Finding a great summer nanny in Ann Arbor
Invite a stranger into my home, put her in charge of my beloved children, and walk out the door? No way.
Then I began to meet parents who do just that, and you know what? It looked like a pretty good set-up.
So when I went back to work last summer, my husband and I weighed three options: summer camps, a childcare center, or a nanny.
Hiring a nanny turned out to make the most sense for our family, for the following reasons. It was less expensive than enrolling two kids in a center. It would be easier than wrangling two kids out the door early every morning. And it would mean the kids could still have the type of summer they're used to — playing with friends, going to parks, libraries, museums, or just bumming around the house.
Of course, this domestic bliss depended on finding someone who could rival Mary Poppins. My requirements were fairly high.
And they got higher as the resumes flooded in. Thanks to our proximity to local colleges, there were lots of teaching students applying to babysit our children. And due to the bad economy, some actual teachers were applying too.
After interviewing a dozen candidates, we ended up hiring a woman who had just graduated from the University of Michigan’s School of Education and was set to teach in France in the fall. She was capable, warm and genuine, and on the first day she did a gardening craft with the kids and cleaned the kitchen. I was hooked.
Over the course of the summer, she took the kids all over town. She taught my daughter about crepes and Nutella. The kids loved her, and I grew very fond of her (and her cleaning abilities) as well. We missed her when she moved to France.
This year, spring was barely official before I began my summer nanny search. So far I’ve heard from 60 candidates and whittled it down to 12.
I realize that by writing this, I may be setting myself up for stiff competition next year in “scoring some high-grade nanny,” as my favorite Desperate Housewives character once put it.
But someone’s got to hire all these great candidates, so if you’re thinking about taking the nanny plunge, here’s a list of tips I compiled from experience and from online resources to help get you started.
Nanny resources
Here are some useful resources and forms to make the process easier.
1. Write up a classified ad. You can publish it in a variety of places, including the newspaper or an online site, such as MLive.com or Craigslist.org. Don’t over-think this. Give a brief summary of the hours, ages of your children, and job expectations. Then list your top requirements, and what candidates should send you (resume, cover letter). My ad is less than 100 words.
You can also contact U-M, Eastern Michigan University and Concordia University to ask them to post your ad on their jobs boards. I did this last year, but felt it wasn’t necessary this year.
2. As the resumes start to flow in, resist the urge to respond right away. You really need to get a dozen or so resumes before you can start to see who rises to the top. For example, I started out with an education requirement of college student or above, but after receiving several applications, I upped my standard to include only education students or graduates.
3. Google every candidate on your interview list, and search for them on Facebook, too. (Facebook tip: search for people by email address rather than by name.) I’ve found this very enlightening, and have ruled out candidates for indiscriminately swapping spit in photos, for obsessing about their weight and for being just plain boring.
4. Conduct short phone interviews with your top candidates. Start by telling them about your family and the job, then ask some getting-to-know-you questions. I also always ask about discipline, because having someone whose philosophy is similar to ours is non-negotiable for me.
5. Set up in-person interviews. On the advice of several articles, I do the first in-person interviews at a coffee shop — without the kids. Then I invite my top candidates to our home for the final interview. This includes some time spent interacting with the children, while I observe nearby.
6. Once you’ve chosen your top candidate, conduct employment and reference checks. If everything checks out, offer the job on the condition that you can do a SSN/criminal background check, and a DMV check if you plan to have the nanny transport your children anywhere. There are scores of websites that offer these services, for fees ranging from $40 to $150.
7. Once the background check is complete, draw up a work agreement (samples abound online) and determine whether you’ll need to withhold or pay employment taxes. In Michigan, the threshold is $1,700 per year, per household employee.
It’s a bit of effort now, but I’m looking forward to the week after school gets out, when I can walk out the door for work in the morning without the stress of making lunches, getting kids ready and doing the drop-offs — and know that the kids are in good hands.
In short, when I get a bit of a vacation, too.
Jen Eyer is on the Community Team at AnnArbor.com. She oversees the Parenting and Pets sections, and writes feature stories, blog posts and opinion pieces. She can be reached at 734-623-2577 or jeneyer@annarbor.com.
Comments
Ann Arbor mom
Sun, May 23, 2010 : 7:03 p.m.
Thanks for a very helpful article. After 5 years as a stay-at-home mom, I am re-entering the workforce and am in the process of arranging child care for the first time. This article is full of the tips and advice I need. Thank you!
Woman in Ypsilanti
Tue, Apr 13, 2010 : 12:38 p.m.
From the other side of the coin... I was a nanny for the same family for several summers in a row when I was in college. It was an awesome job and I loved hanging out with those kids every day. We did such fun things! I learned a lot about kids too (like if four boys suddenly get quiet, *something* is going on). @walker101 Parents who work are not bad parents because of it. It isn't about letting someone else fill one's obligation. Being a stay at home parent is fine and all but really it is a luxury these days. And even for stay at home parents, the occasional babysitter or pre-school or nanny experience is generally pretty positive for the children.
treetowncartel
Mon, Apr 12, 2010 : 4:44 p.m.
@ Candi, I don't think an employment contract is in the best interest of any parent. You as the parent are now an employer and have to comply with federal and state stautes concering employment that are very burdensome and demanding. You can also open up the door to some nice law suits. The prefered methofd would be an independent contractor status and then 1099 the nanny. Otherwise, you going to have the burden of having to create a W-2 and do all the withholding and paying to the government that goes along with having employees. Also, what do you mean by progressive discipline?
