I ran out of the house at 8:00 this morning to go to Lowe's for paint to finish up my projects before DH gets back in town (he is retrieving SS from fashion camp). I didn't bother to put on any makeup for my trek to Lowe's and my slightly greasy hair was pulled haphazardly into a ponytail/bun thing. I didn't see any point in showering until after I painted.
On the way home I stopped by Starbucks for some much needed coffee, somewhat nervously pulling into a parking space filled with 4 Harleys. I immediately spotted the bikers, and then immediately recognized one of them as a client. He looked right at me, but didn't show any hint of recognition.
What to do? I didn't want to appear rude, and I was praying he didn't recognize me. I was about as far as humanly possible from the made-up, coiffed, stiletto-and-suit-wearing lawyer he had previously met.
And I could not remember his name. I think it may be John. I had only worked with him on one matter, for a short time, several months ago. We had met only once or twice. Even if I were willing to present my self in my sloppy-Saturday-morning state, I wasn't sure how to initiate conversation--especially if he didn't remember me. "Hey, uh, client guy. I'm your lawyer, remember me?"
So what did I do? I ignored him. Our backs were to each other the rest of the time I was ordering, so there was no more awkward meeting of the eyes. Hopefully, he didn't recognize me at all, or though I looked only vaguely familiar (I frequently get "you look familiar" from complete strangers.) Or maybe he's just relieved that he didn't have to introduce his lawyer to his biker buddies.
6/30/12
6/24/12
The Bits and Pieces of Life
Work has been super-slow for the last week. In fact, I left the office early every single day. I really need to get over feeling guilty when I leave the office before 6:00 p.m.--especially when I don't have anything to do anyway.
DH and I had a mini-date night on Wednesday while we did a trial run of the summer nanny. (Yes! I found someone. In fact, I found a few and had a really tough time making a decision.) We did the batting cages (It sounded like so much fun after he went with TT) and then had snow cones. It was so much fun! The batting cages are very therapeutic--I just envisioned the faces of all the assholes I had to deal with lately, and bam!, I was knocking them out of the park.
I've been painting all weekend. PS talked me into doing her room while I did TT's new room, and I somehow reasoned that it would be easiest to knock both out at once. I am sore today, after spending the last 36 hours up and down ladders. The kids get to roll on the easy middle part of the wall while I do the edge work up high and down low. Both rooms are looking great, though. TT's room is a tranquil blue that feels very "under the sea" PS's room is a deep purple (4 coats!) with a black accent wall. She has been trying to talk me into painting a purple-and-black checkerboard on one wall, but I'm not sure I'm up for the work it would entail or that I could create sharp lines on our textured walls. We may try it with black contact paper instead of paint.
The painting has been good bonding time with PS. She never wants to hang out with the rest of us anymore, but she's been happy and chatty while we work on her room. Her BFF was over for a bit, DJing for us while we painted, and it was nice getting to listen to their chatter.
Tomorrow I'm driving SS to camp. The round-trip will be a full day in the car, but I'm kind of looking forward to it. TT will make the trip with us so I'll have company in the car on the way home. And the bonus is that I get to have a calzone from my favorite college restaurant--which are the best calzones in the world!
We are supposed to leave for a mini-vacation on Friday, but our destination has been evacuated because of wild fires. I think we're just going to cancel and do a stay-cation instead. We've had a few expenses lately that were affecting our vacation budget, anyway. (I really liked the 20" rims on my Armada until I had to buy new tires--ouch!)
DH and I had a mini-date night on Wednesday while we did a trial run of the summer nanny. (Yes! I found someone. In fact, I found a few and had a really tough time making a decision.) We did the batting cages (It sounded like so much fun after he went with TT) and then had snow cones. It was so much fun! The batting cages are very therapeutic--I just envisioned the faces of all the assholes I had to deal with lately, and bam!, I was knocking them out of the park.
I've been painting all weekend. PS talked me into doing her room while I did TT's new room, and I somehow reasoned that it would be easiest to knock both out at once. I am sore today, after spending the last 36 hours up and down ladders. The kids get to roll on the easy middle part of the wall while I do the edge work up high and down low. Both rooms are looking great, though. TT's room is a tranquil blue that feels very "under the sea" PS's room is a deep purple (4 coats!) with a black accent wall. She has been trying to talk me into painting a purple-and-black checkerboard on one wall, but I'm not sure I'm up for the work it would entail or that I could create sharp lines on our textured walls. We may try it with black contact paper instead of paint.
