I Am Severely Underpaid

“I realized the other day that even though I don’t have much experience I am severely underpaid for Seattle” the newbie nanny and I had met up for a play date. We somehow got onto the conversation of pay and she opened up to me. As of lately it seems like most nannies all feel the same way, that they are underpaid.

“What are you making, if you don’t mind me asking”? I inquired, wondering what a new full-time nanny of just under 3 month considered underpaid.

“I make $X an hour for 2 kids. I mean yeah this is my first time as a full-time nanny, but shouldn’t my years as a day care worker count towards experience? I didn’t really know the Seattle market when I moved up here or I would have asked for more. I love my job and I knew what I signed up for so I can’t really complain.”

Pause. 

Can I be really honest with readers? It was really refreshing to hear her take responsibility for her pay. That she recognized that she didn’t thoroughly do her research and she agreed to the pay rate at which she is working at (which in my opinion wasn’t underpaid at all but right on par for her experience).

Hear my heart on this, I am not judging you, disagreeing (or agreeing with you), or hating on you for feeling you are underpaid. I just heard of a nanny making $325 a week taking care of twins. In my book that is underpaid. In someone else’s it might not be. 

What I want to do is take a minute and ask you, are you really underpaid? When you hear of the nanny across town making $25 an hour or even $22 it is easy to feel like your $15 or $18 is underpaid. But let’s take a step back and ask a few questions.

• How much TRUE Full-Time nanny experience do you have?
• How much training and/or education do you have?
• What certificates do you have?
• What skill sets do you have that set you apart (bilingual, musical training, sports, etc)?

Truth? I overqualified myself when I started out as a nanny. I thought that all my years of babysitting should count as nanny experience. I thought that all those years as a part-time nanny should count as stronger experience than it did. I thought all my book knowledge and personal development should count as much as an accredited course or class. But it didn’t/doesn’t. All that experience, yes makes me a better nanny. All my years of babysitting helps me understand childcare better than if I hadn’t babysat but they don’t have a thing to do with my resume to make me a more sellable nanny. 

Yes I have watched children for over 15 years. Yes I have been a nanny for 9 years (because nothing before 18 years of age is considered professional on a resume in the nanny community). Children are second nature to me. I have been called a baby whisperer on more than one occasion. The natural math instincts that my engineer friends have, I have with babies. But the difference in their pay scale and mine is that they have an education in their field. My engineer friends honed in their natural instincts and went to college, they took classes and studied for years. They paid their dues with internships and lower paying jobs before they worked their way up. They continued to take yearly courses to stay on top of their game. 

Back 3 years ago I thought I was worth more than I was. I thought all my unaccredited experience and knowledge should count for something. After turning nannying to a career from a side job I have realized a few things. 

The biggest being that to be a professional nanny I need to act like a professional nanny. From everything to furthering my knowledge with classes, training, and personal development to knowing the current nanny industry in which I live. This means stay in touch with other nannies, attending local events and conferences. Being a professional also means knowing a realistic value of what I am worth in my current area. It’s knowing how to negotiate a contract that is realistic, meeting the needs/wants of the family and of you the nanny. It means being willing to have the hard money conversations. Being a professional means I take responsibility for my actions.

Goodness knows that I am not perfect in being a professional. That having those hard conversations still scares me. That I look back at how naive I was 2 years ago and know that in 2 years I will look back to now and see how much I still had to learn.

But that is the difference. 

When I started out as a nanny I thought I knew it all and my skill set was totally sell-able. Whereas now I have a desire to grow and learn. I want to learn how to grow my skills and not settle. I want to take courses and classes, read as many baby books as I can. I want to meet and talk to as many nannies as I can. I want to learn from my Mom-Boss and Dad-Boss. I want to keep growing. 

I want to know if I ever truly complain about being underpaid it’s because I have so much experience and education under my belt that people can’t afford what I am worth. Speaking of which I off time to sign up for the www.nannyjamboree.com where I am going to meet some incredibly professional and awesome nannies.  

ceconner©12.11.2015

Autumn Winds and Missing New York

September hits every year hard with a bang.

 The air grows crisp. 

Everything I. MEAN. EVERYTHING turns pumpkin spice. 

Riding boots come out. Scarves, hats, even mittens now become appropriate daily wear.

 The days grow shorter and the nights longer. Kids are heard playing on school playgrounds and parents sighing in relief for their normal days back. And slowly, oh so slowly I start to miss the beautiful seasons that New York offers it's citizens.

Walking the fall filled streets with crisp air.

This time of year New York starts turning splendorous shades of orange, gold, yellow, and reds. Faded memories of late night bonfires with country music blaring out of the back of a pick-up truck, hard cider in hand, and late night conversations with good friends start to return. The yearnings for a long drive in the midst of the hills and vast colors calls my heart. Every September I am reminded that I do someday want to settle down in a small town buried in the hills of some east coast state.

The colors that capture one of our favorite spots

However, this year I decided to embrace Seattle and the displays of color that etch our water encompassed land. This fall I captured little moments of beauty and color here on the west because although different, the beauty here is still of radiant. Beauty from one side of the country does not negate the beauty on the other side. So here is my journey of enjoying the beauty out here on the west coast.

