I was at the playground located on East 49th Street between 1st Avenue and the FDR Drive on Sunday and saw a girl who appears to be a special needs child, maybe 8 years old, with long red hair, wearing a green bathing suit. Her nanny, a youngish African American woman wearing a mustard yellow shirt was texting on her phone the ENTIRE time I was in the park (about 1 ½ hours) and didn’t seem to be even looking to see where the girl was. She also appeared to be looking after a young boy, presumably a brother, around 3-4 years old with curly hair. It saddened me to see the girl wandering around by herself with no one to interact with. She could have walked right out of the park and into traffic w/o anyone seeing. The only time that the nanny came by was when the girl tried to push my child in the swing, and then only to yank her away.When I mentioned this to my child’s nanny, she said that she has seen the girl too at that playground and at St. Vartan Park. She said that the girl always appears to be alone and lonely and she has often wondered who if anyone is with her.
All I know, is that I would want someone to let me know if this were my child. I sincerely hope that her parents see this posting.
11 comments:
sad day. This poor little girl needs a better nanny. : (
Gosh, there should be a way to keep a watch on nannies 24/7!
hieyeglasses...
its called watching your own kids
Hieyeglasses. You wouldn't need constant watch on them if you either hire someone you already know and trust or have extensive interviews. More then one interview for sure.
I'm a nanny and I had 3 interviews and a background check. One was over the phone with the father, one was over the phone with their previous nanny and the other was an in person interview with the parents. (they moved so their previous nanny couldn't come with cuz it was out of state and she is getting married)I also went to the park with the kids and their mom before I started, so she could see how I would be with her children.
Also, drop in on your nanny. That way you can come suddenly and see how things are going. Ask your nanny what she did with your kids today and also be sure you tell her what she's supposed to do with them.
If you get to know your nanny and ask her questions about their day and drop in, there will be no need for a device to keep watch on her 24/7. After all, you should be able to trust the person taking care of your babies!!!
fran,
some people do have to work, and they have no choice, either people who need the money to live or especially single moms who have no choice. you shouldn't be so quick to judge: not everyone has the opportunity to stay home with their child, even though we may want to. so saying "watch your own kids" is really judgemental.
Amen, Umass!
Agreed! A lot of parents don't have the option to stay home full-time with their children - someone has to pay the bills.
As for the sighting, that is really sad, especially if the girl is special needs.
I think an 8 year old can entertain herself at a park for an hour and a half. No big deal.
I think Fran was maybe being sarcastic? Hieyeglasses's remark was kind of stupid... obviously people with nannies cannot watch their children 24/7. I took it that Fran meant that if you wanted to watch your nanny's actions 24/7, you might as well stay home.
OP,
I agree its sad. I am just wondering why did you say the girl was wandering around with no one to interact with? Was it because she doesn't seem to be able to communicate with the other children or because there weren't many other children?
I would say the nanny should watch to make sure both kids were safe, but I usually let kids play with the other kids when they are at the park, or entertain themselves on the equipment.
But still, I am guessing this nanny just doesn't have the heart and patience to give what the special needs girl requires.
I posted the sighting and actually saw the girl again last weekend. AGAIN, the nanny was on her phone the entire time and didn't even look at her once. I don't believe the child is capable of relating with other children her age and therefore ends up playing alone and virtually unsupervised. It's one thing to let an 8-year old kid play freely and another to completely neglect the child you are hired to take care of. This nanny is not being paid to hang out and talk on the phone all day. I really hope to see the child's mother in the park so that I can tell her myself.
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