What's New Summer 2008! :Invite a Friend to Subscribe:

Feature Article

Nanny Boot Camp

After months of preparation, the staff at Caring Nannies has launched Nanny Boot Camp, a four hour training session designed to give nannies the tools they need to find the right job, truly enhance a child’s life, help a family function smoothly, and stay long term. For the past five months, we have been interviewing experts in the field, studying textbooks, researching the internet, and listening to our nannies and clients, evaluating our own progress in the art of making expert matches. We are very excited about the potential of this additional step in the screening process you deserve. One of the biggest benefits is that we really get to know these wonderful ladies on a deeper level. As thorough as it is, an interview cannot provide that depth. The nanny career is unlike any other childcare career, in that there is unprecedented opportunity for professional and personal growth.

It is also different in that the nanny is in an intimate relationship, a part of the family, in a way that no one else is. Our clients feel that their home is their castle, and the nanny is privy into the family. The position demands clear communication of what is expected, comprehensive discussions from the start, and written guidelines to give the relationship a framework. We were made for relationships, yet communication is the most difficult part of those relationships. It takes courage to care more for the relationship than we care about protecting our image. It is important to be willing to share how we are feeling when something is bothering us. Otherwise, we can become disgruntled and resentful, the relationship is damaged, and we experience burnout. We explore in class how we can use our positions as nannies as a springboard to develop personally in many important areas so that the nanny benefits as much as the children and family. This augments our mission of treasuring children and strengthening families by developing the professionalism and longevity of our nannies. See the Press Release.

Ask the Experts

Q. What do I need to think about before inviting my nanny to travel with our family?

Planning a vacation where your nanny comes along has many benefits. Mom and Dad can enjoy coffee in the mornings while the nanny walks the children on the beach. In the evenings, parents can meet with friends over dinner while children are tucked into bed. It is even more important than ever to make expectations clear about the schedule, in order to give the nanny some fun time. One of our families invited their nanny to bring a friend on a ski trip so the girls could ski together in their free time, and enjoy the vacation as well. Read more and get the checklist.

Announcements

Borders Storytime and Lunch Nanny Networking Event

We really enjoyed seeing our Nannies and clients recently at a book reading event at Borders Town and Country. The event combined a book collection for a Domestic Violence Shelter in Phoenix, finger plays, getting acquainted, and lunch afterwards at an outdoors restaurant. It was a great time to meet a client who has used one of our nannies for 2 years, as well as some of you wonderful nannies and adorable babies and toddlers.

Great Ideas

Old-Fashioned Family Games for Summer

Remember the fun games you played in summer growing up? Try some family games this summer.

There is Ante Over, where one team is stationed in the front yard, and half in the back, and you shout “Ante Over” to warn the other team to be on the lookout for the ball. They try to catch it. If the ball is not caught, any member of the team may pick it up and throw it back, calling “Ante Over!” as the throw is made. If the ball is caught, the person making the catch runs around to the other side and tries to hit some player of the other team with the ball. If a player is hit he joins the other team, till one team has all the players.

How about freeze tag, red rover, hide and seek? Or a family game of Marco Polo? When I was young, my siblings and I built tents in the family room with sheets and played Monopoly that lasted two days. Mom let us eat lunch in the tent. Share your favorite games with us.

Newletter Exclusive:

Nanny of the Month

Bethany

Bethany has been an accomplished Full Time Nanny/Home Manager/ Housekeeper for the past six years, in addition to three years as a part time Nanny. She is hard working, nurturing, intelligent, high energy and has a positive, outlook on life. Bethany has a passion for helping families be organized, and giving them freedom from concern about the mundane aspects of keeping a home running smoothly so as to maximize their family time. In her current position, she takes tremendous pride in even the most nominal duties and works hard to do her best. She is kind, loving, fun, and uses her artistic bent to the family's advantage in many ways. She describes her housekeeping style as meticulous, organized, with a keen eye for detail. According to her former employers, she has the ability to see what needs to be done, creates gourmet, health-conscious meals, as well as yummy deserts, and is a real asset when the family is entertaining. This happy-go-lucky professional enjoys travel (and loves traveling with her family),music, cooking, hiking, going to the beach, working out, art projects, and home decor cor and remodeling. She is experienced with newborn to age 18, and has babysat since age 14. Bethany gets her dynamic work ethic and cherry attitude from growing up on an 80 acre working horse farm in Plain City, Ohio, and a simple life that was full of hard work and great rewards. She is the youngest of four children, born when her siblings were nearly grown. She and her husband Ted have been married for two years.

Denise

Denise is truly a warm, engaging and interactive Mary Poppins! After receiving her Child Development Associates degree from Central Arizona College in 1999, she worked in Head Start and preschool classrooms for the next 13 years! Denise has been a nanny since 2000, and has been with her current family, with three little girls, for the past three years. Her employer tells us that "Denise is just awesome, and we feel lucky she has her joined our family. She challenges the girls and supports all of our goals and discipline choices, and best of all, they are having fun." Denise loves to cook and does some catering for small gatherings as well as cooking for her family several times a week. She is very creative and enjoys doing crafts with the girls as well as workshops at Mesa Community Center. She recently organized a new group called "Nanny and Me Playgroup" to meet other nannies for play dates and to share ideas and resources, and is excited to see this group grow. After her Mom successfully battled breast cancer, Denise became very active in supporting the walkers for the 60 mile 3-Day Breast Cancer walk. For the past five years, she and her friends cheer on the walkers with crazy costumes, like Mary Poppins, and pass out treats along the route.

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