When houses have great foliage in their yards.

Or just really cool looking trees to walk under!

ceconner©11.17.2015

Would You Tell Them the Difference?

I've read several blogs in the last year about how frustrating it is as a nanny to be called a babysitter. Usually I shrug them off. I mean yeah there is a difference between being a babysitter and a nanny. A big difference. But is it worth the energy getting mad?

Last week our Hispanic house cleaner in her broken english told me as she smiled at little Roo "you good babe-sat", I interpreted it as you are a good babysitter. I found it rather endearing and sweet. But as my cousin asked me this Thanksgiving "Are you still out in Seattle babysitting"? I suddenly felt degraded. 

I mean I haven't seen her in years so I can't fault her for her not really knowing what I do - so I didn't bother to correct her. But as my sister introduced me as a "professional babysitter" to all her friends I flinched. Visibly apparently, as my brother commented on the fact that I must really not like being called a babysitter. Which I guess I officially don't.

For the first time I felt degraded. Really degraded. Here I am a woman in her late 20's, making great money, taking courses and classes yearly to stay up to date in my field. A full-time working woman with certificates spending countless hours reading for professional development and I am compared to a high school part-time job. A part time-job that I spent many years doing. I paid my dues, I spent nights working my way up the pay-scale (as I will continue to do as I keep taking classes), I have graduated from my babysitting title.

So yes, it may seem little. A person might not know the difference between a babysitter and nanny - assuming they are the same thing. But it is not little. The difference is real (both in pay-scale and job description).

Next time someone calls me a babysitter, I might just speak up for our field and inform them of the differences. Because most people mean no harm in calling us nannies babysitters. They just don't know that there is a difference between the two. Would you tell them the difference?

ceconner©11.28.2015

Oh, the Places You'll Go...

"...You'll be on your way up!
You'll be seeing great sights!
You'll join the high fliers
who soar to high heights."

                       -Dr. Seuss

When nannies start talking about some of the perks that comes with our job a variety of ideas start gathering; guaranteed hours, nanny car, never dressing up for work, play-dates, fun trips to the local sites, vacation days, sick days, on and on the list goes. This almost non-exhaustive list is because each family is as different as the snowflakes that fall each December in my hometown, but one perk is usually stands out above the rest. A perk that most nannies hope to be asked to join in...

...travel. 

The vast majority of nannies that I know hope that at some point their nanny-family will ask them to travel on some wonderful vacation with them. Whether it is a weekend on the coast or a week in Paris traveling with a nanny-family can be a great way to see new sites at very minimal cost to the nanny (before it seems all rainbows and butterflies, usually the nanny is still required to work her normal work week in addition to extra hours in return - still a great deal in my opinion).

For me the places that I'll go have been more because who I have met in my profession instead of traveling as a professional. The relationships I have built with the families I worked for bled into their families and friends. I have become the "additional" daughter, sister, and auntie in some of these families. I have felt honored and blessed to be able to grow from an employee or "the nanny" to much more. 

In 2010 one such relationship led to me to one of the most beautiful places I have explored thus far, Hawaii. Now in 2016 I will get to enjoy the perk of who I've met because of nannying by joining the high fliers to China. My exMom-Boss has a twin and this twin currently lives in China. With an upcoming break and an incredible ticket price I decided to take up the offer to visit her and her family. With an excitement in my heart, a future stamp in my passport, and the need to buy a new suitcase I am grateful not only for the places my nannying takes me but the people it brings into my life.

 

ceconner©11.17.2015

Freedom!

Roo is in his crib fighting sleep. As he fights his essential need for rest I am reminded of men and women who have fought for our greatest desire freedom.

Pearl Harbor War Memorial, 2010

In America it is easy to look at the last 30 years and wonder if we still need a military to fight for our freedom. We haven't had an actual battle take place on our soil in what 70 plus years? The last time we were truly attacked by another formal military was Pearl Harbor (this is not a researched statement just an assumption). It is easy to think of Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afganhanstan as fruitless wars. I am not a history buff nor a professional historian so I am not going to make a validating or invalditing comment on that thought process, none the less when we hear about sending our men and women over to these "hell" like situations one wonders why.

We have our freedoms, we fought against the Brits to win our freedom. We fought against the world in WW1 and WW2 to keep our freedoms. America has even fought itself to keep the rights of the states and the people within the states. So why do we keep fighting wars that don't seem to be ours? Why do we keep risking and loosing lives our men and women? Well France of course.

I think France as why we continue to fight battles that might not necessarily be "ours" to fight. In 1781* when the French navy ships finally reached an almost hopeless American soil, spirits lifted and the airs of change began. France decided freedom was worth the fight, not just their freedom but freedom of their fellow humans. So they set sail and helped Americans finish the fight for freedom.

