Toddler Story Time

I was feeling a little sleepy when "Baby Bear" awoke from his nap today.  So, I grabbed a pillow and laid on his bedroom floor.  I asked if he would please read me a story and he was happy to oblige.  Here is a shot of him reading to me about bunnies. 

2nd Week of Summer Vacation as a Sitter

This is a little of what we did last week:

This is a space plan of the obstacle course we made (but never used) in the garage.  The creative process was the fun part.

Here's a pic of the sign directing neighbors to our obstacle course.  I love that the word "center" is spelled "centene." 

We made name tags for all the neighborhood kids too, but I failed to photograph those.  Basically, they were star shaped and colored with markers (much like the sign). 

I know it's not much, but this was a busy week for me.  We celebrated my dear friend, Theresa, in Palm Springs for her bachelorette party.  And we had a small birthday party for my father-in-law at Tacos Jaliscos - Mmmm! 

I need to learn how to put my foot down with the 6-year-old.  The 2-year-old & I want to go to the park, but older brother doesn't want to leave the house.  Time to toughen up, Em.  (personal pep-talk). 

My 1st Week of Summer as a Sitter

The 6-year-old, Little Bear, that I watch graduated from kindergarten on Tuesday.  Yay for him, boo for me.  Gone are the days when I chilled out in the backyard tanning while the 2-year-old, Baby Bear, napped.  My break-time is now at the beginning of the day when they are still sleeping.  What I will miss most, however, is the daily trip to the park.  Baby Bear  and I had a routine that we both enjoyed.  Time to create a new one...

The first photo was taken on day 1 of summer vacation.  I call it "Child Labor."  The neighbors down the street were having their sidewalk demolished, which became the greatest attraction for the boys.  Little Bear spent no less than four hours that day watching and helping move broken cement from the lawn to the driveway.  Which was about as interesting as watching paint dry, back when I was a kid.  But, to each their own, I guess.

Side note: the French Open was on this morning and it brought back painfully boring memories of my childhood summer vacations.  Tennis and the Noriega trial ruined my afternoons!


It is my mission to bring as much arts & crafts into these boys lives as Emily possible.  I would say humanly possible, but knowing what people are capable of (i.e. Guinness World Records) I can only provide enough creativity as I find on Google, various blogs, suggestions from friends or random thoughts.  Here some examples of what we did with "our own two hands" this week:

 

• egg-cartons masks
• We collected various leaves and flowers from the neighborhood.  Later that day we glued some flora down to make collages, that were not so photogenic.  
• toilet paper roll nose makers

My budget for arts & crafts is non-existent, so everything we use is reused scrap or things we happen to have around the house. 

By the way, I am open to any and all suggestions for things to do! 

 

When Things Are Not What They Seem To Be

I pulled this out of Andrew's backpack today and had to look twice before I realized what it REALLY was.  The text below the hand-drawn image explains that it is not a part of the male anatomy.  "Andrew be nimble.  Andrew be quick.  Andrew jump over the candlestick."

Get your mind out of the gutter!

Nanny Schnannigans

What we do to entertain ourselves, I mean the kids.

I guess you're not so bad after all.

While babysitting today, Bella, the 8-year-old girl from down the street told me this:  "When I first met you I thought you'd be mean and strict, but it turns out you're not."

Sounds like a solid approval.  Sweet!

That's What She Said

Let me set the scene for you.  I was babysitting the boys.  Andrew, the elder of the two, was at the breakfast table while Tommy, who is chest deep in his terrible twos, was looking for something to do.  Tommy noticed Andrew's bowl of goodies from a recent plastic Easter egg hunt.  Eyeing a round blue object I told Tommy to ask Andrew for permission to play with his toys.  After permission was granted I chimed in with, "Thank you for letting him play with your balls."

I laughed internally, because all I wished for at that very moment was another adult to share the "That's what she said," moment with.

Diary of a Stuper-Nanny (yes, the "t" was on purpose)

This entry is in response to the several requests that I start blogging about my babysitting experiences. 

 Side Note: why does iMac tell me "babysitting" is spelled incorrectly?!  

I don't want to separate the words!

I'm learning a lot from my part-time gig.  

