the beginning

I started this blog when I got spontaneously fired from my last job. I liked having an outlet to vent, without worries of being discovered. I did disguise facts, just in case any future bosses were to discover it. And then when I worked for the V family for my few-days-from-hell, I lost all energy to write. The experience was really quite upsetting.

About a month after that debacle, I thought I would finally start writing again. Then, on a whim, I answered an ad for a part-time position. Mostly I was just trying to fulfill my weekly application quota for unemployment. But there was something in this woman's ad that touched me. I answered it, even though I knew I couldn't really afford to work part-time.

The mom sounded really nice in her emails and on the phone, and the interview went really well. She offered me the job on the spot. I accepted, but the entire drive home I was freaking out. How could I accept a part-time job? What was I thinking? The interview was Friday. I spent all weekend stressing about it. I was hesitant to tell my husband that I had taken the job. After all, I had just told him I only applied in order to meet that quota. I didn't know what was going to happen. I feared I had made a HUGE mistake.

Accepting that job was the best thing that's ever happened to me. Okay, I could argue the point for several things throughout my life, but professionally, taking this job was a fantastic choice. By changing my income so drastically, I forced us to stick to a strict budget. Although I make about half of what I used to, this year has been tremendous for us. We have an actual savings account with real money in it, we have paid down a whole lot of debt, and we live more simply and happily than we ever have before.

Best of all, I'm working for a family that I love. The child is wonderful. The parents are amazing. They go above and beyond anything I've ever seen. They really do value me, and it's an awesome feeling. As a nanny, it's not that common to find these things. I'm not expected to do any housework or errands or anything except play with, and take care of, Thomas. Because of this, I end up doing a lot of little things around the house because I want to. I don't mind unloading the dishwasher or vacuuming the crumbs off the kitchen floor from time to time, because I know that they don't expect it of me. When I had some car trouble and asked for a recommendation for a mechanic? Daddy had it completely fixed for me by the end of the day, and wouldn't even hear of letting me pay him back for it. I went to work with a dead alternator and a lot of worries. I left work with a fixed car and a heart full of joy.