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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Childminder cutting the grass while childminding

83 replies

yelnats · 14/11/2011 21:24

My dd told me this evening that her Childminder was cutting the grass this afternoon while she was minding her and 4 other children under 5. Am I being unreasonable to be annoyed about this?

OP posts:

TroublesomeEx · 15/11/2011 16:06

although my very first (and short lived CM) did show my DS her DP's gun.

Seriously!

I thought DS is only 5 and not A Very Reliable Witness so I mentioned it to her in a "oh DS said yesterday that...." and she confirmed it had happened!

We did remove him from her care forthwith but didn't report her and I still feel really bad about that. but I was worried about repercussions.

porcamiseria · 15/11/2011 16:06

yanbu!!!! WTF did she do with them!!¬!

SoupDragon · 15/11/2011 16:49

Porcamiseria, she let them play in the garden whilst she did it the evil cow.

Moominsarescary · 15/11/2011 17:29

Ffs it's not like she can nip out in her lunch break and mow the lawn

Mum2Luke · 15/11/2011 17:36

I am sure she could do it at the weekend? You are paying her to do a job, not hers. I don't do my housework while minded children are here.

I do not think you are being unreasonable, no. What if one of the children pulled on the electricity cord (if it is a Flymo) or something like that?

I can understand emptying the dishwasher/ putting clothes in the washing machine/taking them out of the dryer to sort the clothes as they can be interrupted.

The child's mother is late again so do I wait for her or start the tea?

HeresTheThingBooyhoo · 15/11/2011 17:39

mum2luke my CMer has mindees at weekends. parents are on shift patterns. and she has the dcs from 8am-8pm. so it is dark by the time they leave.

coccyx · 15/11/2011 17:41

If they went out of her sight, would she hear them if they got into mischief/trouble

mymummyisasquarehead · 15/11/2011 17:42

YABU

Stands to reason that if she's a childminder, she will have to inevitably do some household stuff during her day.

HeresTheThingBooyhoo · 15/11/2011 17:45

see, we dont know enough about this garden TBH. it may be tiny so she was too close to the dcs with teh mower. it might be massive with a separate play area that she could see at all times. it might have loads of bushes that she couldn't see round to where teh mindees were, it might go round the side of the house where she cant see. we just dont know enough.

BertieBotts · 15/11/2011 17:51

Childminders can have 5 under 5, as long as no more than 1 under 1. The ratios are different to in a nursery.

I think it odd that people expect childminders not to do household stuff when they have children there. It's a home environment - that's the point.

MitziKinsky · 15/11/2011 17:58

"So you pay her what, £3 , £4 or £5 an hour? And you have got all catsarsed about her mowing the lawn?

If you want 100% attention and entertainment, pay more for a nanny or a nursery."

Chilmdinders can offer as good as, if not better care than a nanny or nursery. I speak as someone who has worked in/as all three.

I assure you I gave my charges the same high quality care and attention, whether I was paid an excellent rate of pay caring for children of millionaires, or £2.50ph childminding children who's parents struggled to pay be and their rent.

When I was a childminder there is no way I would have mowed the lawn whilst working.

Weeding is a different matter. I used to look after a 2yo who loved to do my weeding for me.

fedupofnamechanging · 15/11/2011 18:10

Mitzi, no one is disputing that CMs provide as good a quality of care as nannies, only that it's different. If you are paying a nanny, they are working in your own home and their only job is to look after your dc. In exchange for that, they receive a higher hourly wage, sick pay, guaranteed holiday pay, often use of a car etc. When you hire a CM, you pay a bit less because you know that your cm will be a) looking after other peoples children as well as yours and b) they will be doing some things for themselves during the day, like collecting their own dc from school, doing a bit of housework etc.

Of course, number one priority is the safety of the children, but beyond that a CM will have a mix of activities, many of which are entirely child focussed, but some of which are not.