Here's a list of few epiphanies (because I too like lists):

1. More than two is too much!  If/ when we are blessed with kidlets, I cannot see myself with more than two children.  God gave you two hands...  Marriages are comprised of two parents (if divorce is a non-issue)...  See my pattern?
2. Boys are fun, but a lot of work!  I'm used to watching my little sister and being a Girl Scout counselor.  Sing a few songs, do some arts & crafts, plop 'em in front of a TV and voila!  I've discovered this is not the case with boys.  Due to their age differences of 4 years, I have found the most common and favored activity is rough-housing.  Which is fine and dandy until someone gets hurt.  How does that German phrase go, mom?  Nach lachen kommt das weinen ~ after laughing comes crying.
3. I know nothing!  That's not true, but my DMIL (Dear Mother-in-Law) is very wise and knowledgeable.  (see suggested chart below)

How do you like my arts & crafts? 


The boy's mother asked me when I did this.  "The other day, when I wasn't working and avoiding housework (sorry Matt)."  All but three stickers fell off when I left the chart in my trunk this weekend with the 90 degree heat we had.  I switched from stars to crosses.  Good thing Andrew goes to a Lutheran school, otherwise I would have had to purchase random stickers. 


There are actually 2 charts on 1 board.

• The top chart is to assure Andrew gets to school on time, because I'm having issues with getting him out of bed and lighting a fire under his bummy to get out the door.  The reward:  5 solid days of stickets = a trip to the nature center.  So far, the chart is working like a freakin' charm!!  THANKS DMIL! 

Side Note: We went to the nature center last Friday.  

I thought it would be a good way for them to get their wiggles out.  

Chasing after them and barking, "Look with your eyes!," makes me hope 
that we don't keep having perfect rows of stickers (but not really).

• The bottom chart is to reward good manners (a.k.a. I am not a freakin' maid!).  The reward: 15 stickers = a trip to Gold Spoon for frozen yogurt.  Which they don't realize is a huge treat for me!  I love G.S. (No, mom.  That doesn't stand for Girl Scouts.)

I'll end this entry with a...

Short Story

Last Thursday afternoon, the boys were playing with the neighbor kid from across the street, Garret, who is twice the size of a normal 7-year-old boy and doesn't know his own strength.  The "fun" started when Andrew (the 6-year-old that I watch) climbed down from the short branch-y tree.  "I have a splinter!"  I tried to remove it myself with tweezers and a needle, but soon found the little guy shaking with fear, so I tried texting my EMT husband for some different ideas.  He suggested I use ice to numb the pain & tell Andrew to "be a super hero" while I tried again to remove the splinter.  I had already administered a sink bath of warm soapy water, so the skin and splinter were softening.  No hope of plucking out the imbedded tree bark now!  

While trying to clam down the worried little patient, the door bell rang.  It was Garret, who wanted to know if I could watch him while his mom and sister went to her school and would be "right back, before 6 o'clock."  I told him I leave at 6 and would find out if the boy's mom could watch him when she got home.  Before I could get a response for their mom that she had an appointment at 6, Garret's mom had driven down the street!   So, was I asked to remain until 6:50.  "Sure, no problem."  

The kids were all playing nicely in the garage (the splinter a distant memory), when one of them suggested they close the garage door and use it as a backstop.  On my way through the house to watch from the front, I spent a few minutes picking up a little (i.e. shoes, toys).  By the time I was able to see what they were doing, CRASH went one of the garage door windows!  The thought going through my mind at the time, "Damn it!  Their mom will be home in 5 minutes!  I wasn't suppose to be here this late! Damn splinter!  GARRET!"  However the words that came out of my mouth were, "Oh, well.  Accidents happen."  

I sent Garret, the glass breaker home and had the boys come back inside the house.  I tried to vacuum glass shards before their mom returned, but I didn't get far before the garage door opened.  Luckily, the parents I nanny for are wonderful and understanding.  However,  I still feel bad and realized a few things:

1. Look for items that can be broken before saying, "yes."
2. Provide less time for the boys to hangout with Garret.
3. Don't ever say you'll watch someone else's kids for even a minute when working for other parents.