At the Elite Nanny Company we’re always planning ahead – one of our busiest times of year is Christmas … and today we’re helping our clients to ensure their childcare arrangements are all in perfect order.
Nannies and Christmas
So, it’s a fact that many nannies will want to take some of their annual leave over Christmas. Understanding this helps families find solutions that make everybody’s festive season super. There are two solutions that help in this scenario:
- Book a temporary nanny. Temporary nannies offer flexible childcare options for Christmas and New Year. Making an early reservation for a temporary nanny to cover annual leave will ensure you have a stress free Christmas.
- Consider a nanny share. We’ve also had great results from nanny shares. Which is where you and a friend of family member agree to share a nanny, or two nannies! This works brilliantly if you go and stay with relatives over Christmas and you can give one nanny time off, while the other covers her duties. When the first nanny comes back from leave – the second can take a quality break too!
Seasonal tasks
Planning ahead for regular Christmas tasks is a huge stress reliever. For example, once you’ve organised your Christmas childcare cover as described above. Consider taking the following steps to simplify your festive timetable.
Assign tasks in advance. For example shopping for presents is best done on weekdays so scheduling a half-day of shopping in the middle of a November week can save you hours of queuing in December.
Automate Christmas processes. Christmas card lists can be a chore. Look our for apps that can simplify everything, such as Touchtone and PostSnap which allow you to send personalised greetings cards from your phone.
Plan your social life. Company parties and family events are often scheduled well in advance. While it may already be a little late for 2016, getting those dates into the family diary as early as possible will allow you to ensure childcare cover. Our savvy mums ask that question of HR departments or family members in September, so they can organise a temporary nanny if necessary.
Christmas treats
There’s no doubt that fantastic food is part of Christmas but it’s all too easy for that to become a problem. If your little ones are starting to obsess over chocolate Advent calendars or family sized tins of sweets. We have a couple of great alternatives to help them get festive but not overfed!
Personalised call from Santa
We like this app that lets you personalise a call from Santa to your child on a nominated mobile phone. Once the call has been received, you can keep your child occupied by writing a thank you card for the call. Ringing relatives to tell them Father Christmas got in touch and even drawing a picture of Santa Claus based on how he sounded on the phone.
Personalised Father Christmas video
We have two options for the bespoke video that will have your child hopping with excitement. The Video Greetings option or the Portable North Pole one. We’ve had fantastic results with both.
Santa Tracker
One of the oldest, and finest, expectation builders in the business is the NORAD Santa Tracker. This is a free service that has been run for over six decades by the North American Aerospace Defence Command. Brilliant fun from an organisation that, just once a year, makes children’s dreams come true. Live from December 1st, this is one treat you’ll enjoy as much as they do!