What is the BEST thing about your Childminder, nanny or au pair?

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oh yes, mine firmly told me DD1 was now in potty training too.

And she was incredibly supportive about my b/fing dd2 and taking along expressed milk for her. In fact she was very supportive of my home birth plans as well.

I love everything about my childminder, her family now feel like part of our family; always ready with advice when we ask; sometimes my ds says he doesn't want to go to her house, but those are the days that he doesn't want to come home with me later! I really couldn't come to work and do a good job if it wasn't for her. oh, and she started off the potty training, we (all!) did as we were told!

My childminder has just rung to tell me that DD1 managed to get herself covered in paint from a fence, and to bring a new coat for the little wossname. She was a hell of a lot cheerier about her OWN paint-covered coat (thank you DD1, not) than I would have been

I have a childminder who has just started today and she's just texted me to let me know that she and dd got home safely from school. I'd never have thought of doing that - so simple and yet so reassuring. I love her already .

I 2nd, 3rd and 4th the pat on the back for nursery staff. I've never had any problems with the staff at dd's nursery - they always tell me what she's been up to and seem to display just the right level of acceptable affection. It's so good to see dd making friends and becoming indepednent and enabling her to do the things that are impractial at home - ie. most things to do with large bits of paper and lots of paint/messy substances!

Don't know where to begin with my childminder. She is wonderful and my boys love her. My ds1 who is 6.5 has been with her since he was 5 months old. Her children are grown up and she loves kids. She not only childminds but runs a brownie group, a mother and toddler group and also teaches re childcare at the local college.

I think the most important thing for me is the way they rush in in the morning and forget about me. I have to virtually beg for a kiss goodbye before leaving for work. I know they are happy there and that means I'm happy.

She is bloody marvellous and I don't know how she does it. I'm just very, very glad she does.

my childminder is like a granny to my 2 girls, she totally spoils them (which isn't so great sometimes ), and she has a brilliant robust attitude to life which can be a real antidote to the relentless middle classness of my day to day life.

And she does my washing and ironing

Nursery nurses aren't mentioned here specfically but I did want to say how great all the people are who have looked after ds at his nursery and dd at hers: they've all understood how much I hate being away from my children. We've all learned from them how wonderful it is to see your child form an independent, loving relationship with an adult who is NOT a family member.
We've had loads of good advice from them.
Ds is at school now (and we also love his dinner ladies and after school club workers ) but dd is dropped off at nursery laughing and bouncing in her buggy and she is still roaring with laughter when we come back for her. It can take 15 minutes to exit the building by the time she has had her compulsory cuddle with all her favourite nurses.
How nice to have a thread where we can say a public thanks to all the great men and women who take such good care of our nippers

But the BEST thing is that I have no childcare worries. None whatsoever. Even when they go to McDonalds

My childminder is the only reason my children have any social graces (like washing their hands or saying Peeze and Fankyow) at all. She reassured me in the most tactful way imaginable when DD1 wasn't walking. She looked after DD1 overnight when I was having DD2, and her entire family came round to see the baby. She takes them to playgroup and nursery, she loves and cuddles them, she is firm with them when they need it, they are so so happy and secure with her. My daughters are utterly lovely, and they wouldn't be the lovely girls they are without her.

Our Au pair is by no means perfect, but were the children are concerned she is GREAT.

At weekend she took DS to wrong birthday party, he was sat there in is fancy dress batman outfit with mask on for 10 mins then realized the party was in the church hall across the road
By this stage DS was upset.

Au pair turned situation around. They both came home singing the ketchup song, both had their face painted, Ds had won a prize for best boy dancer and Au - pair won a prize for best dancer over 7yrs... she even got a party bag. ( childs mother said the kids loved Au pair at the party)

I also have a fantastic childminder, I don't know where to start... but will mention something later.

was hoping someone would start a thread like this.

i've learned so much from our fantastic nanny over the last 2.5 yrs -- i really don't know where to start. what's truly amazing is that while being so brilliant with my dd, who LOVES her, she has also, by being supportive and making good suggestions (and reinforcing my ideas if appropriate), given me more confidence in my own parenting skills.

she's only 26 but her linguistic, diplomatic, logistical and organisational skills are mindblowing. she's also totally discreet. i'd trust her with my life. well, dd is my life, so of course i do.

when i grow up i hope to be like her.

My children love her - she's been with us (through various nanny shares)for 12 years now. WHAT would we do without her? She's seen me through early days of DS1, 2nd pregnancy, her relationships, marriage, her 2 children. She is now one of my best friends and we have had such an amazing time over the years - even when we argue!! I'm dreading the time when we don't see her everyday - at least 4 years away!!!

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My kids' nanny is nicer than me. She's been with us six years. She's doggedly worn stylish black despite caring for three snot and vomit-strewn babies. DS1 wants to marry her. She offered to make the nativity play costumes I'd volunteered for cos she knows she'll do a better job than me. She puts up with me ranting on about my in-laws. The car has a weird electrical fault and she took it to the garage this morning. She's a really good cook. She's DS2's godmother. When my mother wanted to get me underwear for my birthday (embarrassing or what!), she suggested a spa day instead. When DS1 and DD were very small, she got us a set of portrait photos as a surprise christmas present.
Her three-week holiday just turned out to be more like five weeks, but I've done most of the Christmas shopping and playing with DS1 is much nicer than commuting...

I've had two fantastic nannies overall - not perfect but are any of us???

Nanny 1 who looked after children from babyhood through to school - that the children loved her and she loved them! That is the most important thing to me and made me able to get over any negatives there might have been along the road.

Nanny 2 who has only recently started - that she has grown up children yet is able to give advice to me that doesn't sound like a know-it-all been-there-and-done-it person! That she does lots of cheap but really fun things with the children - like taking them fishing, trawling museums, etc. That she happily takes my elderly Mum with her when the children go for a day out and is as endlessly patient with her as she is with the children.

to all the good nannies and childminders out there. For those of us that work outside the home - you are soooo important to our peace of mind!

oops, very vague, she took him to her house to spend the night. It was his first overnight. I was so proud of him and am so grateful to her.

that should be:
gave my eldest ..

and you need to know that it was his first overnight, he has EpiPens, which scare most people off. He'd never gotten invited before that.

This is SO nice

She:
took my son everywhere and was my 'emergency number' for the school
gave him eldest his first overnight date -- took him to see Harry Potter and then home afterwards
helped me immensely in talking about schools and what we were going to do

that was the babysitter in Switzerland

I love the previous two people who have helped us out (nanny and mother's help). I feel I owe my life to our first nanny here. She let me explore the place and get used to living in it.

Thanks KangaMummy You're a star! And so are you Libb and Caligula! It's so nice for us nannies to hear good things. I know there are naff ones out there but the majority of us try very hard to ensure the little ones we look after are as happy and secure and entertained and loved and all the other positive things that you mums and dads out there hope that they will be.

My fave things about being a nanny are...............
................ how the kids have huge grins on their faces when they see me first thing in the morning (could be my awful bed-head hair but I live in hope/denial..........)
..........watching them grow into confident happy little people
..........seeing the parents well up when we give them home made cards/cakes/pictures just because
.................being able to do whatever the kids want to do (within reason, watching finding nemo 4 times in one rainy afternoon was not really the best idea after all)
...............being hugged on a sunday afternoon and being told that you were missed
...............teaching the kids something new and sitting back silent as they show their parents and are bursting with pride

God I could go on and on, but I won't. Am in dire need of a large glass of vino and am going to watch the goonies. What an awesome film!!! I have never really grown up, yet another reason I love my job!!!