The painting has been good bonding time with PS. She never wants to hang out with the rest of us anymore, but she's been happy and chatty while we work on her room. Her BFF was over for a bit, DJing for us while we painted, and it was nice getting to listen to their chatter.
Tomorrow I'm driving SS to camp. The round-trip will be a full day in the car, but I'm kind of looking forward to it. TT will make the trip with us so I'll have company in the car on the way home. And the bonus is that I get to have a calzone from my favorite college restaurant--which are the best calzones in the world!
We are supposed to leave for a mini-vacation on Friday, but our destination has been evacuated because of wild fires. I think we're just going to cancel and do a stay-cation instead. We've had a few expenses lately that were affecting our vacation budget, anyway. (I really liked the 20" rims on my Armada until I had to buy new tires--ouch!)
6/22/12
Everybody Has Secrets
DH's family has always been Cleaver-normal--wide-eyed and amazed at the stories that hale from my side of the world. But on Wednesday DH got a text from his dad saying that DH's great-uncle had been arrested for indecency with a child. The Uncle was a prominent member of his small community and the story was expected to be in the news the next day.
My first question was, "did he ever do anything to anyone in the family?" We learned later that night that he had--decades ago--and that family member never came forward. Today we learned that it was another family member--now an adult--who reported him.
So, the news story broke today. I found it online and sent DH the link. All of the comments were typical disbelief and "he was such a nice guy." The molester is always a nice guy and upstanding citizen. (I also have an uncle who was convicted of child molestation and everyone who ever met him will tell you what a nice guy he is.)
And then, at the end of the day, DH checked the link again to read new comments. And that is how he learned that the Uncle had committed suicide about two-hours earlier.
No, the bastard media did not even allow time for the family to be notified before breaking the news. DH immediately called his dad, who hadn't heard yet, so that he could let other family members know (DH's grandmother is Uncle's sister).
The things this man did were heinous, and I am shedding no tears over the loss of his life. But it is so, so much for his family to deal with. He had children and grandchildren. A wife. His sisters. Who all have to deal with this horrible news and then a funeral on top of it all. (One of the sisters has a grandchild getting married--I can only imagine how this horrific tragedy is marring that joyous event.)
It is too much to process. DH knew nothing about his uncle's dark side. There is a mixture of hurt and anger toward those who did know and swept it under the rug. Why don't people come forward? Of course there are a million answers. But allowing someone to maintain his Mr. Nice Guy image just permits more victims. And I'm not necessarily referring to the victims. There were others who knew and did nothing, and sadly, that seems to be typical.
I don't know how to encourage people to expose molesters. Hopefully all of the high-profile cases of late that demonstrate so clearly how abusers will continue until they are stopped will help in that regard. We are wondering if that is what triggered this report, so many years later. But how many kids could have been saved if he had been stopped sooner?
My first question was, "did he ever do anything to anyone in the family?" We learned later that night that he had--decades ago--and that family member never came forward. Today we learned that it was another family member--now an adult--who reported him.
So, the news story broke today. I found it online and sent DH the link. All of the comments were typical disbelief and "he was such a nice guy." The molester is always a nice guy and upstanding citizen. (I also have an uncle who was convicted of child molestation and everyone who ever met him will tell you what a nice guy he is.)
And then, at the end of the day, DH checked the link again to read new comments. And that is how he learned that the Uncle had committed suicide about two-hours earlier.
No, the bastard media did not even allow time for the family to be notified before breaking the news. DH immediately called his dad, who hadn't heard yet, so that he could let other family members know (DH's grandmother is Uncle's sister).
The things this man did were heinous, and I am shedding no tears over the loss of his life. But it is so, so much for his family to deal with. He had children and grandchildren. A wife. His sisters. Who all have to deal with this horrible news and then a funeral on top of it all. (One of the sisters has a grandchild getting married--I can only imagine how this horrific tragedy is marring that joyous event.)
It is too much to process. DH knew nothing about his uncle's dark side. There is a mixture of hurt and anger toward those who did know and swept it under the rug. Why don't people come forward? Of course there are a million answers. But allowing someone to maintain his Mr. Nice Guy image just permits more victims. And I'm not necessarily referring to the victims. There were others who knew and did nothing, and sadly, that seems to be typical.
I don't know how to encourage people to expose molesters. Hopefully all of the high-profile cases of late that demonstrate so clearly how abusers will continue until they are stopped will help in that regard. We are wondering if that is what triggered this report, so many years later. But how many kids could have been saved if he had been stopped sooner?
