calling all nannys and parents 1st time nanny needs help!! please :)

[jaz1234]

Hi there
I am to begin my first nanny job (looking after toddlers i had 1 looking after a baby) tomorrow i will be looking after 2 year old twins mon - fri.
could i have some information from nannies or parents about doing activities, outings etc any information would be a great help.

thanks

Whereabout is S.London are you?

Or whereabouts will you be working actually!

thanks for replying i will be working in catford (lewisham borough)

How exciting! 2 year old twins sound like fun What are you planning to do tomorrow? Are they girls/boys/girl&boy? I'm basically just nosey and it sounds like a cool job

What sort of information are you after?
First week I'd just see how things go and work out the flow of things. I'm what I would call an Out And About nanny in that I take children out of the home alot to various places... parks/countryside, swimming, indoor play/playgym, museums, zoo, science centre, on trains/bus. Children learn about the world around them.

Twins are individuals, while they may like some things the same, each will have their own likes and dislikes and their own personality.

What have you arranged with the parents with regard to activity budget and any current activities they already do? What are the parents going to allow you to do - some parents don't mind how far their nanny travels, whilst others don't want their nanny to leave the home... those are the extremes, many parents I expect would fall somewhere in the middle.

What kind of info are you looking for?

Ideas on how to find activities? What kind of activities would be useful? Ways to meet other nannies?

Do the parents have a weekly schedule of activities/ideas for classes or groups they'd like the twins to do?

Are you a sporty person, a crafty person, a musical person? What activities do you enjoy doing with children?

Have a look on here

What hours are you doing?

Sounds fab!

I nanny a 10y,7y and 1y old but I'd love to nanny twins!

HAVE FUN!

nannynick - are your days out fairly expensive? I'm really just curious. I have about 10 weeks off with my ds (20 months) coming up and I've been thinking about what to do.... then calculating the expense I feel downhearted.

jaz - I'd look into a couple of playgroup possibilities for the first week and if it fits in with how you and the twins are doing then try one out and see how it goes. You can meet other nannies in the area that way, too And they might have some ideas for you things to do and places to go.

catford - oh that brings back my youth, I grew up around Greenwich, so would sometimes go to catford... though I don't recall catford being that nice (maybe it's changed over the past 20 years). Can't recall what was in Catford, apart from a music shop - which is why I would have visited.

Best museum in the area has to be Horniman... children love it - stuffed birds and all!
About 22 minutes via Bus 185

How far will they let you travel. Greenwich park is good, plus can walk down to the Thames and go through the foot tunnel.

oh also at playgroups I tend to learn ideas for songs, games and crafts - and build on them, they spark other ideas...etc.

Local libraries round there are pretty good- check out their website as they probably do activities, stories , singing.

Anything park related is good (ESP Greenwich parknor blackheath which aren't that far) if weather is ok. Take a picnic - dd who is similar age loves doing this kind of stuff With me or the nanny.

thanks guys
they are twin boys! and they are really fun to be around their previous nanny took them to local playgroups and to the park things like that.
she told me that she once took them to London Zoo but had such a bad experience with all the travelling, the double buggy and the stress of having two children she never took them anywhere like that again!

their parents seem quite ok with me taking them to playgroups but to me that seems a little bit boring (i accompanied their previous nanny to a nearby playgroup) it was ok but it wasn't as fun as i thought it would be ( i have worked in a nursery) i guess i am the type to want to go on an adventure and nannynick i saw a thread where you posted all the cool activities you took your children to i would really love to go places like that but i have no idea if ther are any fun places in the lewisham area.
also i am a little scared because i will be out with a double buggy (Jane Powertwin Pro tandem) getting on small buses and for some strange reason that scares me

greenwhich park sounds good and so does the horniman museum thanks guys i am going to check on the internet about local activities for children and to answer your question MilkNoSugarPlease i will be doing monday 8 - 6 tuesday and wednesday 9 - 5
i actually cant wait really excited!

playgroups for the long term will probably be boring, tbh. I can only go once in a while when I'm on holiday (often, I'm a teacher) but even then I find I can't go regularly. It is good for ideas, though - as everyone will be local and have recently been on trips/outings...etc.

Also, netmums is an excellent source of information for local events, activities and places to go - both indoor and outdoor. If you haven't seen their local area yet, do so - it's very worth it.

