Received Saturday, June 9, 2007
Location: Jones Beach
Date/Time: around 1-2 PM EST, Friday (6/8)
Child: Girl aged "almost three" , curly blond hair that almost touched her shoulders, tan skin, wearing a one piece bathing suit that was in the style of a wet suit; pink and white. Had flip flops she occasionally slipped on that were white with pink & white almost peppermint looking stripes.
Nanny: African American or Caribbean nanny, husky build, wearing tight shorts that went to her knees and a large, white t-shirt that said NEW YORK on it. The sort of t-shirt you would buy at a souvenir shop. Nanny was wearing black croc style rubber shoes.
What happened: The nanny was sitting under the shade of an umbrella. She was sitting in a striped lawn/beach chair and had a khaki colored hat on her head. The little girl was playing with toys and buckets in the sand. The nanny had her chin on her chest and seemed to be nodding off. I looked around and saw no one else responsible for this little girl. The little girl was very well behaved and didn't ask anything of the nanny for a LONG time. The little girl was in the sun playing like this for the better part of an hour while the nanny seemed to doze off, never completely. Hard to tell. The little girl stood up and was watching two little girls with their dad in the water and said "I want to go in the water." No response. "I want to go in the water." The nanny sat up and said "no no, you play a bit more and we go." The little girl kept asking to go in the water. It was HOT and she was so sad and pathetic. I was somewhat behind them (which is why I couldn't tell if the nanny was full on sleeping or not). I convinced my son to go back in the water and stopped at the nanny's chair and said, "I'd be happy to walk her down to the water with my son. We just want to cool off for a minute". The nanny looked me over and said "I suppose". The little girl about jumped in to my arms. I looked at her and she looked pinkish and I said to her, "you probably need some sunblock before we go down there". The nanny kind of glared at me when I said that and then acted like she was going to do it all along. We walked down to the shore and they kicked the water and splashed around for maybe ten minutes. My son asked the little girl what her name was and it was in the Ella, Ellie, Bella family of names. She is the sweetest little girl. So gracious and appreciative. What a trooper. I just imagine how she would thrive if she had a nanny who would play with her in the water. Or in the sand. The little girl told us she was "almost three".
I'll take the nanny in the green skort over this one any day!
ReplyDeleteThis is so sad. :(
ReplyDeleteFrom a purely safety point of view, there aren't many places where constant vigilance is MORE required than at a public beach. So easy for kids to wander off and get lost, plus the dangers of the water, and so many other people there...you simply CANNOT doze off if you are in charge of a child at the beach.
And then, what is it with all these nannies who think that their job consists of being a warm body somewhere within the vicinity of their charges?? NO daycare center, not even the crappiest of the crappy, would let its staff sit in a corner and doze while the kids did whatever. So why is it OK for a nanny to do so??
I see it all the time. Kids NEED interaction. Of course some self-directed playtime is very healthy, but that's not what gets posted here...it's neglect, pure and simple. I just saw a nanny at a local playground 2 days ago who sat and languidly read People magazine while her two charges ran haywire all over the playground, throwing other kids' toys, hitting each other, and at times plaintively calling for her to help them get on the swings, etc. She just said "I can't right now" and kept looking at her magazine. You can make a case that kids need undirected playtime and that they don't need adults hovering over them at the playground, but sometimes a bit of interaction would be nice! And why PAY someone if they are going to read People magazine on your dime while your kids terrorize the playground and don't get to use the swings b/c they are too young to get on them??
I just don't understand why so many people seem to think this kind of passive "caregiving" is OK. Really, if all you require of a nanny is someone to sit and read a magazine or doze off while your child plays by themselves in a public place...why not pay a neighborhood kid $5 an hour to do it? Instead of paying a "professional" $10+/h to do NOTHING and possibly put your child in danger??
Sorry, this type of sighting *really* bothers me.
Jones Beach isn't in Queens. It's in Nassau county. So where did this happen: at Jones Beach or somewhere in Queens? It would be helpful to the parents to narrow down the location.
ReplyDeletejmt,
ReplyDeleteThe story was submitted as "Jones Beach". I added the city and state, apparently incorrectly. Thanks you for the correction.
Maybe there will be a NANNIES OF JONES BEACH exhibit rewarding this husky waste of skin for her ability to care for children.
ReplyDeleteI would have had a hard time controlling myself. She deserved a kick in the crack of those tight shorts.
Some crazy mom (or likely nanny) was on the UB blasting this poster for daring to complain about this nanny. That pisses me off. I pay my nanny $150 a day cash to watch two DC. One of my children is in a morning program everyday. During that time nanny plans activities with younger child. She takes her to parks, muesums and the zoo. I have complete faith in my wonderful nanny but I feel terrible when I read stories like this one. Just as if this nanny were working at Kentucky Fried Chicken and this is her work ethic, she is just not a good employer and lazy. But since she is working with children, I am concerned by her inability to interact with the child and her total disregard for the child's safety. Dozing at Jone's Beach? That's a virtual sewer by the shore!
ReplyDeleteI gotta ask, whats with the abbreviations? DH, DS, DC? What do they all mean??
ReplyDeleteTeam Husky Nanny
ReplyDeleteMaybe children should wear a little necklace that has parents name and phone number.
ReplyDeletedh (dear husband)
ReplyDeletedd (dear daughter)
ds (dear son)
and BTDT (been there done that) “sanctimommy” (a self-righteous mom)
“Über-boober” (a self-righteous mom obsessed with breast-feeding).
Hey JD --
ReplyDeleteNowhere to really post this, but I know you'll see it. Could you please post a section that gives all the definitions of the abbr. that are used on your site. Preferably a little spot on the front page, so it's easy to access? Love the "uber-boober", that one I hadn't heard of!(By the way .... everyone I know is checking this site out!) Love it!
Does this help?
ReplyDeletehttp://tinyurl.com/22nxtq
Queens, HA!
ReplyDeleteJD, Have you ever been to Queens?
I'm guessing not.
Sadly, there are times I think of great things to do with my son and I don't get to them. So on the days I have my nanny come (she works two days a week), I ask her to take him. It would kill me to think that she took him to one of these places and treated him the way this nanny did.
The other poster was correct. There is no excuse for this behavior. She isn't a mother. She is an employee on the job.
JD ~ AWESOME! Thanks for posting the definitions to the Abbr. :)
ReplyDeleteI would have had one of my kids "accidentally" hit the nanny with a frisbee.
ReplyDeletelol, uber-boober. I haven't heard that one before.
ReplyDeletehow dangerous...she could of walked away..follow someone or drowned..scarry...she should been fired..way to dangerous near water....always,always keep 2 eyes on your kids...my kid brother died 25 years ago on johns beach.. a wave came and my mom could not get a gripp of him and it was to late...it was maybe 3 min and it was all over...my mom until today feels very very bad and sad about it...she freaks out when my kids go in the pool without any one there ( my kids are 16 and 17) she just cant forget ( i dont blame her)..so please watch your kids and fire Nannys like this one...
ReplyDelete4:30PM: Your poor mother. I have heard of cases like hers where the parent never ever moves on, and it really breaks my heart. I hope she will one day find peace, and I hope she sees her beloved son in heaven.
ReplyDelete