Amy Schumer posted this photo to Instagram on Tuesday. She tagged both a skincare expert and La Mer in the post, so I assume she’d either been given the masks or she wanted to help a lady on her style team out. But instead of just a normal spon con, Amy took the opportunity to make it about the lady to the left of her in the photo, her nanny. The caption for the post read:
This is our nanny who makes it possible for me to work and know that our baby is happy and healthy. I love her very much and we also both want to have nice skin. 😍 @lamer @georgialouisesk
Thanking those folks who work in your household is trend I can get on board with. Chrissy Teigen recently thanked her nanny and chef as well. The people who help run a home absolutely deserve credit. And I prefer a celebrity who doesn’t pass it off as they do it all. Even if someone brings their kid on set, someone has to watch the child when they are filming. (I’d like a couple of celebrity dads to thank the nanny too. Maybe it would further the notion that, you know, both parents are responsible for child-rearing.)
I kind of like how Amy did it, too. She didn’t name the woman and her face is obscured by the mask, so she’s not going to be chased down through recognition. Amy’s been open about returning to work after her baby, Gene, was born. She was out doing stand-up just two weeks postpartum and started back full-time on her Hulu show last August. In October, Amy posted a poignant note about how much it meant to her to be a mom and working:
5 months today and like all moms I love him so much it hurts. Im feeling strong and good and like I’m still a human being with interests and ambitions and goals I’m excited to reach. It’s felt good to be back at work. I was so worried about it and was afraid to go back after he was 3 months old. A couple days I’ve cried from missing him. But it’s mostly good to be back and the breaks energize me to be a better mom and appreciate our time even more. I have it a lot easier than many people but I wanted to share my experience. 🥰 what was your going back to work experience?
And, of course, Amy can have such a positive experience returning to work because she has a capable and loving nanny at home with Gene. I’m sure Amy tells her nanny, and probably all her staff, how grateful she is all the time. But publicly acknowledging not only reinforces it, it further destigmatizes having a nanny. They aren’t a luxury item for the rich, they serve a vital role in the life of a child and deserve to be recognized as such. So good for Amy.
In other news, how cute is this little guy?
Photo credit: Getty Images and Instagram
Look up “Tina and Amy’s Dope Squad” on Youtube (which, funnily enough, includes Amy Schumer), it’s a great SNL skit about this exact point with their actual nannies and gynecologist in it. And bonus points for some T. Swift shade, ha.
I mean having a full time nanny is a luxury for the wealthy. I know many moms who struggle to find and afford care for their children because they have to return to work. This is why so many grandparents wind up stepping in as full time caretakers. I have two young children and I am privileged enough to be able to stay at home. This is a choice not everyone has. I don’t think there is anything wrong with having a nanny, but it is a luxury.
+1
I agree with what you are saying
but I do think the point being made was that a nanny isn’t a luxury “item”
a nanny is an important job, a valuable person
“they serve a vital role in the life of a child and deserve to be recognized as such”
Also, tiny point but re. a nanny only being for the wealthy – I don’t know where you are but where I’m from if you have more than 1 pre-school age child and you need childcare then a nanny is often cheaper than double fees at daycare/nursery. It’s all relative, of course.
Was going to say this too. But maybe in certain areas daycare is much cheaper than an hourly wage for a private caregiver. Certainly not in NYC!
It’s also more flexible and therefore cheaper. My sister and I had a nanny from when I was about 9 until maybe 12 (my sister being 3 years younger). My mom worked 3 days a week in the office and 2 from home, but sometimes her schedule varied a bit and they had some kind of arrangement whereas as long as the hours were consistent on a monthly basis and proper notice was given, the woman was OK with occasionally working more days, less days, different days, etc. An afterschool program would probably have required my parents to enroll us full-time if they ever expected to have weeks where we needed to be there every day.
We all know that not everyone can afford a nanny. She isn’t saying “everyone should have a nanny!” She’s saying that she’s been able to go back to work because she does. I appreciate that she’s pointing out and thanking someone whose labor is often overlooked, and also being transparent that she is not doing everything herself and thereby putting unrealistic expectations on us plebs.
She’s so much more tolerable nowadays. I won’t go so far as to say I like her, but I don’t skip posts about her anymore.
Adorable baby, and I like her acknowledging and caring about the nanny.
Excellent point about the dads too. I can’t think of a single example who has thanked the nanny (and not in a Ben Affleck way).
@Lucy
I agree with all your points. I really appreciate the celebrities that acknowledge and show appreciation for their nannies.
(Also, LMAO at the “and not in a Ben Affleck kind of way” haha!)
I love my nanny too–she makes it possible for me to work, but there’s not a day that I don’t feel guilty that she is in a foreign country far away from her own two sons, so that she can look after mine. I pay her well etc., so that she can give her own kids a better life. But still, it’s messed up that in order for highly-educated upper middle class women like myself to realize our potential, some poor children never get to see their moms. And no, my parents don’t live anywhere nearby, so that’s not an option. I also stayed at home for a bit, but then I felt terribly guilty and worthless about not using my professional degree. I really hate this iteration of capitalism.
I think this all the time !!! I have so much white guilt :(. Even though my dad was an immigrant and I am not technically white that is what I call it….maybe it is money guilt….my dad came to this country and worked hard and did really well and I reap the benefit of that. And some other immigrants come here and dont do as well. My dad came with nothing. But he had brains and charisma. Not everyone has the intellectual and/or social skill set to make it. Society boggles my mind on a daily and hourly basis !!!
Minal and Thinking – Just wanted to say…I’m a woman of color and I really appreciate both of your thoughtful, nuanced posts. I understand why you feel guilty but I hope you don’t feel too bad; you both are clearly smart and sensitive and “get” it. *heart emoji* 🙂
I have two kids in daycare three days a week, and the cost per month is $500 more than my mortgage payment. Childcare is ridiculously expensive no matter what route you take, including the emotional and physical toll on grandparents who have the ability and are generous enough to take on the role themselves. I wouldn’t call a nanny a luxury item, but a necessity for a celebrity parent that wants/needs to work.
I can totally relate…one kid in daycare, $300 more than my mortgage. The US is so behind many other Western nations in this area. I’m sad that our politicians don’t even talk much about universal child care, but I’m not surprised. I hope this changes for our future generations at least.
Gene. Is. Too. Cute. thank goodness I got an iud bc the baby fever is real lately.
I follow Amy on Instagram and she announced she is a week into IVF!!! Hopefully Gene will soon have a sibling 🙂