Well, friends, it seems that being a working mommy of 2 with a new job has proven to be busier than before, as my last post is from early February!!!
Since then, I have become fully immersed in my new job. In April, I traveled to Houston for the NCAA Final Four (which was a huge blast and a lot of work) for 6 nights. It was a long time to be away from the family, but Jason held down the fort with some help from our nanny and his parents. My boss is currently on maternity leave, so I've had some good opportunities to interact with senior management on several projects and get visibility to things I normally wouldn't have. I still have a lot to learn, but I'm coming along nicely, or so I think I am!
In March, Jason and I took Abby skiing for the first time with friends of ours (and hers). She definitely didn't love it at first, but she got adjusted and seemd to enjoy it. She requested a ride on the chair lift, which we promised her on our next ski trip (next winter). Abby's also been going through a major "dress" phase - she wants to wear a dress EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. and cries if she doesn't! Every morning, the first words out of her mouth are: "Mommy, can I wear a dress today?" My almost 4-yr-old little girl is growing up fast, because she also requests a necklace and "party shoes" to go with it!
My little pumpkin Zach turns one tomorrow. I have NO idea where the past year went - it seemed to just fly by! The one thing that hasn't changed is he is still the happiest baby I have ever seen. The kid doesn't cry (unless you take something away from him that he wants, like the remote or a brush)! He is a good eater for things that he likes but he refuses any/all meats (i.e. chicken, turkey, steak, fish) as well as beans. He does LOVE cheese, cottage cheese, veggies, pasta, sweet potatoes, yogurt, fruit and bread, so pizza and grilled cheese are generally his favorite foods. At his 1-yr appointment on Monday, I plan to ask our doctor what I can do to get him to eat our "staple" foods (i.e. chicken and turkey) more so that he doesn't live on cheese and pasta!
Developmentally, he is doing ok. His fine motor skills (talking, pincer grasp, waving, clapping, etc.) are good but he is still delayed in his gross motor skills. We had him re-evaluated for Early Intervention this week and the reco will be to give him PT services, with a focus on sensory PT - he doesn't understand the space around his body, so when he leans forward or to the side, he doesn't yet put his hands out in front of him, which makes learning to walk or crawl quite difficult. He is not crawling or walking yet, so we still have a long way to go, but he is quite squirmy and rolls around everywhere so I know we'll have our hands full soon enough.
I just can't believe that a year ago today, Abby was still an only child and Zach hadn't come into our lives yet. He is such a joy and I can't wait to see what this next year brings for him (and us) - I know it will be so much fun to see him walk for the first time, start talking (though he does say "hi daddy" as clear as day) and of course, become more independent. In the meantime, we'll celebrate with pizza (his fave) and he'll have his first taste of cake tomorrow.
Happy first Birthday, little Zachary Jacob!!! Mommy, Daddy, Abby and Sadie love you!
Friday, April 29, 2011
Thursday, February 10, 2011
A New Start
Today was Day 4 of my new job at LG Electronics and so far, I have survived. It is a HUGE change from where I worked previously in the beauty world and in the city, but I have to say, it's rather nice to be able to drive to work and work with more men than women. I am learning a lot and adjusting, but overall doing pretty well and looking forward to some of the exciting programs I'll be working on (i.e. I get to go to the NCAA Final Four in April!).
I very much enjoyed my week off in-between jobs (could have used more time, honestly!) and Jason and I escaped to Atlantic City for a few nights. The time we had there with no kids and no "real" obligations was amazing! We slept, ate (a lot), got some spa treatments, shopped, worked out and even hit the casino. It was a lovely escape.
When we came back from AC, we had Abby's CPSE evaluation meeting where we learned that she does not have any speech (or any other) disability and she won't be receiving services. We had her tested because we (and others) often have trouble understanding her, but the evaluators said it's within normal range for kids her age. She apparently is in the "superior" range for quantitative reasoning (numbers), high average verbally and below average for "visual spatial processing" (i.e. puzzles, shapes, etc.). They said she is smart, "adorable" and doing great. While I wasn't surprised to hear that news, I was a little surprised that they thought she wouldn't benefit from speech services.