6/16/12
Father's Day
We decided to give DH time with each of his girls this Father's Day. With three kids it's hard finding one-on-one time with each of them, and they seem to need it even more as they get older.This idea was triggered when I got a groupon for local batting cages. TT is playing softball, and it seemed like the perfect father-daughter outing. And he and PS were both dying to see the midnight showing of The Dark Night Rises that he mistakenly though was sold out already. Woot! Two gifts down for less than $40.
SS was a bit tougher. She is my girlie-girl, and I just couldn't see DH going for a pedi or an afternoon at the mall. We finally decided on tacos and target shooting--celebrating their mutual love of mexican food and shooting stuffed squirrels with a laser gun.
PS made an awesome comic strip outlining what his gifts are, and to round it all out, we heading out for a baseball game tomorrow afternoon.
Yay! It's so hard to shop for DH, but he seemed to really like what we came up with. (We gave it to him early so he could start scheduling his daddy-daughter dates.)
6/11/12
Here We Go Again
So, I've once again sighed up for care.com. This is where I found my last several nannies. I don't even want to count them up. I'm so frustrated with having to go through this process AGAIN.
I am very thorough. I usually have two interviews, do a complete background check (yes I do google applicants and check facebook and my findings have cost candidates the job), and then do a test-run where they stay with the girls for a couple of hours while DH and I stay nearby before we hire somebody. This process is unbelievably time consuming, and time is the one thing I do not have a lot of. (I tried to talk me secretary into doing preliminary interviews, but she refused!)(Yes, that's a joke. I do not ask my secretary to handle personal tasks.)
I don't think that our nanny turnover is because the pay is bad or we treat them poorly. I think being somewhat transitory is the nature of the late-teen/early-twenty somethings that I typically hire Our current nanny is heading to college in the fall and suddenly decided she wanted to take a summer session. Our former nanny was with us for a year before she went off to college (and she visits us whenever she is back in town) The one before that was with us a matter of weeks before she decided to move across the country to be with her twin (and stays in touch with the girls via email).
So why do I keep hiring 18-24 year olds?
Because the grandmotherly-type who was our nanny for two years got mad and quit after I refused to employ her full-time over the summer. Frankly, she just wasn't up to it--regardless of what she thought. She quit going upstairs (where the kids spend most of their time) and every time I came home she was doing crosswords downstairs while the kids ran amok. She started refusing to drive them places, and the was increasingly hostile toward PS. She needed to go, and I was glad I didn't have to fire her, but the twins were devastated by her sudden disappearance.
And because I like for my girls to have upwardly mobile role models. Girls who are in school and are working toward their goals. Because the older women who have applied for these position (and I almost hired one the last go-round) have not generally had great career aspirations. They just need something to pay the bills. (Of course, there are nannies who see it not as a job, but as a career, who are educated and have excellent qualifications. These nannies are generally seeking full time positions and pay beyond my budget.)
Because my girls like hanging out with younger people, and getting advice from them. (PS has been texting our former nanny with all her high school questions.) And because the younger people can help with homework.
And so, here we go again. I did find several local girls who are home from college for the summer and interested in hanging out with my girls, so I guess I'll spend this weekend interviewing. But even with all the trouble, I think in-my-home care is best for me and my girls. Especially as they get older. At least one of them is doing a half-day camp every day this month. And I just realized TT has summer band through half of August. I have no idea how we'll get them to and fro without someone to run them around.
I am very thorough. I usually have two interviews, do a complete background check (yes I do google applicants and check facebook and my findings have cost candidates the job), and then do a test-run where they stay with the girls for a couple of hours while DH and I stay nearby before we hire somebody. This process is unbelievably time consuming, and time is the one thing I do not have a lot of. (I tried to talk me secretary into doing preliminary interviews, but she refused!)(Yes, that's a joke. I do not ask my secretary to handle personal tasks.)
I don't think that our nanny turnover is because the pay is bad or we treat them poorly. I think being somewhat transitory is the nature of the late-teen/early-twenty somethings that I typically hire Our current nanny is heading to college in the fall and suddenly decided she wanted to take a summer session. Our former nanny was with us for a year before she went off to college (and she visits us whenever she is back in town) The one before that was with us a matter of weeks before she decided to move across the country to be with her twin (and stays in touch with the girls via email).
So why do I keep hiring 18-24 year olds?
