The people who take care of, and in many cases, have a special relationship with your children and your family should be on your list; this is a chance to show them just how much you appreciate the care they give your children and how important their work and their presence are.
We have compiled some advices and suggestions about the presents to give
Gifts Ideas
Gift cards are a good alternative if you are not comfortable with cash and there are lots of options depending on your nanny’s needs:
- Same as cash cards - Visa, MasterCard, American Express, PayPal
- Ecommerce sites - Apple/iTunes and Amazon
- Stores chains – The Bay, Sears, Winners, Wal-Mart
- Gift cards from your nanny’s favorite stores and restaurants
- Gift cards from grocery stores
The key is to be as versatile as possible so if you’re unsure, a mall gift certificate is often better than a gift card to a specific store.
Bonuses
Christmas bonuses are usually for nannies who live in your home and/or work full time, whilst occasional nannies and babysitters usually get a gift or smaller bonuses. The rules of thumb are:
- 1 weeks pay for 1 year with your family
- 2 weeks pay for 2 years with your family
- 3 weeks pay for 3 or more years with your family
- Prorate for less than a year
- 1 day if occasional days
Creative Gift Giving
If you are worried about money this season, there are some creative gifts that you can give your nanny:
- Air miles to fly your nanny home to see her family
- Previous generation computers (with prepaid internet and Skype set up)
- Refurbished iPhone and iPad
- Extra paid vacation / time off if your schedule is flexible enough to allow it.
- Watch sites like Groupon for deals on everything under the sun.
Personal gifts from parents and the kids
It is always nice to give a small personal gift if you are giving cash as a main gift like a video or collage of pictures throughout the year of the nanny and the kids together can be much appreciated. Extra copies for the nanny to send home are also a nice touch.
But what makes a truly special gift is one given by the children themselves. It can be a small gift chosen and wrapped by your child. Homemade gifts – be it cookies and cakes, crafts and cards.
Happy Holidays!