Abby's been doing GREAT with the potty - peeing and pooping with little to no accidents! And she is in underwear at night and 9 out of 10 nights makes it through without waking up to go until the morning. Amazing accomplishment in such a short time!
Zach turned 9 months old at the end of the month and is doing great. He is still not a big guy - only 12% in height and 14% in weight - but cute as a button and happy as a clam. We got the go-ahead to try yogurt and cheese, both of which he loves. While we are still waiting for his EI evaluation results (late next week), the evaluators' initial thoughts were that he would not qualify for services. But with him being over 9 months and still not doing some big physical milestones yet (i.e. sitting up on his own, pulling up to stand, etc), I am hoping they'll qualify him! We shall see soon.
All in all, the past few weeks have been busy and exciting for everyone!
I very much enjoyed my week off in-between jobs (could have used more time, honestly!) and Jason and I escaped to Atlantic City for a few nights. The time we had there with no kids and no "real" obligations was amazing! We slept, ate (a lot), got some spa treatments, shopped, worked out and even hit the casino. It was a lovely escape.
When we came back from AC, we had Abby's CPSE evaluation meeting where we learned that she does not have any speech (or any other) disability and she won't be receiving services. We had her tested because we (and others) often have trouble understanding her, but the evaluators said it's within normal range for kids her age. She apparently is in the "superior" range for quantitative reasoning (numbers), high average verbally and below average for "visual spatial processing" (i.e. puzzles, shapes, etc.). They said she is smart, "adorable" and doing great. While I wasn't surprised to hear that news, I was a little surprised that they thought she wouldn't benefit from speech services.
Abby's been doing GREAT with the potty - peeing and pooping with little to no accidents! And she is in underwear at night and 9 out of 10 nights makes it through without waking up to go until the morning. Amazing accomplishment in such a short time!
Zach turned 9 months old at the end of the month and is doing great. He is still not a big guy - only 12% in height and 14% in weight - but cute as a button and happy as a clam. We got the go-ahead to try yogurt and cheese, both of which he loves. While we are still waiting for his EI evaluation results (late next week), the evaluators' initial thoughts were that he would not qualify for services. But with him being over 9 months and still not doing some big physical milestones yet (i.e. sitting up on his own, pulling up to stand, etc), I am hoping they'll qualify him! We shall see soon.
All in all, the past few weeks have been busy and exciting for everyone!
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Change, Change, Change
Some exciting new changes to report in the Strongin household!
First, last night was the first night Abby wore her big girl underwear to bed and she stayed completely dry from 8 pm - 7:30 am! This is amazing, considering it was just 3 short weeks ago that she refused to even SIT on the potty and was waking up with a soaked diaper each morning. So given how well she has been doing with both pee and poop lately, we thought we'd try underwear last night and she once again surprised us! So we are saying goodbye to pull-ups officially!
The next big change is that I am going to be leaving my current job of almost 6 years and starting a new job a little closer to home! I'm leaving L'Oreal at the end of the month and have accepted a new job at LG Electronics doing partnerships and promotions for their electronics & appliances. It will be a welcome and interesting change for me to be in this new, exciting category. And, I'll be 30 mins closer to home and will drive to work.
And not to leave out the little guy, we started the process for early intervention evaluation for Zach. We'll know more in a few weeks but at least we got the ball rolling.
Lots of excitement to start out the new year!
First, last night was the first night Abby wore her big girl underwear to bed and she stayed completely dry from 8 pm - 7:30 am! This is amazing, considering it was just 3 short weeks ago that she refused to even SIT on the potty and was waking up with a soaked diaper each morning. So given how well she has been doing with both pee and poop lately, we thought we'd try underwear last night and she once again surprised us! So we are saying goodbye to pull-ups officially!