StarExpat - I have a budget for £5 per day, which I have to say I do tend to exceed (I pay the extra myself) though not by much, tends to be things like buying myself a nice coffee.
A lot of places are free such as parks and walking in the countryside. It's the cost of food/drink whilst out which can add-up, so where possible take your own.
If I walk up Box Hill (near Dorking) I buy a coffee at the top... could take a flask but I prefer freshly made coffee, flask coffee just isn't the same - plus it weighs quite a lot so it's another thing to carry up the hill.
For places like Theme Parks/Zoo (Chessington and Legoland are near me) I use an annual pass... children under 3(under 1m at Chessington) go free. Science centre I have an annual pass (it's a local authority schools visit place, so it's fairly low cost - adult annual pass is £24.70).
Swimming I used to do at a local council facility - £4.40 toddler session. As I'm now a member of a health club, we go there as a child addon to my membership was £15 a month.
Museum entry fees vary some are free (I think in London now most are free) so I try to aim for museums which don't charge entry - though that can mean a long journey - such as to Portsmouth.
I look out for vouchers for places - though straight money off vouchers are quite rare these days.
Indoor play places sometimes have loyalty cards, so I use those to get say the 5th time free. Playgym charges £1 per person and has had the same price for 6 years now - just a shame it's a 35 min drive away (used to be nearer a place I worked in the past, thus how I found it).

Mileage (so in your case Fuel) is a big cost, though in my area it's cheaper than public transport - I'm still quite shocked at how much it costs to go on a Bus or a Train these days, I'm sure it used to be a lot cheaper in the past - or maybe I'm just not getting the right ticket (I don't pre-plan much, so buy tickets on the day).

I'd be tempted not to use a buggy. At age 2 they can both walk... probably up to 2 miles (especially once they get used to walking). Backpack for you is useful to put nappy things in, first aid kit, drinks and snacks. Then you have two hands free to hold the children.
You may need to teach them to walk safely at first.
I use a buggy when we need to get to somewhere for a set time (such as doing the school run) but I try to avoid it for other places (apart from being somewhere to store the lunch if we go to Legoland - putting lunch in the buggy is much easier than carrying it).
I've taken a buggy on a bus once... never again.
I've not walked with Twins though... so it will be a lot harder for you, especially when the boys are tired, as you can't really carry both of them at the same time.

I would take a single buggy and have one walk, one in the buggy or one walk, one on a buggy board. That's if the parents have a single though.

I'd wait to spend sometime with them first before you decide not to use the buggy tbh.

Even at two chances are theyll get tired easily!

Use buses all the time (with a single though) and once youve done it once its easy! Honestly!
Have also done it with the Jane powertwin duo! Its a little harder depending on the bus
buses with a small pushchair bit on the right are tricky but again once youve done it it's fine!

yeah i was also thinking of not taking a buggy as it would be alot easier, i guess i will just have to plan my day so that there wont be too much walking around and so i will be back in time for their afternoon nap.

Honestly just let it flow for the first week and when you have a bit more of an idea about what they're interested in and what their capabilities are you can start planning some fun trips!

IME toddlers quite like security and routine of going to playgroups anyway, even if they get tedious after a while.

For the first few weeks just go with the flow. Try some days with a single buggy, some with a double, some with none at all once you have got used to the children and area a bit more.

Are you live-out? Those working days would imply to me that you are... so do you not live in the area?

Try out various toddler groups, there are bound to be a few around... often held in church halls.

Children's Centre Activities - Lewisham area

Catford / Grove Park area Children's Centre Activities

Family Services Directory - click on Children, enter Catford as the keyword and click Things To Do, the Search button. Produces a list of Toddler Groups and other things.

I think Ladywell Leisure Centre may be the nearest swimming pool.

Mountsfield Park has a children's playground according to the council website.
Other local parks

thanks nannynick

i used to live in catford about 3years ago so i know the area but not for activities for young children and yes i am a live out nanny.
the links you gave me are great it gives me alot of activities for each of the day and i know the areas too!

Thanks, Nannynick From your descriptions, you are very close to me. Which Science Centre are you talking about? Is the chessington annual pass expensive? I might consider that - we are very close to chessington, 10 minutes.

I have a 20 month old, jaz and I wouldn't dream of taking him and another his age out without at least a single buggy. I honestly don't know if this is going to change dramatically when he turns 2, but sometimes I just need the buggy so I can keep him in one spot for a bit or while I do something.

Science center is in Bracknell.
No idea how much Chessington pass is on it's own. Merlin pass is £125 first year I think, after that they do renewal offers. I expect Chessington annual pass would be around 60-70 though could be more/less. There is also probably an off-peak pass as well.
Chessington is good because the Zoo including SeaLife is open a bit over the winter. Whereas other themeparks like Legoland shut Nov-Mar.

Where is the £1 playgym Nick?