Because the grandmotherly-type who was our nanny for two years got mad and quit after I refused to employ her full-time over the summer. Frankly, she just wasn't up to it--regardless of what she thought. She quit going upstairs (where the kids spend most of their time) and every time I came home she was doing crosswords downstairs while the kids ran amok. She started refusing to drive them places, and the was increasingly hostile toward PS. She needed to go, and I was glad I didn't have to fire her, but the twins were devastated by her sudden disappearance.
And because I like for my girls to have upwardly mobile role models. Girls who are in school and are working toward their goals. Because the older women who have applied for these position (and I almost hired one the last go-round) have not generally had great career aspirations. They just need something to pay the bills. (Of course, there are nannies who see it not as a job, but as a career, who are educated and have excellent qualifications. These nannies are generally seeking full time positions and pay beyond my budget.)
Because my girls like hanging out with younger people, and getting advice from them. (PS has been texting our former nanny with all her high school questions.) And because the younger people can help with homework.
And so, here we go again. I did find several local girls who are home from college for the summer and interested in hanging out with my girls, so I guess I'll spend this weekend interviewing. But even with all the trouble, I think in-my-home care is best for me and my girls. Especially as they get older. At least one of them is doing a half-day camp every day this month. And I just realized TT has summer band through half of August. I have no idea how we'll get them to and fro without someone to run them around.
6/10/12
Separation Anxiety
My twins are struggling with their twin-ness lately.
One moment they are inseparable, and the next they are about to kill each other. Each is desperately trying to establish her own identity.
SS is the ultimate girlie-girl. She loves all things pink and sparkly. She must be fully accessorized before leaving the house, and she has been experimenting with new hairstyles. She is going to Fashion Camp, her first time at overnight camp without her sister, and the longest time they will have ever spent apart.
TT is a total tomboy. Thanks to PS's taunts that real tomboys can't wear pink,she has started eschewing the ever-present color, she refuses to do anything with her hair, and she loves in soccer shorts and t-shirts. She is doing zoo camp and seems born to be a veterinarian. (She did let me paint her toenails today, but only because I bought a gorgeous blue from OPI's Spiderman line, and topped it with red crackle, which looks "awesome.")
Today we started cleaning out the office/sewing room/guest room to make way for TT. She and SS voluntarily share a room, but they have been fighting and picking at each other a lot lately. I think it is time for each to have her own space that suits her own personality.
SS will keep her current room, which is painted hot pink and covered in black polka-dots (this preceded TT's hatred of pink.)
TT will get the new room, with a fresh coat of Sea Breeze-colored paint and new teal bedding with lime green accents. Hopefully having the option to retire to her own space when her sister is driving her batty will keep the girls from fighting so much. But I'm betting one of them still ends up in the other's room at night.
And PS is thrilled with all this switching around because she has inherited my huge desk/sewing table. She spends nearly every waking moment drawing (I'm stunned at her talent--I can barely draw a stick person) and is drooling at the huge workspace. Also, I told her that if she cleans out her cluttered-packrat room, I will paint her room at the same time we paint TT's new room. She now hates the pale pink room that she begged for when we moved into this house 8 years ago. She wants black. I said no (do you have any idea how many coats of paint it will take to cover a wall with black???). I think we'll compromise with purple.
One moment they are inseparable, and the next they are about to kill each other. Each is desperately trying to establish her own identity.
SS is the ultimate girlie-girl. She loves all things pink and sparkly. She must be fully accessorized before leaving the house, and she has been experimenting with new hairstyles. She is going to Fashion Camp, her first time at overnight camp without her sister, and the longest time they will have ever spent apart.
TT is a total tomboy. Thanks to PS's taunts that real tomboys can't wear pink,she has started eschewing the ever-present color, she refuses to do anything with her hair, and she loves in soccer shorts and t-shirts. She is doing zoo camp and seems born to be a veterinarian. (She did let me paint her toenails today, but only because I bought a gorgeous blue from OPI's Spiderman line, and topped it with red crackle, which looks "awesome.")
Today we started cleaning out the office/sewing room/guest room to make way for TT. She and SS voluntarily share a room, but they have been fighting and picking at each other a lot lately. I think it is time for each to have her own space that suits her own personality.
SS will keep her current room, which is painted hot pink and covered in black polka-dots (this preceded TT's hatred of pink.)
