Received Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Physical description of caregiver: Blond woman, age maybe 20-28, wearing a white cotton ribbed tank top with some sort of logo or writing on it, and jean capri pants. Couldn't tell her height because she was sitting the entire time. Her hair was in a pony tail.
Physical description of involved child/children: The child she was caring for was about 2 years old, black, long curly black hair, very cute. She was wearing a pink (possibly floral print) long halter cotton shirt over shorts or a skirt. The child of the caregiver was a baby, about 5-7 months old, bald/blonde hair, and was rolling around on a blanket on the ground next to his/her mom the whole time, kicking and grabbing the air as babies that age do.
Address or venue of observed incident: Sparks Marina Playground
Date and time of incident: July 23, 2007, about 11:30am
Detailed description of what you witnessed: I took my charge along with a fellow nanny and her charge to the Marina park today. We went to the baby swings and then a really cute little girl came up to us. I looked around and saw that there were no adults around her at all. It was getting to be lunchtime, and rather warm, so there weren't other kids on the playground besides us and the little girl. There was a woman sitting with a baby on the cement in the shade of the snack shack, but she was kind of zoning out, not really looking at anything, and certainly not looking at the little girl. She was about 100-150 yards away from the playground.
As I pushed my charge in the swing, the little girl climbed all over the playground, even where there are holes that the older kids can climb down poles and corkscrews. I was worried she would either lose her balance or step down and fall. I called over to the woman about 10 minutes later, and we shared the following words:
(N= Nanny, me... SCG= Snotty caregiver)
N:"Is that your daughter"
SCG: "No"
N: "Are you babysitting her?"
SCG: "Yep" (Not looking at me or the child....)
N: "Don't you think she is a little small to be on the playground by herself?"
(No response)
N: "I'm just worried she might fall off and get hurt"
SCG: "Mind your own business!"
N: "Shouldn't you go do what you are being paid for and play with her??"
SCG: "I'm not being paid, mind your own damn business" (Meanwhile the child is wandering away from and around the playground and she just sat there!!!!!)
N: That doesn't mean you don't have responsibility for her well being! (No response) so when she falls off the playground, you won't be able to tell her mom why she was hurt because you were too far away and not watching her."
SNG: (Picks up the baby, completely ignores both me and the wandering child in her care, and starts breastfeeding her otherwise content baby in a sling.)
As I left, the child wandered back to her snotty caregiver and sat down while she fed the baby. They were still sitting there as I left about 15 minutes later, and when I drove by after that. Just sitting. The caregiver did not interact or speak with the girl one time. The girl was obviously not deaf because she was giggling and talking to the little boy I watch. The caregiver obviously not blind because of the many rude and totally uncalled for glances she kept giving me. She didn't stand up one time to play with the little girl, and it was almost like "I'm not getting paid to watch her, so I don't really give a crap." Mind you, she was not within a safe distance from the child at any point, and for the most part wasn't even watching her!!! I sincerely hope that whoever asked their friend to watch their child as a favor reads this and realizes what a horrible caregiver you just entrusted your sweet and cute daughter to! She was horrible the WHOLE time!
Description of vehicle, bag, stroller that may aid in identifying involved caregiver: The SCG was sitting on a blanket folded over on the cement. Why she couldn't sit under the shade of a tree much closed to the playground is beyond me. She had an infant stroller with her, it was either gray or black with a lime green trim. I took a picture on my cell phone, but it isn't clear at all and I can't upload it to the computer anyway. She also had a Wendy's bag sitting next to her on the ground and a soda cup.
Hope this helps someone realize that just because their friend or sister or whoever has a baby, does NOT automatically make her the mothering, responsible type. Please don't entrust her again!!!
I find this more egregious since the caregiver in this case has a prior relationship with the child's family (assuming that she is watching the child for a friend, family, neighbor). Or she is just full of bs and she is the paid babysitter, who clearly favors her own child over someone else's. Which is why I would never hire a babysitter who brought their own infant/child to work.
ReplyDelete10;14:
ReplyDeleteActually, I've never done this, but I would approve of a nanny who had a child the same age as mine bringing him or her to work. My child would dig it, as she'd have a built-in playmate while her older sibling is in school.
Before I had my kids I knew a neighbor who did this and it worked out swimmingly. I'd see them all together and the children were both blissfully happy & the nanny was clearly delighted as well.
As far as the original post goes, let's hope that the mother of the child being ignored had an emergency and used this gal as a one-time sitter only. You just never know...
Sounds to me like she was bitter about watching the child.
ReplyDeleteShe might have just been in a bitchy mood. New mother? No sleep? Not justifying the lack of care she gave the child but it could have been a really bad day for her.
