Carol is a warm, vibrant and highly dedicated nanny with over six years of nanny experience with three families! She started babysitting at age 10. With a medical degree, she was working at a very busy medical clinic as well as setting up specialty clinics in Minnesota until her family relocated to Phoenix. “It was very stressful and when we moved to Arizona, I just wanted to get out of the healthcare field and be able to play and just have fun, caring for children. No stress, no drama. I just love nannying-it’s just the best,” she confided. In the Fall of 2012, we placed Carol as a nanny with a 3 year old girl two days per week, and just this week, she took an additional part-time nanny job for two days with a two year old and a newborn.

Carol loves children, and it shows! “They’re so much fun!” she shared. ‘Kids need to feel special. It’s a lot of work, but its so much fun. It’s about building a relationship with the children and the parents. If the children are happy, the parents are happy, and then I’m happy. it’s a win-win”. She’s fun-loving and active with children in all her nanny positions, diving into the pool for toys, playing hide ‘n go seek, tag, bike riding, reading, walks, exploring, and encouraging independence as much as possible. “One key is letting them win games. It makes them feel so special when the parents come home and they say, ‘Mom, I beat Carol at ‘Pig’!’”

Carol is flexible, and has done extensive travel with past families. Carol’s own family works around their schedule. Her current family flies her to Chicago frequently and once they brought Carol’s 10 year old daughter along so her six year old charge would have someone to play with and they had a blast: “We went to the park, the zoo, we walked miles. My nanny job works so well. My employer is the kindest lady ever! She’s been so kind to me. This nanny position has been a really good thing for me. I don’t look at it so much as a job. I love it and do whatever they need me to do.”

With her young Kindergarten charge in tow, Carol can be found exploring on a Saturday with a backpack filled with water and snacks and no plans. “Its’ an adventure and we see where we end up. I like to come up with fun things, like: ‘Today we’re going to see how many parks we can play at’”.  They call it park-hoping and found 6 parks in one day. “She’s so smart for her age,” remarks Carol about her charge. We’re always cooking and baking, and doing tons of crafts. We go to Michaels, pick up craft items, do painting, or make cards. The parents went off for a weekend and we put paint on her hands and feet and prints all over a paper and we hung it up with the words: ‘Happy Birthday, Dad.’”

Carol is compassionate, patient, adventurous, cheerful, and her medical background makes her extra safety-conscious. She loves teaching sports skills like hitting a ball with a bat or swimming. A favorite memory was a little fellow who loved basketball. Carol lowered the net so he could be successful. Carol is experienced with infants through school age, and is a pro at potty training. She’s happy to help with homework, do family laundry, straighten up the house, menu plan, grocery shop, run errands and is a gourmet cook!

Carols own daughters are 10, 15 and 18 years old and her husband travels a lot. “My kids are pretty self-sufficient, and normally I’m home by 4-5 in the afternoon. Her family loves to go camping and travel in their motor-home. This summer she took her paraplegic cousin on a month long motor-home trip, and cared for him 24/7 with her 10 year old. Her close-knit family loves any kind of outside activities, camping at Lake Pleasant, and other favorite places. Thanks for all your great work, Carol, and congratulations on your new position!