TT will get the new room, with a fresh coat of Sea Breeze-colored paint and new teal bedding with lime green accents. Hopefully having the option to retire to her own space when her sister is driving her batty will keep the girls from fighting so much. But I'm betting one of them still ends up in the other's room at night.
And PS is thrilled with all this switching around because she has inherited my huge desk/sewing table. She spends nearly every waking moment drawing (I'm stunned at her talent--I can barely draw a stick person) and is drooling at the huge workspace. Also, I told her that if she cleans out her cluttered-packrat room, I will paint her room at the same time we paint TT's new room. She now hates the pale pink room that she begged for when we moved into this house 8 years ago. She wants black. I said no (do you have any idea how many coats of paint it will take to cover a wall with black???). I think we'll compromise with purple.
6/8/12
Exercise in Patience
You have not shopped until you shop with three girls--two of whom hate shopping and hate anything pink or sparkly. It is really hard to find tween girl clothing is not pink or sparkly. And my girls have each selected a preferred color; nobody else is allowed to buy anything in her sister's color. SS is pink, TT is teal blue, and PS is purple. It is exhausting finding things they like that meets their preferences. But our trip was a necessity.
SS is heading to fashion camp in a couple of weeks, and needed some things to take along. She is the easy one, though.
TT wears nothing but t-shirts (usually super-hero t-shirts). She is a self-proclaimed tomboy and refuses to wear anything that might be girly. When I asked her if she had a nicer shirt to wear to take-your-kids-to-work day today, she said, "my aeropostale polo shirt." Yes, in her world an aeropostale polo shirt is her "nice" shirt. (I guess if it has a collar, it's nice.) Preferably paired with knee-length khaki shorts.
After much searching, we finally found a teal blue shirt with no ruffles or sparkles. It technically falls into the t-shirt category, but it has some details that make it cute and summery. Good enough. At least there are no graphics or words on it. But I also got her a consolation "I heart Star Wars" t-shirt for enduring our shopping trip.
PS wears nothing but black and dark purple. And she has recently informed me that she doesn't like to wear shorts anymore--all she wants is black skinny jeans. (Yeah, we live in a place where our summers regularly include triple-digit days, and I don't wear jeans ever between May and October.) But none of her clothes fit. She's shot up to within 2 inches of my height and has started to fill out into regular-person size instead of beanpole-kid size, gaining a full 2 sizes in the last 9 months.
But, OMG, she won't pick anything out. She hates everything that I pick out. Shopping with her is torture, but the kid is literally bursting out of her clothes. We made it home with a pair of skinnies and a pair of shorts (we'll she if she decides they're not so bad come our first 110 degree day). I've never met another teenage girl who wouldn't pick out new clothes.
An hour-and-a-half was all I could take. And for all my complaints, it was nice to have some time with my girlies.
SS is heading to fashion camp in a couple of weeks, and needed some things to take along. She is the easy one, though.
TT wears nothing but t-shirts (usually super-hero t-shirts). She is a self-proclaimed tomboy and refuses to wear anything that might be girly. When I asked her if she had a nicer shirt to wear to take-your-kids-to-work day today, she said, "my aeropostale polo shirt." Yes, in her world an aeropostale polo shirt is her "nice" shirt. (I guess if it has a collar, it's nice.) Preferably paired with knee-length khaki shorts.
After much searching, we finally found a teal blue shirt with no ruffles or sparkles. It technically falls into the t-shirt category, but it has some details that make it cute and summery. Good enough. At least there are no graphics or words on it. But I also got her a consolation "I heart Star Wars" t-shirt for enduring our shopping trip.
PS wears nothing but black and dark purple. And she has recently informed me that she doesn't like to wear shorts anymore--all she wants is black skinny jeans. (Yeah, we live in a place where our summers regularly include triple-digit days, and I don't wear jeans ever between May and October.) But none of her clothes fit. She's shot up to within 2 inches of my height and has started to fill out into regular-person size instead of beanpole-kid size, gaining a full 2 sizes in the last 9 months.
But, OMG, she won't pick anything out. She hates everything that I pick out. Shopping with her is torture, but the kid is literally bursting out of her clothes. We made it home with a pair of skinnies and a pair of shorts (we'll she if she decides they're not so bad come our first 110 degree day). I've never met another teenage girl who wouldn't pick out new clothes.
An hour-and-a-half was all I could take. And for all my complaints, it was nice to have some time with my girlies.
6/3/12
Working Mama Madness
I awoke this morning for the first time in months having slept through the night and without the foreboding weight on my chest that has been persistently awakened me for the past several weeks.