Candi
Mon, Apr 12, 2010 : 4:04 p.m.
Youre looking for a nanny to work full-time for the summer only. A tall order? No, not necessarily. Below are the steps to take to ensure that you hire the perfect summer nanny for your family. 1. Create a job description. What do you want the nanny to do? Childcare only? Light housekeeping? Meal preparation? Other tasks? 2. Create an employment contract. The contract should cover pay rate, benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment. 3. Recruit. Common recruitment methods include word-of-mouth, help-wanted advertisements, postings at colleges or universities, and online databases of prospective nannies such as Nannies4hire.com. 4. Screen all candidates by reviewing their credentials relative to what you are looking for in a nanny. You can do this by thoroughly reviewing resumes, applications, etc. 5. Interview. Interview only those candidates whose credentials match what you are looking for in a nanny. Two rounds of interviews are recommended. The initial interview can be done by Skype or telephone if in-person interviewing is impractical. This interview is done to get to know candidates a little better through a question-and-answer period of approximately one half hour. After the initial interviews are done, you can refine your list of viable candidates to perhaps two or three prospective nannies. On those two or three candidates, perform second-round interviews. These interviews are more thorough and typically involve your children as well. Observe how the candidates relate to your children. If age appropriate, ask your children, after the interview, how their liked the candidate that they just met. During the second round interviews, candidates should be shown the job description. Candidates should be expected to ask a variety of questions about the job description. At the conclusion of the second round interviews, let the candidates know you will be doing background checks and reference checks. 6. Perform background checks and call all references on your final round candidates. 7. Make your selection and offer the job to the candidate youve chosen. A telephone call to the selected candidate is sufficient for the initial job offer. Make sure that you are clear about the intended start date. If the offer is accepted, you should follow up by having your new nanny sign her employment contract. (Note: she may want to negotiate various aspects of the contract with you. You may or may not be willing to negotiate various aspects with her, as some aspects are likely non-negotiable for you.) 8. Orient and train the new nanny. Make sure that you set aside enough time to train her well. On her first day of employment, have her sign her job description. Orient and train her by referring frequently to the job tasks listed in her job description. Provide her clear and consistent feedback on what she is doing correctly and what needs to be done differently. Follow up with progressive discipline if necessary. 9. Provide a method of periodic communication between you and your nanny. Many families keep a nanny log: a notebook in which both parents and nannies record information and questions for each other on a daily basis. For example, the nanny may write, Johnny played outside all day today. He took a one-hour nap (rather than his usual 30 minute nap) as a result. Or the parents may write, Would you make sure that Johnnys rash is going away? I didnt want to wake him up before I left this morning. 10. Separate the nanny, with your thanks, after the summer is over. A nice additional touch is to provide the nanny with a written letter of recommendation from you and a gift card or hand-made gift from your children. You may also seek to secure the nannys services for the next summer as well. Nannies4hire.com
treetowncartel
Mon, Apr 12, 2010 : 8:55 a.m.
@ Jen, I was commenting more on the breadth of socio-econmoic status then I was either your situation or there's. We too pay for daycare so that we can go to work. Luckily, our provider is someone my family has known very well for close to 30 years. We have no worries about where our kids are going, and as much as I would like to stay at home and rule the nest with them there, that just is not possible. Going from DINKs(dual income no kids) to DIHKS(dual income have kids) was a tough choice to make, but in the end we both wanted to keep our jobs for a myriad of reasons. What is even funnier are the people that don't approve of Mom working a job, some of them even being family. They fail to forget that it is Mom's job that has a great benefit plan that keeps those little kids healthy, from gestation to where they are now. One other thing When, my wife or I get in a glut about paying for this or that, I always try and take a step back and try to be thankful for my lot in life, knowing a lot others have it worse than I do. Granted, some of them have chosen to be worse off, while others are truly impeded.
treetowncartel
Mon, Apr 12, 2010 : 6:23 a.m.
Wow, two stories on the same page that are in such contrast. You have the have nots with their kids, one parent renting a room from a friend and the other living in a homeless shelter, both looking for work. Then you have the have it all's, able to splurge on the niceties such as a nanny, spending more on the finding process then those other two parents probably bring home a week.
KirQ
Sun, Apr 11, 2010 : 10:21 a.m.
Great article and process advice Jen! @walker - can't determine whether you really feel this way or are just trying to raise the hackles other readers. Certainly, life is full of choices: whether to scale down financial obligations so that you can "afford" NOT to work, or to work outsside the home. For some families, particularly single parent families without independent wealth, there is no choice, and it seems unfair to judge until you've walked in someone else's shoes. Hopefully you aren't passing along what APPEARS to be a bitter attitude about families who work to your children - I like to think there is acceptance of all kinds of diversity in Ann Arbor, which is why our family loves it.
mwest22
Sun, Apr 11, 2010 : 8:48 a.m.
Thanks for the specifics. Choosing a nanny seems overwhelming, but it's so important to find the right person. Thanks for sharing!
spm
Sun, Apr 11, 2010 : 6:18 a.m.
@walker - You didn't obviously read the whole article. This is a nanny that helps out in the summer while the kids are out of school. It's a problem all working parents have - what to do with the children in the summer while the parents are at work. Jen, it sounds like a lot of work, but it obviously works out well for both you and your children!
walker101
Sun, Apr 11, 2010 : 5:33 a.m.
I don't understand, I guess your fabulous career is more important than taking care of your kids by letting others do your obligation. Gee life is wonderful.