It is NOTHING like that.
I am fortunate enough to spend my mornings with two of the most amazing little girls on the planet. In all fairness, most days are without a problem. The girls are old enough to know what they need to do, how they need to dress, etc. However, the job in itself is not a picnic, and here is why.
1) Being a nanny is not being a co-parent. While sometimes that fact is AWESOME (you get to be their friend, not the enforcer) other times it is really difficult. A few weeks ago, the girls I nanny had head lice. I did everything I could to get the house cleared of the bugs, to shampoo their hair, to keep them from giving it to anyone else, etc. However, I felt as if I stepped over a line when I was instructing the parents on how best to remove them, on what the kids should be doing that weekend, and on how to prevent future outbreaks. The girls went on to play with their friends (STILL INFECTED!) and the girls went to school the following school-day. While I worried that they were spreading the lice further, and it upset me that I couldn’t do more, the fact was that my job was done. It is not my decision to keep them home and away from uninfected friends, that decision was left up to the parents. Luckily, none of the girls’ friends got lice, so it ended up okay, but it had my stomach in knots for days!
2) Awkward zone. You aren’t the kid’s friend, but you aren’t exactly old enough to be their parent’s age. So when they invite you to their 11th birthday party, do you sit at the kids table… or…?
3) Zero information given. Sometimes in this era of technology, we forget to use it. Many times directions to places we need to go come from the brain of the 11 year old. Luckily for me, she is incredibly bright (like a fifth grade Rand McNally!) but still! Also, her sense of timing is constantly changing as she grows up. That is to be expected, however, “We have to be there in five minutes!” is a constantly changing an evolving phrase meaning anywhere from “five minutes” on a clock, to “five minutes after I take a shower and feed the dog and maybe put on a coat of nail polish.”
4) You grow to love them as if they are your own. Which seems like a good thing, until they grow up and are embarrassed by their babysitter picking them up from school, or when they start to drive on their own and don’t need you, or even when they have to explain who you are in relationship to them when you see them around town with their friends.
I couldn’t imagine a morning without my little girls. They are so fun and so special to me. But daily, the job isn’t the easiest thing in the world. So men, back off. Nannies work harder than you could possibly imagine all while dealing with the baggage that comes with it.