Whether you agree with they whys of war or not, please don't forget that men and women are daily fighting for not just American freedom but the freedom for other nations. A freedom that we honestly take for total granted here in the states. So before you take another shot at our military power or governmental strong hand, before you go all political on the rights or wrong of war, remember. Take a minute to remember the men and women that have served and fought for you to be able to voice your opinions on war. Remember the soldiers who have suffered their own personal hell and come back to people hating them for it.

Most importantly if you see a veteran today, not matter your opinion of war, thank them for serving. Some veterans choose to serve, some were drafted to serve while others wish they had never served - but the reality is they all did. They all went to war in our place. Please thank them for fighting for humanity's deepest desire, freedom.

*Sources:
http://www.historyisfun.org/learn/learning-center/colonial-america-american-revolution-learning-resources/american-revolution-essays-timelines-images/the-french-alliance/
https://history.state.gov/milestones/1776-1783/french-alliance

ceconner© 11.11.2015

A Perfect Nanny Day

Driving home through rush hour traffic yesterday I called my sister to help pass the time and finalize some Thanksgiving plans. Like all good sisters do she inquired about my day, causing me to stop and think about how my day was.

We all know that kids can be unpredictable meaning a work day with them can be unpredictable. Goodness knows that I have had my rough days as a nanny, the days that I wanted to throw in the towel after the 4th cup of water was spilt, the 3rd tantrum wouldn't end, and both naps were missed. Those days where going home to a glass of wine, Netflix, and box of chocolate seems like the most wonderful thing in the world.

As I mentally re-played my day with Roo to answer my sister, I realized I had as close to a perfect Nanny day as could possibly be. The ONLY thing that would have made it better was if I had remembered to bring my sneakers for a run. Other wise my day went by with a 2 fabulously long naps, 3 bottles fully drank, and a variety of pureed baby foods tried and liked by Roo. In between all this napping and eating was only 1 nasty diaper, wonderful tummy time, and lots of baby cuddles.

The reason I share this is not to brag, because it is nothing I did, but to take a minute to be grateful for a great day. Far to easily I end up complaining about the no-nap days, the fussy days, and the couldn't get out of the house days. While today is only half over it is already turning out to be another great (but not quite perfect) nanny day. So here is to those days, the days were more things go right than wrong. To the days where babies take great naps and love the new foods you give the. To the moments of cuddles, kisses, and laughter. I am grateful for you today!

Yes I am Corny Enough to "cheers" with Baby Bottles.

ceconner© 10.28.215

There Those that Craft and Those that Don't.

Let us be honest, there are those that craft and those that don't.

There are people who get their kicks off DIY projects and those who would rather ram their heads into a wall.

There are caretakers who loves sensory activities and there are caretakers that feel they are just another way to get the house messy.

 

I fall into the later of all those categories. I'm not crafty. DIY really mean Dude In Your...Dreams. And sensory activities, well they may be my least favorite of them all. The truth is I have other strengths as a nanny and I am okay that craftiness is not one of them. But about 2 years ago I tried my first sensory activity with cornstarch and water. They said it would be easy. They said it would entertain the kid for a long time. They said it would become a family favorite. Well they lied. But you can read about that awful day here.

 

Well with one less Nanny-Kid to look after, a lot more free time, and a much larger support system of nannies I decided to give this cornstarch and water thing another try. After all the whole world of sensory nannies can't be wrong on how awesome it is, can they? 

So I started looking for legitimate recipes, like what is the real cornstarch to water ratio? After googling blogs failed me with their "eye ball it" and "slowly add water until you like the consistency" I went to my trusty group of nannies on my favorite social media site. I put out a desperate plea for someone to please HELP me understand how to do this activity correctly. As they always do - the nannies came to my rescue.

First tip, use a baking sheet or cake pan (personal tip: baking sheet for tummy babies, cake pan for older tots).

Second tip, about double the cornstarch to water ratio (one nanny actually gave me a measurement of about one cup cornstarch to about a 1/2 cup water). The substance should have the consistency of honey.

Third tip, mix it with your hand. This helps you be able to feel the consistency and how much more or less water should be in the mix. This also allows you to break up any cornstarch clumps that may be appearing.

The last tip, a nanny gave me was a fun fact for the toddlers, mix in little toys/trinkets for the kids to find (for Halloween plastic spiders or pumpkins) or food coloring for a new look.

After prepping our play space with two massive white towels (cornstarch washes right out), mixing the cornstarch and water to what I deemed the right consistency, Roo and I laid on our tummies to play! I was slightly nervous and skeptical after my last round with this activity but I ended up being pleasantly surprised. Not only was Roo fully interested in this weird texture on his hands I was enjoying running my fingers across the baking sheet. Roo ran out of interest way before I did, but probably held his 6 month old brain for a full 20 minutes. 

 

Besides on small slip of goop that didn't land on the towels clean up was pretty easy, rinsing on baking sheet with hot water and soap and throwing towels in the dryer. Overall this experience was so much different than last time. Don't tell anyone but I really can't wait to pull out the cornstarch and baking pan again this week.

Oh and I can't forget Dad-Boss fully geeked out because his son was learning about a non-Newtonian substance, so this activity had is totally parent approved.

ceconner© 10.19.215