I slipped out of bed, my ipad and book* in hand, to enjoy a leisurely morning reading on the sofa, while the rest of the family snoozed. My fatal mistake was taking the ipad and reading my email.
My nanny tendered her notice. She will only be with us through the end of the month. Never mind that she has only been with us since February, and I was explicit in my interview that I needed someone who was available through the summer. Never mind that my children are devastated at the thought of saying goodbye.
So my leisurely morning was ruined, spent trying to figure out what I was going to do with my children for the summer. We had pretty much decided that we didn't need a nanny once school started. My girls will be 11 and 14--6th graders and a freshman. But I don't want them stuck at home for 10 hours a day, all day, through the summer. The point of the nanny wasn't so much for supervision (she was only coming in half days, anyway), but to have someone who could get the kids out of the house for a few hours each day and ensure that their eyes didn't glaze over and that their behinds didn't become glued to the sofas from watching television and playing video games all summer.
I think its unlikely I will find a replacement for a 7-week tenure--although maybe I will stumble upon a college student home for the summer. The more likely option is to put the twins into day care. Where they will be the oldest kids there and stuck away from home, all day, every day. And PS will be stuck at home all day, every day. Ugh, I don't like that plan.
It is just so frustrating to have to go through this again. I interviewed at least a dozen candidates for this position, and it took me weeks to find the right one. I emphasized that I needed someone who could commit through the summer--that my girls were still struggling with their last nanny going to college (she visited last week and they were so thrilled to see her!) and that they needed continuity. And I had asked several times recently if she needed any particular days off over the summer, and when she would be starting school in the fall, without response.
I don't know what to do. I'm tired of thinking about it. At least we have a couple of weeks.
* The book, "Into Thin Air." I plowed through it in less than 24 hours after picking it up from the library yesterday. It is about a deadly 1996 expedition to Mt. Everest. I became interested in the book after reading a news article last week about several recent deaths on Mt. Everest, and the shocking number of lives the mountain has taken over the years. I had no idea the climb was so deadly, and now I'm obsessed and moving on to books from the other participants in the '96 expeditions. I've never really had any particular fascination with Everest, and I'm not sure why it's suddenly piqued my interest, but I did enjoy the book.
I slipped out of bed, my ipad and book* in hand, to enjoy a leisurely morning reading on the sofa, while the rest of the family snoozed. My fatal mistake was taking the ipad and reading my email.
My nanny tendered her notice. She will only be with us through the end of the month. Never mind that she has only been with us since February, and I was explicit in my interview that I needed someone who was available through the summer. Never mind that my children are devastated at the thought of saying goodbye.
So my leisurely morning was ruined, spent trying to figure out what I was going to do with my children for the summer. We had pretty much decided that we didn't need a nanny once school started. My girls will be 11 and 14--6th graders and a freshman. But I don't want them stuck at home for 10 hours a day, all day, through the summer. The point of the nanny wasn't so much for supervision (she was only coming in half days, anyway), but to have someone who could get the kids out of the house for a few hours each day and ensure that their eyes didn't glaze over and that their behinds didn't become glued to the sofas from watching television and playing video games all summer.
I think its unlikely I will find a replacement for a 7-week tenure--although maybe I will stumble upon a college student home for the summer. The more likely option is to put the twins into day care. Where they will be the oldest kids there and stuck away from home, all day, every day. And PS will be stuck at home all day, every day. Ugh, I don't like that plan.
It is just so frustrating to have to go through this again. I interviewed at least a dozen candidates for this position, and it took me weeks to find the right one. I emphasized that I needed someone who could commit through the summer--that my girls were still struggling with their last nanny going to college (she visited last week and they were so thrilled to see her!) and that they needed continuity. And I had asked several times recently if she needed any particular days off over the summer, and when she would be starting school in the fall, without response.
I don't know what to do. I'm tired of thinking about it. At least we have a couple of weeks.
* The book, "Into Thin Air." I plowed through it in less than 24 hours after picking it up from the library yesterday. It is about a deadly 1996 expedition to Mt. Everest. I became interested in the book after reading a news article last week about several recent deaths on Mt. Everest, and the shocking number of lives the mountain has taken over the years. I had no idea the climb was so deadly, and now I'm obsessed and moving on to books from the other participants in the '96 expeditions. I've never really had any particular fascination with Everest, and I'm not sure why it's suddenly piqued my interest, but I did enjoy the book.
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