Incidentally, even some nannies have domestic jobs to do, like cooking for the dc in their care or doing a bit of their laundry/tidying up.

maypole1 · 15/11/2011 18:19

If you want a servant hire a nanny most sane people hire childminders because its as close tp be at home as the child can get

Eg washing up, hoovering doing the weekly shop

You are paying this women to make sure your child is safe while your at work which she is doing if you want someone to stare at your dd all day get a nanny were you will pay £500 a week for them to go about their day any way

And to all those who cannot mow the lawn and make sure a child is safe their something very wrong with you

Its like people who start threads about the fact they can't possibly have a bath and take care of a child

maypole1 · 15/11/2011 18:20

Most nannies are basically maids as well my sil had her nanny do her weekly shop and do the cleaning

Chandon · 15/11/2011 18:21

Ha , my CM did this.

She would mow the lawn and do the garden. She would also take my DS around with her to the shops, to drop her daughter off at a friend's, to go to the bank, to the pharmacy, then back to pick daughter up, then to the supermarket. Then she'd drop him back off at 13;30 (ie early) saying he was car sick, but it wasn't too bad as he hadn't had lunch yet and had had an empty tum. She then proceeded to bill me £ 80 for cleaning it up.

So it depends whether this is just one of many thing, or just a one off.

I would never use a CM again, knowing this is all quite "normal"

Oblomov · 15/11/2011 18:21

I don't watch my own children every second. Whilst I'm preparing dinner fro them. Or yes, I mow the lawn whilst my 2 are at home, at the weekends.
And I'm not a CM. What is the difference. And I still don't 'get' exactly what your objection is ? Is there a danger ? Is that the same danger I expose my children to , whilst I mow at the weekend, then ?
Must dash. Off to A&E. Kid had accident, whilst I was off mowing

Oblomov · 15/11/2011 18:23

God forbid. You haven't gone for a pooh, leaving your kids on their own for one milli-second have you ?
lets phone SS !!

ToothbrushThief · 15/11/2011 18:25

If a childminder is caring for 5 children at £3 an hour -£15 per hour? (My CM was actually paid £3.50) then I do think it's not unreasonable to expect them to actually leave a job like mowing the lawn until the children have left. It's hardly an 'essential to living' task like cooking/laundry etc

I agree childminding provides an 'in house' experience but mowing is not a household task that is essential. If I could work and childmind I'd take my kids to work with me. I can't so I pay someone else to do just that. I don't expect all singing and dancing entertainment but I do think that their focus should be safety and attention if needed. Mowing the lawn means your eyes and ears are not their for those children (especially 5 of them)

I too have seen mowing injuries and used to tell my DC to keep their distance for just that reason. I guess seeing a foot partially amputated by the blade which spun off unexpectedly changes your perception of mowing as a safe activity though1

ToothbrushThief · 15/11/2011 18:28

I do remember one CM bringing her charge to an internal examination. Small child was strapped to pushchair watching CM strip from waist down and have speculum inserted.

I guess that counts as safe and normal as well

MitziKinsky · 15/11/2011 18:32

ToothbrushThief, I recently took my 6yo DD to my smear test. She sat on the other side of the curtain at the same end as my head. She agreed with me that she didn't want to see my bottom where babies come out!

Sorry, getting of subject now!

ToothbrushThief · 15/11/2011 18:48

I've taken mine Mitzi but this child was distressed at being strapped in and hidden behind a curtain so brought around and watched events!

I do think that your own children are different to children you are looking after whether for money or not. What you do with them differs.

Childminder weeding, laundry, cooking, etc all fine.....popping upstairs to take a bath? No. Mowing No

But that's just me.

I also object to the implication that CM are on minimum wage and therefore shouldn't be expected to provide anything more than a presence. My CM was a fantastic CM and would be insulted at being considered like this. She regarded it as a vocation. She also earnt a good hourly wage which I'd never begrudge her.

maypole1 · 15/11/2011 18:49

Agreed very much doubt toothbrushes story child was most likey sitting on overside of the curtain

As as toothbrush was not their and the child in question was clearly a toddler she has no way of knowing what she claims

ToothbrushThief · 15/11/2011 18:53

toothbrush was there!

I was inserting the speculum

It's you that wasn't there

LegsAkimboTimeToBlush · 15/11/2011 19:06

toothbrush was there!

I was inserting the speculum

It's you that wasn't there

AngelofTheLordiscomingDown · 15/11/2011 19:08

I can't see the problem. What if all the children she had on the premises were her own? Would there have been a problem then?

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