Jeebus, No One Tell My Nanny!

The Best Nanny Money Can Buy - a recent article from the NY Times Magazine digs into the world of $200,000 (USD) nannies. "A nanny can increase her marketability if she can help manage an art collection, draft correspondence, wash and fold 50 linens a day and help set up philanthropic events. Bonus points if she can do it all in Mandarin."

Think Spring Forward Sucked Before?

Trapped.

I've been sleep deprived for 5 years now. No surprise to anyone, not even me. I expected to be tired when I had a baby, all the websites tell you so. What I didn't expect was to feel relieved, even refreshed, when I got to sleep in until 7am.

All that sleep goes out the window with daylight savings time change. This whole week has been a disaster of slept-through alarms, tired kids and missed appointments.

I used to love the extra daylight hours signaled by "Spring Forward."

The only person who seems to have it under control is Dear A. Not only is she appearing 5 minutes earlier than usual, she's also the only one that doesn't run around like a chicken with its head cut off as the clock ticks down to departure time.

I expected a lot of things when I had kids. I didn't expect to start hating Spring Forward.

PS - Yes, that's me, trapped under a sleeping baby. I know I'm not the only one who's resigned themselves to an awkward sleep position just to get 5 more minutes. There's a lot of truth to this cartoon: Crappy Pictures: Sleeping or Not Sleeping

"Bring A Pink/Red Healthy Snack"

Honestly, that's what the sign-up sheet outside K's class says for Valentine's Day. So... here's what I came up with Mini Quesadilla Hearts.



Feel free to copy me tonight when you realize you haven't got your kids party snack sorted out. It took me about 30 minutes to pull this together. You could probably even have your kid help. Mine didn't. He was napping.

Mini Quesadilla Hearts

• Tomato Tortillas (I bought 2 different kinds of red ones)
• Cheese
• Heart-shaped cookie cutters

Put the cheese between 2 tortillas, place in a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes. When the cheese is melted, use the cookie cutter to cut heart shapes.

Nope, not rocket science, but I never claimed it was!

Work vs Children Part 2: I Chose My Kids

So, I was laid off yesterday. 

Not relevant, this pic just makes me smile

Its fine. I knew, when I couldn't move into a full-time position with terms & conditions that wouldn't allow me to deal with school pick up and drop off, that they might lay me off. While it always stings a little bit to hear "your services are no longer required," I know its the right thing.

Life is change - the company I spent 7 years with is changing, my kids' needs are changing, and, with her permits, Dear A's needs are going to change too. So, I'm embracing the change and looking forward to the next phase of my working mom life - something that will allow me to still contribute to the economy, my family, help our nanny, and still raise good kids. Tomorrow. Today, I'm giving myself a break to grieve and absorb.

Work vs. Children and the Childcare Dilemma

If only he could drive himself, right?

There's a Globe and Mail article today about daycares offering night care. Between it, and our current struggles, I'm very interested in how child care/ work hours will shift as economic factors force more parents to work, technology allows more flexible ways to work, and baby boomers retire.

K's getting older and goes more regularly to school (which at this point means an awkward 2 hours, midday) we're struggling with how to manage drop-offs and pick-ups now that I'm needing to work more hours. Dear A doesn't drive and K's current school is 1 hr away by transit (sidebar: this in itself is ridiculous, since its only 8 mins away by car) so without flexible work schedules, we're looking at 2 kids on the bus for about 2 hours each day. Plus while K's in school Dear A and the baby would what? hang out at a coffee shop? All this with a nanny - I can't imagine the struggles for shift workers.

I think we need not only a solution, but a shift in the way we think about the problem.

Bye Bye Baby

My baby girl's first word was "Bye!" complete with pudgy little waving hand. Yup, a gut-wrenching, heart-ripping, "Bye!"

My little one, my last baby, has grown up with such a stream of comings and goings that the first thing she has learned is to say goodbye. She says is pleasantly, with a smile and sweet face. She seems ok with it, knowing already, that we eventually come back.

Its good, I guess, that she's ok with us leaving.

What Do You Get the Person Who Has Your Everything?

Hands up if you're done your Christmas shopping, stuck to your budget and have everything organized? (If you put your hand up it'll just make it easier for me to find and slap you!) Kidding!! But, it is that time of year, when holiday stress drives me to eat and drink. Lucky for me the food and drink this time of year is extra healthy and low-calorie....oh wait.

In particular, being on a reduced mat leave salary had made the looming Christmas and Nanny Bonus stressful, until I figured out a present that would work for both us and Dear A.

I know quite a few parents wrestle with the what/how much nanny Christmas present. In previous years I've looked for a gift that is nice, meets a need and then given a cash bonus as well. This year I was out of ideas on the jewellery/watch/luggage option that fit our budget and really, wanted to look at a non-thing present.

I asked Dear A about her plans for the holidays in passing and ended up with the perfect idea. It turned out she wasn't going to visit her friends due to her ride/co-travellers not having time off. So there was my idea: extra days off and a ticket to see her friends. It was a perfect solution - out of pocket it was less for us, and a more meaningful gift.

What are you getting your nanny? (And, what are you getting your sister in law? I'm out of ideas... thanks.)

PS - Just FYI, I did ask Dear A before purchasing her ticket. Wasn't going to have this #FAIL happen again!