I've got tons of hours available to clean and organize my house! Yay! I've done so much stuff in the past few days that it's getting pretty unrecognizable around here. I get startled every time I walk into the living room.
Oh wait...I would have been off work this week anyway and would have had the same amount of time to clean as I do now...and a job to go back to on Tuesday. Hrm.
Sunday, December 31, 2006
Friday, December 29, 2006
it wouldn't work, part 2 - maybe it would
Last night Husband got a phone call from Mr. V.
Among other unrelated things, he said, "Tell your wife we were very impressed with her," and, "You are a very lucky man."
Husband couldn't stop talking about it. He said Mr. V put a lot of emphasis on very and repeated the statement numerous times. (Fun with italics, much?)
So last night I stayed up thinking about it, and why I thought it wouldn't work, and how it could possibly work. He'll have to work with me on the money aspect, but I think I can use math and logic to make him see why I deserve much more than he initially offered. I think we can come to a reasonable agreement.
Oh, except for the fact that he has a nanny right now and has not actually offered me a job yet. He doesn't think that the current nanny is the best fit for them. She also didn't show up for work that day and didn't call in until 4 pm. (?!?!?) He said at my interview that "the timing is almost perfect." That's okay, because I wouldn't want someone else to be rushed out like I was, and I don't think he's the type to do that. In fact, he was horrified when I explained how I was let go from my last job. So we'll see. I have been waiting 5 years to work for these people...what's a little while longer?
Obviously, I'm feeling much better than I was the other night, which is good. I hate feeling all down and blah. I'm trying to ban negativity from my life. Well, reduce it, at least. Baby steps.
Among other unrelated things, he said, "Tell your wife we were very impressed with her," and, "You are a very lucky man."
Husband couldn't stop talking about it. He said Mr. V put a lot of emphasis on very and repeated the statement numerous times. (Fun with italics, much?)
So last night I stayed up thinking about it, and why I thought it wouldn't work, and how it could possibly work. He'll have to work with me on the money aspect, but I think I can use math and logic to make him see why I deserve much more than he initially offered. I think we can come to a reasonable agreement.
Oh, except for the fact that he has a nanny right now and has not actually offered me a job yet. He doesn't think that the current nanny is the best fit for them. She also didn't show up for work that day and didn't call in until 4 pm. (?!?!?) He said at my interview that "the timing is almost perfect." That's okay, because I wouldn't want someone else to be rushed out like I was, and I don't think he's the type to do that. In fact, he was horrified when I explained how I was let go from my last job. So we'll see. I have been waiting 5 years to work for these people...what's a little while longer?
Obviously, I'm feeling much better than I was the other night, which is good. I hate feeling all down and blah. I'm trying to ban negativity from my life. Well, reduce it, at least. Baby steps.
Thursday, December 28, 2006
dreaming of my q kids
I had a dream last night that was all over the place. Before it ended with people trying to kill me, I was sitting on a bench somewhere. My youngest Q family boy, age 6, came up to me wearing a very puffy sweater and asked, "Why did you leave us?" Heart breaking, I said that his parents told me to leave. "Yeah, but why can't you just be our nanny anymore?" Oh, sob! My heart still hurts thinking about it, and it never even happened!
The night before that I dreamed that I was in the Q family kitchen. I saw a piece of paper where they had been evaluating all the new people they were interviewing. I saw one of the notes that said, "JJ really likes this one!" and I was so sad. That's all I remember of that dream. I did find it quite interesting that my dream used a fake name for this little boy, the same one from the other dream I just described. So I suppose now my old 6-year old has the pseudonym JJ Q. It'll do.
I'm going to have to call Mrs. Q after their vacation. I know I have to. I don't want to see the parents, but I have to see the kids again. I never got to say good-bye. They never got to say good-bye. How can you put a person in your kids' lives for two years and then pull them out without warning, without a chance to say good-bye? Those kids loved me, and I loved them. It's just not right.
The night before that I dreamed that I was in the Q family kitchen. I saw a piece of paper where they had been evaluating all the new people they were interviewing. I saw one of the notes that said, "JJ really likes this one!" and I was so sad. That's all I remember of that dream. I did find it quite interesting that my dream used a fake name for this little boy, the same one from the other dream I just described. So I suppose now my old 6-year old has the pseudonym JJ Q. It'll do.
I'm going to have to call Mrs. Q after their vacation. I know I have to. I don't want to see the parents, but I have to see the kids again. I never got to say good-bye. They never got to say good-bye. How can you put a person in your kids' lives for two years and then pull them out without warning, without a chance to say good-bye? Those kids loved me, and I loved them. It's just not right.
venting
You know what? Screw you, Mr. Q! On top of all the other reasons why what you did to me sucked, I need to throw out one more.
I'm tired of being a nanny.
You were supposed to be my last job. I wanted that job for one more year, and then I was going to go on to bigger and better things, though I have no earthly clue what those things were going to be. Now I'm sitting here searching for a job and I feel like crying. I don't want another nanny job. I don't want to start over with a new family, trying desperately not to fall in love with more kids that I can't keep. I want a break from kids before I get completely burned out. I want a chance to recover before I ever maybe have one of my own. I don't want my own child to feel like just another job to me - the last in a long succession of children that I've raised. We're not going to talk about having a kid for 7 more years, but I'd like to have at least a 5 year no-kid break before that time. Before it goes from being my full-time JOB to my full-time LIFE.
So what to do now? Being a nanny is what I'm good at. I know I'm good at it. One of the best. I have a distinct edge over other job candidates, which I don't have in any other industry. Plus, you get to be cooped up inside a giant house instead of cooped up inside a small office. I know I need to suck it up and do this one last time. I know I will end up doing it again. I'll be looking for high-end nanny jobs first thing tomorrow.