The next big change is that I am going to be leaving my current job of almost 6 years and starting a new job a little closer to home! I'm leaving L'Oreal at the end of the month and have accepted a new job at LG Electronics doing partnerships and promotions for their electronics & appliances. It will be a welcome and interesting change for me to be in this new, exciting category. And, I'll be 30 mins closer to home and will drive to work.
And not to leave out the little guy, we started the process for early intervention evaluation for Zach. We'll know more in a few weeks but at least we got the ball rolling.
Lots of excitement to start out the new year!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
2011 - We're Off to a Great Start (Mostly)!
Happy New Year!
I find it hard to believe that I am sitting here 13 days after Abby first wore underwear and started using the potty, telling you that I think my little girl is 99%potty trained! She has been pooping on the potty the past few days and most recently, is staying dry at night, too! Last night she woke up at 9:30 pm and today at 6:40 am to pee, but her pull-up was dry for the 4th night in a row! I am just sooooo proud of her and I can't believe how easy it was once we fully committed to it. She adjusted beautifully to having no pacifier and to the big girl bed, so I don't know why I am so surprised about the potty training, other than her stubbornness to go prior to this. My big girl is growing up right before my eyes!!!
In other news, Abby has part 1 of her speech evaluation tonight and parts 2 & 3 next week. Since her teachers (and we) have a hard time understanding her sometimes, we thought we might as well do the free evaluation and find out if she needs any help to clarify her words.
We are also having Zach (who is sick at the moment, courtesy of mom and big sis) evaluated for possible early intervention. My adorable little 8-month old is soooo laid back that he doesn't seem to want to move very much - from back to front, to get up on all fours or sit up by himself. His pediatrician said he may not need it, but we should at least get the process started, so I will be setting up those evaluations soon.
One new and exciting addition to our house is that now Zach finally has his own room! The contractors came the last week of the year to build a wall in our loft, so now the little guy has his own space at last. My job: decorate it so it looks cute but don't go overboard as I did with Abby's nursery!
A lot is going on in our household for the first week of 2011 so it promises to be a busy but hopefully great and rewarding year!
And a quick shout-out to Abby & Zach's great-grandma Zita, who is not reading this but who is celebrating her 83rd birthday today! Happy Birthday, Grandma Z!
I find it hard to believe that I am sitting here 13 days after Abby first wore underwear and started using the potty, telling you that I think my little girl is 99%potty trained! She has been pooping on the potty the past few days and most recently, is staying dry at night, too! Last night she woke up at 9:30 pm and today at 6:40 am to pee, but her pull-up was dry for the 4th night in a row! I am just sooooo proud of her and I can't believe how easy it was once we fully committed to it. She adjusted beautifully to having no pacifier and to the big girl bed, so I don't know why I am so surprised about the potty training, other than her stubbornness to go prior to this. My big girl is growing up right before my eyes!!!
In other news, Abby has part 1 of her speech evaluation tonight and parts 2 & 3 next week. Since her teachers (and we) have a hard time understanding her sometimes, we thought we might as well do the free evaluation and find out if she needs any help to clarify her words.
We are also having Zach (who is sick at the moment, courtesy of mom and big sis) evaluated for possible early intervention. My adorable little 8-month old is soooo laid back that he doesn't seem to want to move very much - from back to front, to get up on all fours or sit up by himself. His pediatrician said he may not need it, but we should at least get the process started, so I will be setting up those evaluations soon.
One new and exciting addition to our house is that now Zach finally has his own room! The contractors came the last week of the year to build a wall in our loft, so now the little guy has his own space at last. My job: decorate it so it looks cute but don't go overboard as I did with Abby's nursery!
A lot is going on in our household for the first week of 2011 so it promises to be a busy but hopefully great and rewarding year!
And a quick shout-out to Abby & Zach's great-grandma Zita, who is not reading this but who is celebrating her 83rd birthday today! Happy Birthday, Grandma Z!
Thursday, December 30, 2010
And, She's....TRAINED!
