Your nanny is an important part of your family. They spend a lot of time and hard work doing things for the rest of you, so it’s important that they know how much they are appreciated. Make sure you thank your nanny by showing them how much they mean to you – you can do this by giving them anything from small gestures to presents.
Take a look at our top 15 creative ways to let your nanny know you care:
Surprises
- Have the children surprise a live-in nanny with breakfast in bed, or have breakfast waiting for a live-out nanny when they arrive.
- Treat your nanny to a special meal, cooked by you and your children, or invite them out to a family meal somewhere
- If you also have a regular housekeeper, give them some extra money to also clean your nanny’s home.
- Give them an unexpected bonus — it doesn’t have to be a lot, but something a little extra in their pocket goes a long way
- Throw a party in their honour to celebrate their birthday or the anniversary of when she started working with your family. Invite them friends and family or just have it be an intimate affair with just your family.
- As the children to reverse the roles for a day or a few hours. Have them attend to their nanny’s every need and pamper them.
Gifts
- Homemade Gifts by you and your children are guaranteed to touch your nanny’s heart. For instance a patchwork quilt, with the different patches showing different memories you’ve shared; a beaded necklace with their favourite colours and materials; a personalised photo frame with a picture of them and your children; a recipe book of your favourite family recipes or a Photobox photo book of memories. There are so many ideas! Pinterest is an excellent resource if you need some more inspiration.
- Creative gifts from your children which tell their nanny why/how much they love them are also very precious. They could perform a song, write a poem, write a list of things from each letter of the alphabet or draw a picture of them.
- Gift certificates to redeem on their own time are a great way for you to show your nanny that you pay attention to their interests. This could be things like a spa day, spa treatments or tickets to go and see their favourite band, artist or sports team. Alternatively, you could give them a homemade book of coupons for them to redeem throughout the year (including things like a glass of wine as soon as they’re off duty or bath time without a fight).
- Normal gifts of course are always effective ways to thank your nanny. You could bring home a nice bottle of wine, a bouquet of their favourite flowers or some chocolates. You could buy them a new bag to help them carry around all those things they need to care for your children. In the winter months, a warm pair of slippers and a bottle of moisturiser is also a lovely idea.
- If they run often, or head to the gym regularly, thank your nanny by making them a special sports playlist.
Notes
- Create a thank you message using websites such as Thankly.com, then send it to your nanny and post it on social media.
- Type up a list of all the reasons you and your children appreciate them — think of as many as you can — then print it out on nice paper and present it to them.
- Have the children write and decorate several thank you notes and place them strategically throughout the house in places where they are likely to discover them. You could leave them their favourite chocolates too! To make it more exciting, your children could make it into a scavenger hunt, leaving their nanny clues.
Something for your Nanny’s personal development
- Encourage them to pursue their education by paying for nanny classes and certifications.
- If your nanny has expressed an interest in a specific skill that you possess – such as knitting or speaking – , take the time to teach them.
Time off
- Let a live-in nanny sleep in on a day when you can go into work late.
- Identify the daily chore you know they hate the most, and tell them to not worry about it for a few days.
- Give them an extra paid day or afternoon off where they can catch up on errands.
Talk to them!
- Tell them that you really value your relationship and talk about ways it can be improved.
- Say thank you. A simple thank you sometimes speaks volumes and lets them know just how much they’re appreciated.