Nanny Nightmares – My Daddy as the Manny! (Chapter 7)

Babu to The Rescue

My mom actually had a life of her own – how could I have possibly forgotten – tunnel vision had clearly set in. Thank you mom for all of your help then and now. My dad to the rescue for a day! Have you heard that a male nanny is called a “Manny”?

Anyone who knows my father gets a good chuckle when they think of him as the “manny”. While I was growing up, my sisters and I rarely saw him during the week – he was a classic entrepreneur and workaholic. He never changed a diaper, unless you count wrapping a cloth diaper around my waist like a towel, and had never taken care of all three of his girls for an entire day. Times have changed, and at age 71, my dad was changing with them! He wouldn’t be able to check his email every ten minutes, or take every business call that came in. Instead he would have to focus on his granddaughters. And he did! I learned that my older daughter genuinely beat him in a game of Candyland. The day “Daddy” was the “Manny” I received photos of my girls sent from my dad’s cell phone. Not only were they all surviving, but also having fun. The best part about this day was that my dad started to form an independent bond with my girls. In looking back, I have learned that not only would it be great if my dad continued to spend some one-on-one time with his granddaughters, but that my husband and I should also make the same effort on a regular basis. Stay tuned for Chapter 8, the last and final chapter of Nanny Nightmares.