The Christmas Miracle to end all miracles: Abigail Jordan Strongin is (mostly) considered potty trained (during the day)!!!! Yes, folks, you read that right. My 3.5 yr old child who adamantly refused to so much as sit on the potty a week ago, is now wearing underwear during the day and telling mommy and daddy when she needs to pee! My dreams came true!
Here's how it all went down: On Thursday night, Dec. 23, the Diaper Fairy (aka mom) sent Abby a box that containted Kandoo flushable wipes & Pull-Ups, with a note to Abby that she was to take those items and put her diapers and wipes in the box to send it back to the Fairy to receive lots of great presents in return. So Abby threw her remaining size 4 diapers and wipes in the box and left it outside for the DF to pick up that night.
When Abby woke up bright and early on Christmas Eve morning, Jason "answered" the door to find the huge box from the DF with a million "B" and "C" presents in it (more to come on that). It also contained a letter from the DF, a potty chart and sparkly star stickers. Abby put on her big girl underwear around 7:30 am and we waited. And waited. And waited. The 3Day Potty Training lady told us to tell her to say "Tell mommy when you need to pee" and wait for her to have an accident and then rush her to the potty. By 1:30 pm, she still had not peed! Then, she had her first accident and we did as we were told. Some crying ensued as she did NOT want to use the potty, but we convinced her (ok, an M&M convinced her) to at least sit on it. A little while later, she told us she needed to go and lo and behold, she went and peed on the potty! OMG. And guess what - she did it 1 more time that first day and had one more accident, but 2/4 isn't bad for Day 1.
Day 2 came around and she only had one accident and made it to the potty 3 successful times! I have to say, this kid has a huge bladder - she held it in for 4-6 hours each day! Every time she'd pee in the potty, she would get an "A" present - an M&M, hershey kiss, chocolate-covered raisin, etc. and a star on her chart. 6 stars = a big "C" prize. The "B" prizes were for poops.
Day 3 - no accidents, more stickers and finally a "C" prize! Still no poops.
Day 4 - no accidents, more stickers and finally a poop - in her underwear. Another "C" prize!
Day 5 - no accidents, more stickers and another poop in her underwear. Another "C" prize!
Day 6 (today) - no accidents, more stickers, no poop and another "C" prize.
You see where this is going?! We are almost out of "C" prizes but still have LOTS of "B" prizes for when she decides to poop on the potty eventually. We even sing her favorite "pooping on the potty" song (thanks to Clara & Emma for that!) and she knows where she should do it but seems afraid to. But regardless of the poop issue, I am beyond thrilled that she is in underwear ("nighttime underwear" or Pull-Ups, are for night). Hopefully she will figure out that pooping in her underwear is not so fun and will try to go in the potty. And hopefully, the transition back at school next week will be a smooth one.
Not to neglect my second child - happy 8-month birthday, big guy! Zach got shots today and barely cried, weighed in at 17 lbs, 13 ozs, and finally decided to roll over from his back to his tummy (about time, dude!).
As we come to the end of year where we became a family of 4, welcoming a baby boy into our world, I recognize that it was a great year. Abby became a big sister and transitioned to a big girl bed; Zach was born and has spent the last 8 months of his life laughing and smiling and I became the mommy of 2 amazing kids and can only dream of what's in store for 2011. Happy New Year!
Here's how it all went down: On Thursday night, Dec. 23, the Diaper Fairy (aka mom) sent Abby a box that containted Kandoo flushable wipes & Pull-Ups, with a note to Abby that she was to take those items and put her diapers and wipes in the box to send it back to the Fairy to receive lots of great presents in return. So Abby threw her remaining size 4 diapers and wipes in the box and left it outside for the DF to pick up that night.
