Tag Archives: nanny

Where’ve You Been?

I’ve been neglecting to write for a few weeks now. What have I been up to? Well, aside from spending a lot of time getting un-sick (yuck) and with my kiddos at work (so cute) I’ve been working on the house. Here are a few new skills I’ve learned.

1) Replacing window screens. When I expressed amazement that my husband could do it, he showed me how. Now I’ve volunteered to do the rest of the screens in the house, starting with the back screen door, which has been attacked by vines.

2) Mudding drywall. Filling in holes, covering low spots, etc before we paint.

3) Using a paint sprayer. I’m pretty handy with a brush and roller, but the spraying bit was new to me. We’re rolling colors, but it’s very handy for white ceilings and hard-to-reach areas  like under the water heater in the garage.

4) Cutting and installing carpet. Okay, so we didn’t completely install it with tacks on the side, but throw-rug-style is just fine for the master bedroom for now.

5) Scraping popcorn ceilings down. It’s easy! Just wet it down and scrape. It flops right off and you sweep the gunk off the floor.

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Oh, and I’m excellent at sorting through items. Initially, they’re in three categories: save, sell, and donate. Goodwill’s having a good donation year in my town.

I have not been quilting, but am excited to do some paper-piecing with friends tomorrow. I’ll post s’more about that soon. Promise.

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Keep Calm and Don’t Die

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I was feeling run down today. Just tired and discouraged in general. My new years resolutions for 2013 were to notice the goodness around and within me and to be my own advocate. So I decided to focus on those things once I got home from work. 

Goodness around me – my husband made me dinner, his shepherd’s pie recipe and pumpkin pie, too! He borrowed a toaster oven and we shared some of the pumpkin pie with friends here at the motel. 

Goodness within me – I’m good at my job and can stay calm under pressure. I understand the reasoning behind kids acting out and don’t take it personally. I appreciate positive things and can learn from the negatives. 

Be my own advocate – I’m grouchy when I’m tired, so a nap was in good order. Tomorrow’s Friday and I plan to get in some sewing time. 

And hey, if all else fails, remember this piece of advice that the three-year-old gave his screaming baby brother today: “Keep calm and don’t die.” Later, he gave the same advice to a toy car that flipped over.

Settle Down Now

As my sister gets the hang of being a new mom, I’m finally starting to put down roots in my new city. Motel living isn’t homey and we’re pretty sure we won’t rent in this area, so the neighborhood isn’t even mine. But on the fourth day of my nanny job, things are starting to feel…. right. This is my job. These are the children I get to spend my time with. We have a rhythm now. That kind of a feeling is infectious. On the way home today I signed up for a library card. At MY library. Which one? The one right near work, so it’s convenient no matter where end up living.

I promised photos of my current projects, and those are coming. I’m adding the finishing touches to “On a Good Day” so it’s inside out and upside down right now, which isn’t very photogenic. Expect a good picture on that one soon. I’ll leave you with a picture of baby Mary and her mama for now.

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Don’t Yank My Hair!

My haircut this week was just in time for another transition: a new job! I’m excited to get back into childcare as a nanny for a local family with two young children. As it turns out, one is an infant, and will soon be in the grabby phase. You know, when anything within reach goes directly in the baby’s mouth? My long hair used to get wrapped around tiny fingers and yanked right off my head in clumps. OUCH! So, my stylish new look also comes with the bonus that there’s less to pull.

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My hair was pretty long before we started.

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Okay, so I blinked. But you can still see how happy I am as the stylist shows me different ways to work my new look.

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It’s layered in the back as well as the front.newdo4

I’m looking forward to playing with my new ‘do. Mom even bought me some mousse, a curling iron, and something called pomade. She has three boys, one of whom I married, so it’s fun when we do girly things together.

My next post will include updates on my handwork projects. Stay tuned!