But right now, I just feel so damn tired...
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
it wouldn't work, part 1
I'm sorry, Mr. V. I've wanted to be your nanny for years before you ever had a kid, years before I met you. We met last night. I really like you and Mrs. V. The baby is beyond adorable. I would gladly babysit for you anytime, or even do the overnights when you're both working.
What I can't do is take a job knowing that I would have 8 weeks of unpaid time off every year. Two months a year of not working while you vacation. That's over $3000 a year gone. I just can't afford it. You're interested in traveling with the nanny at least some of those weeks? That's great! But then I think about living two months out of the year without my husband and I know I just can't. You're newlyweds too. I know you'd understand.
What I can't do is take a job knowing that I would have 8 weeks of unpaid time off every year. Two months a year of not working while you vacation. That's over $3000 a year gone. I just can't afford it. You're interested in traveling with the nanny at least some of those weeks? That's great! But then I think about living two months out of the year without my husband and I know I just can't. You're newlyweds too. I know you'd understand.
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
an interview already?
Always before, I've had to wait months between jobs before I ever found a good lead that lead to an actual interview.
I have never gone on a job interview and not gotten the job.
Five years ago, when my husband started his current job, one of his first clients was Mr. V, a very wealthy man. I wished he had a family so I could be his nanny. Some time after that, Mr. V got married. I wished they would have a baby so I could be their nanny. Years later, I lost my job a week before Christmas. My husband tells me he knows of a family that is looking for a nanny; a very well-off family that is on vacation until after Christmas. I thought nothing else of it. A few days later, I ask who was hiring. To my shock and surprise, it is Mr. and Mrs. V, who seem to have a bouncing baby boy now.
This afternoon, the day after Christmas, my husband called me. Mr. V would like me to come interview tonight at 7:30. Then he would like me to watch the baby a couple nights this week, paid, to see if we all get along. Call first to make sure Mrs. V is home from work. Oh, and bring my resume. Resume? Hmm...haven't needed one of those in a few years. A few stressful hours later, I have a pretty good-looking resume and am counting down the minutes to a job interview.
I have never gone on a job interview and not gotten the job. Never. Must stop worrying...
I have never gone on a job interview and not gotten the job.
Five years ago, when my husband started his current job, one of his first clients was Mr. V, a very wealthy man. I wished he had a family so I could be his nanny. Some time after that, Mr. V got married. I wished they would have a baby so I could be their nanny. Years later, I lost my job a week before Christmas. My husband tells me he knows of a family that is looking for a nanny; a very well-off family that is on vacation until after Christmas. I thought nothing else of it. A few days later, I ask who was hiring. To my shock and surprise, it is Mr. and Mrs. V, who seem to have a bouncing baby boy now.
This afternoon, the day after Christmas, my husband called me. Mr. V would like me to come interview tonight at 7:30. Then he would like me to watch the baby a couple nights this week, paid, to see if we all get along. Call first to make sure Mrs. V is home from work. Oh, and bring my resume. Resume? Hmm...haven't needed one of those in a few years. A few stressful hours later, I have a pretty good-looking resume and am counting down the minutes to a job interview.
I have never gone on a job interview and not gotten the job. Never. Must stop worrying...
nice to nanny
It's nice to be a nanny.
Be nice to your nanny.
Sometimes, it's not so nice to be a nanny.
Sometimes, people are not so nice to their nanny.
I've been a nanny for 6 years now. Before that, I babysat and worked as a summer nanny for many, many years. I'm 25 years old. I thought my most recent nanny job would be the last one before I moved on to something else. Of course, I also thought it would last well into next year or longer. I did not expect to be laid off one week before Christmas.
I was so excited about Christmas this year! It was going to be my 3rd Christmas with this family and I was finally in a place where I had enough money to buy the kids great gifts. My previous Christmas gifts from the family were very generous, with gift cards tucked in as well, so I was really looking forward to seeing what I got this year.
Maybe I should have suspected something was up when I was asked to wrap all the presents for other people who didn't matter much. Well, maybe not quite at that point. But when I received some of those exact same presents for my birthday, I definitely should have started suspecting, at the very least, that I didn't matter very much. But then, the next week, Mrs Q told me I was a lifesaver and asked what she would do without me. For the first time in years, I stopped worrying that I would lose my job out-of-the-blue (more on those stories later). I relaxed. Two weeks later, I was gone.
Be nice to your nanny.
Sometimes, it's not so nice to be a nanny.
Sometimes, people are not so nice to their nanny.
I've been a nanny for 6 years now. Before that, I babysat and worked as a summer nanny for many, many years. I'm 25 years old. I thought my most recent nanny job would be the last one before I moved on to something else. Of course, I also thought it would last well into next year or longer. I did not expect to be laid off one week before Christmas.
I was so excited about Christmas this year! It was going to be my 3rd Christmas with this family and I was finally in a place where I had enough money to buy the kids great gifts. My previous Christmas gifts from the family were very generous, with gift cards tucked in as well, so I was really looking forward to seeing what I got this year.
Maybe I should have suspected something was up when I was asked to wrap all the presents for other people who didn't matter much. Well, maybe not quite at that point. But when I received some of those exact same presents for my birthday, I definitely should have started suspecting, at the very least, that I didn't matter very much. But then, the next week, Mrs Q told me I was a lifesaver and asked what she would do without me. For the first time in years, I stopped worrying that I would lose my job out-of-the-blue (more on those stories later). I relaxed. Two weeks later, I was gone.
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