When Abby woke up bright and early on Christmas Eve morning, Jason "answered" the door to find the huge box from the DF with a million "B" and "C" presents in it (more to come on that). It also contained a letter from the DF, a potty chart and sparkly star stickers. Abby put on her big girl underwear around 7:30 am and we waited. And waited. And waited. The 3Day Potty Training lady told us to tell her to say "Tell mommy when you need to pee" and wait for her to have an accident and then rush her to the potty. By 1:30 pm, she still had not peed! Then, she had her first accident and we did as we were told. Some crying ensued as she did NOT want to use the potty, but we convinced her (ok, an M&M convinced her) to at least sit on it. A little while later, she told us she needed to go and lo and behold, she went and peed on the potty! OMG. And guess what - she did it 1 more time that first day and had one more accident, but 2/4 isn't bad for Day 1.
Day 2 came around and she only had one accident and made it to the potty 3 successful times! I have to say, this kid has a huge bladder - she held it in for 4-6 hours each day! Every time she'd pee in the potty, she would get an "A" present - an M&M, hershey kiss, chocolate-covered raisin, etc. and a star on her chart. 6 stars = a big "C" prize. The "B" prizes were for poops.
Day 3 - no accidents, more stickers and finally a "C" prize! Still no poops.
Day 4 - no accidents, more stickers and finally a poop - in her underwear. Another "C" prize!
Day 5 - no accidents, more stickers and another poop in her underwear. Another "C" prize!
Day 6 (today) - no accidents, more stickers, no poop and another "C" prize.
You see where this is going?! We are almost out of "C" prizes but still have LOTS of "B" prizes for when she decides to poop on the potty eventually. We even sing her favorite "pooping on the potty" song (thanks to Clara & Emma for that!) and she knows where she should do it but seems afraid to. But regardless of the poop issue, I am beyond thrilled that she is in underwear ("nighttime underwear" or Pull-Ups, are for night). Hopefully she will figure out that pooping in her underwear is not so fun and will try to go in the potty. And hopefully, the transition back at school next week will be a smooth one.
Not to neglect my second child - happy 8-month birthday, big guy! Zach got shots today and barely cried, weighed in at 17 lbs, 13 ozs, and finally decided to roll over from his back to his tummy (about time, dude!).
As we come to the end of year where we became a family of 4, welcoming a baby boy into our world, I recognize that it was a great year. Abby became a big sister and transitioned to a big girl bed; Zach was born and has spent the last 8 months of his life laughing and smiling and I became the mommy of 2 amazing kids and can only dream of what's in store for 2011. Happy New Year!
Monday, December 13, 2010
'Tis the Season
How is it possible that we are halfway through the last month of 2010 already?!?! The month has flown by for us, mostly because we have a lot going on!
Cora started last week and got off to a good but slow start. She is coming off a job she's been at the past 23 years, so this is all new to her. But thankfully, Abby took to her right away as if she'd been with us for years (relief!). While she gets up to speed with Zach and our house, Jason and I have been around a bit more to guide her. I hope that this will be our last nanny for some time!
Surprisingly, Laura paid us a visit last week as well. I wasn't home at the time (lucky for her!) but Jason said she and her son knocked on our door at dinner time, came in and made themselves at home with her son going to play with Abby and she went to hold Zach right away. She apparently had tears in her eyes and asked how the kids were doing with our new nanny. She implied that her new job wasn't all that it seemed to be and she wasn't so happy. Jason didn't know if she was coming by to see if we'd offer her the job back, or to see if she wanted to come back or just to say hi, but he felt it was awkward considering she didn't feel it was necessary to tell us she'd be working in such close quarters.
Abby's been enjoying some fun kid-friendly activities such as a friend's holiday party, the off-broadway production of Annie and this past weekend, we took her to see the Radio City Rockettes. She loved taking the train to the city and being among the gizillion tourists in Rockefeller Center and along 5th Ave.
While we have been asked "who's that?" with regard to Santa, we haven't gotten the "why don't we have lights and a tree" question yet. If not this year, I am sure it will come next year!
Abby (and we) have something exciting/scary to look forward to in the coming weeks: The Diaper Fairy (younger sister of last year's Paci Fairy)will be paying us a visit to take Abby's diapers away once and for all when school lets out for the year. Our adorable, smart daughter is as stubborn as they come and refuses to use the potty, so Miss Diaper Fairy will be coming along to show her the way. We anticipate a rough few days (weeks?) but hopefully it will pay off and we'll just have one size of diapers to buy!
