Hi, I am a nanny and I saw something very upsetting yesterday, (3/25) while with my charges at Jungle Java in Farmington Hills. A little boy named Garrett (3 1/2) came up to me (while playing with my charges 6 years and 15 months. Asking us to play with him, I have always said the more , the merrier- so I let him play with us. The nanny (Garrett told me was Ms. Grace) never came over to see, talk or interacting with him. My charges and I played with him OVER AN HOUR!! Ms. Grace never came over to check on him. Also had a little sister (Garrett told me "pointed" "that's my sister"- she could have not been more than 1 year)- I saw her climbing with us a couple times. NEVER saw the nanny. Until she came shouting to Garrett- lunch time. Very sad. I would really ask Garrett about this nanny. Garrett said to my 6 year old charge "Your lucky, your nanny is fun- my nanny doesn't play with me" Very sad!!Description of child: Beautiful white little boy, blond hair. Wearing blue pants. Green shirt with blue shirt over the green shirt.
Description of Nanny: Black young woman- wearing a dark blue sweat outfit. Dark black hair.
Sounds like the nanny was using you to watch over her charges.
ReplyDeleteYeah I am sure the three year old said "Your lucky your nanny is fun, mine doesn't play with me." lol Did you just add that part in to make yourself look good.
ReplyDelete12:59
ReplyDeleteSure the child could have said that. I have hard plenty of really sad comments from neglected children over the years...just along those lines.
I had a family of young children whose mom dropped them off at the pool all day every day who were more interested in sitting with me and my mom friends than playing in the water with the other kids. I had kids up at the school or park who would run to hug me (or one of my friends) and then stay glued to that "parent" for as long as they could, just to have some affection. Kids with park bench nannies who would come over and ask me to push them on the swings. And my own nephew, who has the coldest most neglectful dad ever, has made several comments just like the one OP mentions. Heartbreaking.
And how could OP possibly look better by saying that? Did she tell us who she is or post a picture of herself wearing a nanny of the year crown?
12:59
ReplyDeleteWhy would you make such a nasty comment?
ell Maybe "MOMS" 3 yr old doesn't have the vocabulary to express himself? Our 3 yr old certainly could. If her sister was mean to her she would tell us xactly what happened,so kids most certainly can tell someone at this young age if they feel sad or angry.
ReplyDeleteI see many petty comments in here ,trying to make the people who are reporting what they feel is neglect or abuse,look small or be made out to be liars.
They are just telling us what they saw. I see no reason for this poster to have made up the fact that this little boy said what he did.
2:12,
ReplyDeleteHuh? Are you talking to me? Because if you are I really don't understand what you are trying to say. What you wrote has no relation to what I wrote.
Mom, the 2:12 poster was obviously referring to the comment sandwiched between erics mom and your (mom's) comment. Anybody who has ever spent some time at a playground has witnessed this sort of thing. I played on the swings with two little boys along with my kids today at my local park, it was only for 15-20 minutes max, so no big deal, but I had no idea who their nanny was.
ReplyDeleteThat remark absolutly sounds like something a 3 1/2 yo would say. There are too many "park bench nannies" who take advantage of other nannies and moms who basically take care of their charges for them in the playgrounds.
ReplyDeleteI hope the parents see this.
I agree with the others, that was a nasty uncalled for comment, and quite an assumption at that. My nephew who is also 3.5 years of age, speaks in full coherent sentences, and can even sing the lyrics to entire songs. The average 3 1/2 year old is usually old enough and intelligent enough to voice themselves quite well, unless they have other factors going into play such as speech delay etc. I too have sadly encountered one too many neglected lonely children, and believe it or not, they DO say things such as this!
ReplyDeletePark bench nannies...Hmm...Maybe because of the area I live in, I don't come across many of these...not a huge nanny area I guess? HOWEVER! I did see a park bench mommy today. She sat and yapped on her phone for a good 20 minutes while her daughter wandered around kind of aimlessly. I'm guilty of assuming she was a nanny at first though :-/ That is until her daughter referred to her as MOMMY.
ReplyDeleteI apologize to my fellow nannies for making that assumption! This blog has jaded me ;-)
There is one more thing we should also remember here. In my experience, children (unless they are very young..as some of these here clearly are, since they need climbing and swing help)USUALLY want to play with the other children at the park, pool, playland, or wherever,instead of their moms or nannies....UNLESS the child is missing out on a normal amount of love and interaction from his parents or adult caregivers. Mom (or nanny) gives the time and attention at home and then the park is a treat because there are other children to play with.
ReplyDeleteThese nannys are probably not entirely to blame all the time. I'll bet if mom and dad filled the kiddos up with plenty of parental love and affection they would not be so needy of it that it seems more alluring to them than an opportunity to play with kids their own age when the opportunity presents itself.
When I saw kids who consistently wanted ot be with the adults, it inevitably turned out that mom and dad were too busy or uninterested to meet their needs.
I give credit to great nannies. I don't know how you do it. Especially, the nannies that work long days. I can't imagine working from 7-7 Monday thru Friday. Its not the same as being the parent. A nanny is always expected to be working. I am a SAHM. And I still occasionally will take a nap with my son who is two. I know most nannies probably can't do this.
ReplyDeleteThen most are expected to clean-up during the day. I usually pick up when my child is sleeping (naps) or at nite. It just seems to be a waste of time otherwise.
Im a nanny in sunny california and my charges (ages 1,2,3,4,5), dont want to play with me at the park. They come to me for a snack or to take them potty. The 1 yr old however needs my help with the climbing things and the swings, so I am with her at all times while we are there. We play at home or do crafts. At the park they play with other kids or each other. Just to clarify..I dont watch all 5 kids together. I work part time for 3 families.
ReplyDeleteI can see a 4 and 5 year old wanting to play with other kids...but a 1 and 2 year old are usually at that parallel play stage...kinda strange they wouldn't have you by the hand dragging you around the playground...
ReplyDeleteThey must be a lot more independent out there in California :-)
Mom
ReplyDeleteam sorry got the posts mixed up.Was not refering to your post.
Jennifer, thanks for the nice post.
ReplyDeleteA Nanny
i don't play with my charges at the park, they are ages 7 and 9. they prefer to play together or with other kids. i typically sit on the bench, unless they want a push on the swing, simply because there is nothing for me to do.
ReplyDeleteyes, i am a proud park bench nanny, so sue me!
Sitting on a bench while watching 2 school-age children play together is not neglect . Getting a break after being cooped up all day long by catching up with some fellow nannies is not neglect . Ignoring consistently for a substantial period of time the needs of a small child, avoiding to make any kind of contact
ReplyDeletewith her/him- even a smile or a nod counts - IS neglect.
The "park bench nannies" refered to on here are neglecting toddlers. I don't think anyone is saying older kids can't run around and play with their friends while the nanny sits down.
ReplyDelete3:31
ReplyDeleteExactly!
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