Jun 7, 2011  •  In Baby, Claire, Parenting, Personal

Our Very Own Mary Poppins

Weeks after placing “part-time nanny wanted” ads, I was still getting tons of applications and found myself only lazily skimming through them.

It wasn’t that I didn’t want the help. Rather, I was literally receiving hundreds of applications, most of which I knew to be were from people I wouldn’t trust to prepare my coffee, nevermind watch my precious daughter.

There were also more than a few qualified applicants whom I was having heckuva time emailing, calling, and struggling to set up interviews.

“I wish I could hire someone to help me hire someone,” I complained to my sister. (Yes, I am that lazy.)

“Why don’t I help you?” she volunteered.

I almost slapped myself right then and there. My sister had experience working as a nanny, so she knows what to look for and which warning signs to watch out for. And as soon as I agreed, she helped me edit my ad, set up a new email address which she could access, and promised me to start phoning and interviewing people asap.

And that’s how we found Cindy. Cindy lives in the next town over, has experience working with infants, does not need to work but would like some time away from her house and wouldn’t mind the extra money. Not only does she have great references, she has a charming, bubbly personality which I knew would work great with Claire. Her schedule is flexible enough that we could rely on her three times a week (for 5 hours at a time) but also change the days and times around when needed.

I knew that we had found our nanny after just the first interview. And Cindy’s first day is today.

After spending the first couple of hours with her and Claire, and making sure that Claire seemed comfortable with her, I retreated to my room. I am now writing this post with one ear at the door, and am happy to report that I hear Claire’s giggles emanating from the other room.

Here’s to hoping that Cindy works out, and that our household will be a happier and smoother one with her help!

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12 Responses to “Our Very Own Mary Poppins”

  1. Amanda says:

    Congrats on finding someone! I imagine it’s really difficult to find someone you trust enough to watch your child!

  2. That sounds fantastic, I hope everything works as you hope and Claire enjoys her time with that new person in her life!

  3. Elyssa says:

    I’m so happy your sister could help you with this process! Cindy sounds great and I hope she works out well ๐Ÿ™‚

  4. Marisa says:

    Jenny, where did you advertise, and how did you know how much to pay? We’re fairly certain we’ll be using a daycare around the corner from our house, but in the back of my mind I still wonder if we shouldn’t look into having someone come into our house for the 6 hours a day we’ll need childcare, especially since I work from home. Theoretically, with in-home childcare, I could breastfeed full-time. (Theoretically, that is.)

    I just don’t know where to begin!

    Congrats on finding Cindy!

    • Christine says:

      I’m with Marisa – Where did you advertise and how do you know how much to pay? I had the great fortune of hiring my neice and nephew’s nanny to watch my son (she’s amazing because she cooks and cleans, too), but my husband is being relocated all the way to AZ and I’m not sure how we’ll find a nanny we can trust. Any tips from your sister about what things to look for and how we should word our help wanted ads? Can she do a guest post about finding the right childcare provider? ๐Ÿ™‚

      • I just posted a response to Marissa. And I think having my sister do a guest post is a great idea โ€” I’ll be sure to ask her! Thanks! (And good luck on your own search!)

    • We advertised on both Craigslist and Sittercity.com. And while Sittercity has a GREAT system, we actually found Cindy through Craigslist. Most experienced sitters/nannies will charge at least $15/hour (at least in our area) but we advertised at $100/week and still got a lot of responses. It’s sad, but I think the downturn economy helped in our case, because I got a lot of applications from recently-laid-off office workers, mostly middle-aged women, who had given up on trying to find a full-time job. Good luck!

  5. Congratulations on finding Cindy! ๐Ÿ™‚

  6. That’s wonderful! I hope she continues to be exactly what you are looking for! She sounds like she is great!

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