Cora started last week and got off to a good but slow start. She is coming off a job she's been at the past 23 years, so this is all new to her. But thankfully, Abby took to her right away as if she'd been with us for years (relief!). While she gets up to speed with Zach and our house, Jason and I have been around a bit more to guide her. I hope that this will be our last nanny for some time!
Surprisingly, Laura paid us a visit last week as well. I wasn't home at the time (lucky for her!) but Jason said she and her son knocked on our door at dinner time, came in and made themselves at home with her son going to play with Abby and she went to hold Zach right away. She apparently had tears in her eyes and asked how the kids were doing with our new nanny. She implied that her new job wasn't all that it seemed to be and she wasn't so happy. Jason didn't know if she was coming by to see if we'd offer her the job back, or to see if she wanted to come back or just to say hi, but he felt it was awkward considering she didn't feel it was necessary to tell us she'd be working in such close quarters.
Abby's been enjoying some fun kid-friendly activities such as a friend's holiday party, the off-broadway production of Annie and this past weekend, we took her to see the Radio City Rockettes. She loved taking the train to the city and being among the gizillion tourists in Rockefeller Center and along 5th Ave.
While we have been asked "who's that?" with regard to Santa, we haven't gotten the "why don't we have lights and a tree" question yet. If not this year, I am sure it will come next year!
Abby (and we) have something exciting/scary to look forward to in the coming weeks: The Diaper Fairy (younger sister of last year's Paci Fairy)will be paying us a visit to take Abby's diapers away once and for all when school lets out for the year. Our adorable, smart daughter is as stubborn as they come and refuses to use the potty, so Miss Diaper Fairy will be coming along to show her the way. We anticipate a rough few days (weeks?) but hopefully it will pay off and we'll just have one size of diapers to buy!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Love Thy Neighbor but Don't Covet Thy Neighbor's Nanny
Since last posting, Laura has left us...and started her new job just around the corner from us at our neighbor's house!!!! Yes, you read that right, and if you are even somewhat as appalled as I am, you understand my frustration. Here's the background:
As Laura's last day with us the week before Thanksgiving approached, I started finding out more about her reasons to leave, 99% of which had to do with her thinking she was working too many hours and not getting paid enough. Now I don't know about you, but I'm pretty sure we are still in a recession, and last I checked, I don't get a raise from my company after just 6 months of employment! But apparently Laura's husband wasn't working so much and she needed to make more to support the family. So she told us that she had found an afternoon job working 12-6 pm 4 days a week so she could do housecleaning or something else in the mornings to make extra money. I felt badly and gave her a nice going-away present: products from work, some extra cash and a big hug with a "we'll call you for babysitting!" send-off.
Thanksgiving week came and went (my mom came to town, we ate a lot, played with the kids and had a fun week) and I stressed out over the nanny situation. I was still considering Laura's friend, Silvia, for the job, but I had reservations about her (as Laura's friend and she was asking for more money based on her previous job). I continued to field calls and screen candidates, and then, a small glimmer of hope: I was speaking with another nanny at Abby's gym class, Patricia, who Laura had become friendly with. I told her that I was looking for someone and gave her my number should she know of anyone. I got a call the next day from a woman named Cora, who said Patricia had passed along my information. With the holiday the next day, I took a few days to call Cora back but when I did, I couldn't believe I had waited so long.
Cora and I spoke briefly on Saturday morning via phone and I invited her to come to meet us that afternoon. By the time she left our house, I knew she was the One. Cora is a bit older - my guess is early 50s. She has worked at the same daycare in our town for 23 YEARS! She also babysits on the side and has a ton of references. She has been background checked, she has taken all of the childcare classes/workshops, is CPR certified, drives and lives IN MY town! Ours would be her first real "nanny" job but I know she is up for the task. We made Cora the offer and she very happily accepted and will start next week.
