I nanny for three kids, the oldest girl is 9, the middle boy is 6, and the youngest little girl is 19 months. I have been with the family since the baby was born and I love them, but sometimes I don't really like them.
One of those times is when I am asked to do the carpool (I call it carpool, but it really just involves the kids in this family and chauffeuring them to and from all of their activities). I dread these days when something in the schedule is amiss and the mom has to leave me to tend to all three kids in the car...during rush hour... in their Volvo which I hate driving.
The car pool consists of getting to school 15 minutes early (why I am still not sure) waiting in the playground area while the youngest who has just mastered the art of walking or should we say waddling (she was a late bloomer), attempts to climb up the steps and go down the slide while a few bigger kids rush around not caring whether they pummel her over or not. Finally, after I go down the slide with her a few times, the other two kids come out, and I attempt to quickly direct them to the exit gate and away from the playground.
Ok, first 30 minutes successfully completed.
First debacle-- Both kids throw their book bags down expecting me to carry them and we go through the same conversation we've had a million times before, "That is your bag, you have to carry it. Oh, it's too heavy? Well then wheel it along, that's why mommy bought you the bags that look like luggage for school."
Second dilemma--Once we finally cross the street and get to the car, we then have to decide who gets to sit next to the window and who gets to sit in the middle. I swear I think I do more negotiating in a day that any CEO. Shiloh gets the window seat, while Evan gets the middle. This negotiation was not an easy task. We decided that whoever has to sit in the middle gets to control the radio. This was a huge adjustment that I had to make as a carpooling nanny-- I quickly realized that I would never ever get to listen to the music I wanted to hear during carpool time--EVER. So, I put on Evan's kiddie cd and off we go.
Third Dilemma- All three kids have demanded their afternoon snacks and as usual, they each get a fruit and a string cheese. I start off using the GPS to get me, first to Shiloh’s dance class and then I take Evan to his soccer practice. Shiloh refuses to change in the car like she is suppose to, so she goes into dance class and has to put on her leotard by herself in the dance studio bathroom while I have visions of some crazy person stealing her and taking her out the exit door in the back of the building.
Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Dilemmas--Once I drop Evan off, I literally turn around and pick Shiloh up from dance and then I go back and pick Evan up from soccer. All the while, Kiley has taken a crap in her diaper and is screaming to get out of the seat she's been attached to for two hours. We negotiate the seat arrangements again and we are on our way back home. Of course, there is some fighting about how Shiloh’s choice of music sucks while the baby continues to scream, cars are beeping in traffic, and the dad is calling me up to find out when I will be home with their car. I finally get home, park the car, and pat myself on the back for managing to get everyone home alive despite the six dilemmas I faced, and I pray to myself that I avoid driving my car off the nearest cliff on the way home after work.
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