Written By Brooke Strickland for Nannies Plus
Have you recently welcomed a new baby into your home?
Once your maternity or paternity leave ends, you may feel a variety of emotions about heading back to work. Hiring a nanny that you trust can help ease some feelings of anxiety, but it will require planning – not just for you but for your baby. Here are some tips on how to help your newborn transition into care with your new nanny.
#1: Familiarize your baby with the new nanny as much as possible.
Once you have found the right nanny to work in your home, invite them to come to the house a bit before work officially begins. Have a cup of tea or coffee with them, show them around your home, take a walk around the neighborhood together, and let them hold, feed, or play with the baby. You may even consider having them babysit once or twice for a few hours with you out of the home before their official start date. Doing this not only helps introduce your child to their nanny, but also helps your nanny get familiar with your baby’s temperament, schedule, and needs. Be intentional about the early part of the process, because starting strong will always make things easier in the long run. Just be sure to pay your nanny for their time–your nanny should be compensated at their regular hourly rate for all working interviews, “trial days,” and babysitting.
#2: Schedule a transition week.
The week before you head back to work, if possible, schedule a ‘transition week’ to ease into the new routine. For example, on the first day, have the nanny in your home for a couple of hours. The next day, have them there a little bit longer, and by the end of the week, they should be there for the whole workday. This helps both the nanny and the newborn get into the swing of the schedule and become more and more comfortable with each other. The transition week should be considered nanny’s first week of work and it is important to pay them their full-time wages, even if you don’t use all of the regularly scheduled hours.
#3: Give yourself grace.
Being a working parent takes a lot of energy – emotional, mental, and physical. When you head back to work, recognize that it will take a little bit of time to adjust. Listen to your body when you’re tired and rest when you can. If you feel emotional about being away from your child, talk about your feelings. If you feel irritable, take time to do something that recharges you and resets your mood. Give yourself – and your baby – grace during this new adjustment period. It might take a bit of time and a little bit of flexibility throughout the process, but together, you and your nanny will establish a new routine that works for everyone. Ready to hire your new professional nanny or family assistant in Sonoma County, San Francisco, East Bay, or Marin? Contact us today to start the search. We look forward to helping you find the perfect person to join your family team.
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