The day after we made Cora the offer, we found out that Laura is working for our neighbor. I also came to find out that she was soliciting business and trying to find a job at Abby's school - nice. And as if it isn't bad enough that she'll be working in my community and seeing my kids around, she won't call us back, presumably because she knows we found out and she feels guilty.
In the meantime, I let Silvia know that we couldn't hire her due to Laura's deceitfulness and I said I'd help her find a job because we did really like her, but it would not be a good idea to have Laura's friend working for us when Laura was working in the same small community. Hopefully, Silvia will pass along the message to Laura so she knows what she did was wrong - but judging by the fact that she won't return our calls and didn't come clean in the first place, she definitely knows she was wrong to do what she did.
All in all, I have a good feeling about Cora and our fresh start next week. So my kids won't grow up learning Spanish as their second language, but they'll hopefully be taken care of by a responsible, honest and caring woman who has more years of experience with children than us!
And may this be a lesson for all in the future: if you are in need of a new nanny, ask your neighbor's nanny for a referral for a friend, but don't hire their nanny as it certainly doesn't bode well for future run-ins in the neighborhood!
As Laura's last day with us the week before Thanksgiving approached, I started finding out more about her reasons to leave, 99% of which had to do with her thinking she was working too many hours and not getting paid enough. Now I don't know about you, but I'm pretty sure we are still in a recession, and last I checked, I don't get a raise from my company after just 6 months of employment! But apparently Laura's husband wasn't working so much and she needed to make more to support the family. So she told us that she had found an afternoon job working 12-6 pm 4 days a week so she could do housecleaning or something else in the mornings to make extra money. I felt badly and gave her a nice going-away present: products from work, some extra cash and a big hug with a "we'll call you for babysitting!" send-off.
Thanksgiving week came and went (my mom came to town, we ate a lot, played with the kids and had a fun week) and I stressed out over the nanny situation. I was still considering Laura's friend, Silvia, for the job, but I had reservations about her (as Laura's friend and she was asking for more money based on her previous job). I continued to field calls and screen candidates, and then, a small glimmer of hope: I was speaking with another nanny at Abby's gym class, Patricia, who Laura had become friendly with. I told her that I was looking for someone and gave her my number should she know of anyone. I got a call the next day from a woman named Cora, who said Patricia had passed along my information. With the holiday the next day, I took a few days to call Cora back but when I did, I couldn't believe I had waited so long.
Cora and I spoke briefly on Saturday morning via phone and I invited her to come to meet us that afternoon. By the time she left our house, I knew she was the One. Cora is a bit older - my guess is early 50s. She has worked at the same daycare in our town for 23 YEARS! She also babysits on the side and has a ton of references. She has been background checked, she has taken all of the childcare classes/workshops, is CPR certified, drives and lives IN MY town! Ours would be her first real "nanny" job but I know she is up for the task. We made Cora the offer and she very happily accepted and will start next week.
The day after we made Cora the offer, we found out that Laura is working for our neighbor. I also came to find out that she was soliciting business and trying to find a job at Abby's school - nice. And as if it isn't bad enough that she'll be working in my community and seeing my kids around, she won't call us back, presumably because she knows we found out and she feels guilty.
In the meantime, I let Silvia know that we couldn't hire her due to Laura's deceitfulness and I said I'd help her find a job because we did really like her, but it would not be a good idea to have Laura's friend working for us when Laura was working in the same small community. Hopefully, Silvia will pass along the message to Laura so she knows what she did was wrong - but judging by the fact that she won't return our calls and didn't come clean in the first place, she definitely knows she was wrong to do what she did.
All in all, I have a good feeling about Cora and our fresh start next week. So my kids won't grow up learning Spanish as their second language, but they'll hopefully be taken care of by a responsible, honest and caring woman who has more years of experience with children than us!
And may this be a lesson for all in the future: if you are in need of a new nanny, ask your neighbor's nanny for a referral for a friend, but don't hire their nanny as it certainly doesn't bode well for future run-ins in the neighborhood!
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