Spooky Tales from the Nanny World
Everyone loves a good ghost story, right? After so many years in this industry, I have encountered some horror stories that I wish I could forget! These may not be your typical zombie, monster, chainsaw stories—but they sure are campfire worthy! I have found that some people portray themselves as a certain character, whilst hiding a monster beneath their mask! So picture the flashlight shining up on my face as I share some of these stories, in the spirit of Halloween!
The Fun-Loving Stay-at-Home-Mom
We once worked with a client who went from queen to witch in the blink of an eye! When our relationship began, the Queen of Hearts was an optimistic, cheerful mother of three, with a particular love for life. We placed wonderful Nanny Alice with her, whom she and her family adored and always greeted with a hug and a smile!
After two years of nanny bliss, Alice informed her she was planning to relocate out of state and provided a month’s notice. Queen dropped the tea and cookies and flipped out! She immediately began yelling and cursing at Alice. In their two years together, Alice had never seen her act this way. Unfortunately, as most horror stories go, this one ended poorly—Queen banished Alice from her home, and would not even allow her to say goodbye to the children. We could almost hear Queen demanding, “Off with her head!”
The Savior, Mother Teresa
Nanny Norman Bates’ story sends chills down my spine to this day! This ghost story dates back to long before Stanford Park Nannies’ time. Bates was a retired nurse with recent nanny experience. She was known for her heroic efforts when she saved several patients from a fire that was raging through their care facility. Bates was placed with a mother who was pregnant and on bed rest. In her haste, she offered to have Bates start working while she finished checking Bates’ references.
Bates began complaining about trivial aspects of the job, such as a minor ant problem the busy family was experiencing, and she quit without notice by the end of the first week. The creepiest part of the story is the way the mother found out about the nanny’s voluntary termination. She stepped into the shower and noticed that Bates had hung a handwritten note of resignation on the shower wall, with DEAD ANTS taped to the note! Sounds a little “Psycho,” doesn’t it?
The Grandmotherly Preschool Teacher
This story is still a shock to me! Nanny Cruella De Vil came to our agency with nearly a decade of preschool experience—most of it at a church—along with babysitting experience with some of her students. I interviewed her, and felt her warmth and loving character with every word she spoke.
Later that day, we received an anonymous call from a former coworker of hers. She insisted on speaking with me, and nervously refused to provide her name. She let me know that Cruella was taking her “old fashioned” methods of discipline too far. Her chilling words insisted that, for the sake of these children, we do NOT place her alone in a family’s home. Her shaky words were enough to haunt me, as the caller confessed to witnessing Cruella losing her patience, yelling, inappropriately scolding, and physically abusing children in her classroom. If she doesn’t scare you, no evil thing will!
So have fun dressing up and stepping out of your skin… just beware of the evil that could lie within! Muahaha!
Trick or treat!
