you know it, you’ll wonder why you ever started worrying about your temporary replacement! Go have fun! And may we say… Bon Voyage!
