Juan Jiang (姜娟)

She talked herself up, claiming she was very good with children and an excellent cook, and that she only took long-term jobs. I thought she must be very capable, but the reality was extremely disappointing. She failed at every one of the three most basic aspects of childcare: 1. Feeding: Even after I taught her the “tips and tricks,” every morning one-third to one-half of the milk was still left, and my husband or I had to finish feeding it. She put a nipple on the milk-storage bottle to feed the baby, making it impossible to release air; even after being taught at least three times, she still could not figure out how many bags of breast milk needed to be thawed each day or how to thaw them. 2. Solid food: She gave me the impression that she had never made it before. She asked me what to make for every meal. After discovering that my daughter liked tomatoes and shrimp, she made that same dish for every meal. One morning, almost 9:00, I asked what my daughter had eaten for breakfast, and she said leftover food from the night before! (Yet her requirement for us was that she needed eggs, milk, and bread in the morning to ensure nutrition and calcium intake.) 3. Settling her for daytime naps: She could not soothe my daughter. My daughter is an angel baby who never cries when sleeping, but this nanny kept making her cry so hard she squealed like a pig, leaving me unable to work peacefully during the day. Also, I was looking for a live-in nanny who could balance childcare and simple household chores and manage her time reasonably. But once she held the child, she could not do anything else, claiming that her childcare philosophy was to ensure the child’s safety. Did I hire a mother-in-law instead? :) Other small things included not knowing how to use the dryer and leaving undried clothes piled in a basket, so after working late I discovered I still had to hang them up myself in the middle of the night; not closing the door behind her when she came into my room while I was sleeping to take my daughter out; when we were out all day and told her to help wash clothes and organize the rooms, we came home to find the play area still a mess and clothes still in the dryer the next day; after I tidied the sofa and folded my daughter’s clothes in the middle of the night, I woke up the next morning to find the sofa cluttered again with things tossed all over it; and so on. If all of those are small matters, the most intolerable part was that, despite her limited ability, she was inexplicably self-confident and argued with me forcefully. Whenever I expressed dissatisfaction, she had all kinds of excuses and rebuttals, raising her voice and going on and on. I have only one thing to say: parenting philosophy and ability are two different things; there is no need to argue. After one week, my husband and I decided to replace her. We even gave her a week to find another job to save her face, but she taught me a lesson instead: thank you, please immediately pack your things and leave. When she left, she said sorry, that she was a bit stubborn. Being stubborn means she is not suited to this line of work. Moms in the group, keep your eyes open. Many problems cannot be discovered in an interview. If you find that a nanny lacks ability and professionalism, replace her immediately and decisively. Do not put up with it and pay money only to make yourself upset.