ReplyDeleteThis is very alarming... But on the other subject of bringing your own child, it often doesn't work out. My employer had a nanny before me who brought her infant daughter with her, same age as my employer's son. When they got home her daughter was always happy, playfull, but their son was always crying, red faced, and wouldn't sleep through the night anymore. They also started counting diapers, and in 5 hours the nanny would not use a single diaper and when they would come home she would say "oh wow he must have JUST pooped." Sad! I think it's great if someone really is comitted to treating the two children equally, but many can't do this, and even more so, they just can't handle it. If you are going to want your kids around other kids their age, just use a daycare! If you want to pay extra for individual care, then unless you have a stellar nanny, don't let her bring her own children!! I bet the nanny mentioned in this post really was being paid for watching the little girl, unfortunately she is just too selfish to handle it.
ReplyDeleteGood for you for saying something to her and standing up for this small child!
ReplyDeleteOh that poor girl. I've been to the marina playground often and it is NOT the type of place where you can turn your back even for a few seconds. Especially the type who like to hide out in the bathrooms there all day.
ReplyDeleteI hope her mom/dad sees this... I've never seen a post from my area before. I'll show this to my friends, they might know the woman/child.
op-
ReplyDeletemost people don't realize that this park is surrounded by water.
uber dangerous.
OP, You seem to be one of the few people on here with the courage and concern to speak up for the child, rather than just post on here. I hope the parents see this. I'll bet she was being paid.
ReplyDeleteOP here... I forgot to mention that completely... Yes, the whole park/attraction is centered around a big pond/little lake thing. The playground isn't next to the water exactly, but there is a cement walking path separating it from the kids beach, and that's very close.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad to see Reno/Sparks readers! How come nobody ever reports nannies from our area (good or bad). I take my charge to the park almost daily and we always seem to meet another nanny. Funny though, because right now I am looking for a new nanny job and there just aren't any available. (The mom is having the second child soon and will be staying home permanently after... had nothing to do with me as a nanny) But there are always nannies. Lucky for them, they are usually decent or good so I don't have to come on here and say anything about bad childcare... ;-)
Former nanny, and now mother of two here...
ReplyDeletereally, people are so obsessive. Children do not have to be watched all of the time. How will they ever learn with adults watching over them all of the time? Kids fall, kids learn...
Parents didn't 'hawk' over us when we were growning up, and we turned out just fine. RELAX PEOPLE.
I'm a nanny from this area, but I've never been to that playground. I was wondering if some of the other reno/sparks area posters might be able to recommend playgrounds that ARE appropriate for two year olds? What about a 2 and 7 year old? The two year old I work with thinks its fun to jump off things and let go of my hand simultaneously which is absolutely terrifying, but a toddler playground would certainly help - maybe it would even keep their interest for more than a few seconds!
ReplyDeleteThe one in south reno, I think it's called "South Meadows sports park" or something... is pretty good, they have 3 different playgrounds (small, medium and large if you will) but no swings for big kids.
ReplyDeleteNearby there is a GREAT park in the Double Diamond housing. You turn into the place and it is the 2nd or 3rd right off the street. The park has all rubber ground, a nice big playground (which is big, but there aren't a lot of holes for 2-year olds to escape), a little mini rock wall, some other toys randomly placed, and both big kid swings and baby swings. So far, it is definitely my favorite. If we go there today, I will post what street it is on.
There are lots of great parks here, you should good the parks and recreation page to look them up. Oh another one is the great one at Rancho San Rafael! Just try them each out.
In regards to the post above yours...yes I agree that kids need to know they can be trusted. But you need to be within a safe distance, even if you are giving them the illusion that they are being very independent. This woman wasn't even talking to her, looking at her, wasn't regarding her existence at all. And she was VERY far away for the child's age. If the kid was 4 or above, well balanced and experienced with walking and climbing, I wouldn't have had AS big of a problem with the distance.
LOL she let you know you needed to mind your damn business. im sorry but that is funny! only thing that was lacking from this post was her bitch slapping you for continuing to question her! LOL
ReplyDeleteWow! I am a mom on the East and grew up in Reno. Glad to see posts (even though it's a bad nanny sighting) from the Little Biggest City in the world! I liked the South Meadows Playground cuz of baby swings. I didn't like Virgina Lake playground for my baby even though I grew up going there. How about Idlewild Park with the train? Is it still there? I would like to know the next time I am in town with my baby.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, I don't like the Virginia Lake playground either... there always seem to be wierdos just hanging around. A great alternative to that one is San Rancho Rafael park. They have an amazing kids playground, all on rubber ground, and lots of nature trails. There is even a pond there if you want to feed the ducks, or a dog park (not entirely fenced in, so make sure your dog will listen to you).
ReplyDeleteThey still have the Idewild Park, but they tore down a lot of the old rides. I think the Kiwanis club are going to replace some of them, but the playground is still pretty good, and they still have the train that goes around the park. You can feed the geese there too, but they just seem to mean everytime I bring a charge there, I don't like to let the kids feed geese there.
Hey 3:49 PM It would be even funnier if you were the one who got bitch slapped. You are retarded and ignorant for even making that comment. So uncalled for. You are probably the nanny who was at the park that day ignoring that little girl and now wished you had the balls to slap the woman who criticized your "nannying" skills. And if you aren't, you are probably in the same league as her.
ReplyDeleteSwings are swinging, amazing. :)
ReplyDelete