The Benefits of Hiring a Before School Nanny or Babysitter

August 31, 2016

There’s one daily routine you may not have considered being a source of stress when you signed up for this wonderful thing called parenthood: the morning before-school rush.

If you have to get to your office after dropping the kids off at school, that chunk of time is even more stressful. It means waking up at least half an hour before your children, putting on your first pot of coffee and gathering your wits before the rest of the household.

Then there’s the challenge of getting them to eat a healthy breakfast, followed by the rush to get everyone dressed and to the bus stop or a long stressful commute in traffic — which some parents admit leads to eventually speeding to get to school and then work on time.

How to Cope with Early Morning Stress?

Imagine if there were a simpler way to go about all this? Imagine if you could enjoy your nights a little longer, knowing you wouldn’t have to wake up so early the next day, five days in a row?

If you could focus on being a better parent — rested, less stressed, more present for your kids and available to chat with them on a regular basis, wouldn’t you?

Often, it’s the stress of the daily things that lead to losing our temper and taking it out on the kids. This is where investing in yourself, your time and your family means greater rewards of happiness and joy.

The solution is hiring help specifically for school prep. You may not have considered it, but studies show that the first few hours in the morning are some of the most stressful.

If you are struggling with back-to-school blues, find a nanny who can be your second pair of hands for the morning rush. You can create a part-time agreement, enlisting someone to help you a couple of hours each day. Consider which time of the day you need the most assistance and where it would make more of a difference to get the help you need.

How a Nanny Can Help You in the Most Important Hours

Look for a nanny who is willing to come to your house early to help you get a head start with the kids. She can be there before they wake up to prepare breakfast and make sure school bags and shoes are all prepped and ready to go.

Here’s a checklist of some useful things your nanny can help with at the beginning of every school day:

Making sure everyone has brushed their teeth and their hair (and handling hair braiding and shoe tying for the youngest ones).
Cleaning up dishes from the previous evening’s dinner.
Setting the table and ensuring a healthy breakfast is prepared for each child.
Preparing and packing great-tasting and nutritious school lunches.
Double-checking for notes from your child’s teacher that may have been left in a backpack and helping you mark important items on your calendar.
Tossing a load of laundry in the washing machine.
Putting dinner in the slow cooker so that your evening hours are easier.
Dropping the kids off at school so that you can make it to your work appointments and important meetings on time and without stress.

Hiring Help in Order to Be a More Present Parent

A stressed parent cannot be a patient one.

If one of your children is in middle school or is a teenager, the stresses you face daily may be even greater.

You may need more time in the mornings to show them that you care what they are going through — listening to them tell you about a problem at school or with friends, for example.

Hiring a nanny to look after seeming menial tasks such as meal prep and laundry at this time of the day means your mind and body are free to focus on what really matters: your children.

Hiring the help doesn’t necessarily mean you’re free to sleep in every day or disappear from the house without communicating lovingly with your children. But it can mean the difference between you showing up for life frazzled or as a confident, in control and highly functional human being.

Maintaining an Ideal Work/Family Flow

At some point or another, we all think that we still haven’t attained the perfect balance between work and family life.

Studies show that about 50 percent of all working parents are stressed — and it’s no wonder. Everyone is trying to do everything right for everybody, all at the same time.

But what if you didn’t have to strive for a perfect balance?

What if you could just let your days flow? What if you could live inspired to get up the next morning?

Allowing someone like a trusted nanny or babysitter to help with the morning routine serves the purpose of creating greater peace in your family unit. She can be the one to fill in the gaps where you may feel you are falling behind.

And then, you’re free to focus more of your energy and love on being a better parent.

Imagine the difference!

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