Our Childcare Journey

So I hadn't really gotten to share this...


I left off my story at us searching for a nanny. We had over 70 applicants to our posts on care.com and sittercity.com. Most of them worthless. It began with Nanny 1. Nanny 1 had great credentials but signed her emails "Ms. ____" which I already didn't like. I do not want grownups to refer to themselves that way to other grownups. Anyways, I already held my grudge and then Nanny 1 came in a smelled like smoke. She could have just turned around and walked right back out. (and yes, her profile said non smoker)


I loved Nanny 2. Nanny 2 was a few years younger than me, engaged, and had a 15 month old girl. We sat and talked to Nanny 2 for hours. When Nanny 2 left, I realized I wanted to be friends with Nanny 2, not hire her.


In the background of all this, there was Nanny 3. Nanny 3 wrote the most eloquent emails I have ever read. She was educated, retired, and away from her own grandkids. Perfect. I was DYING to meet Nanny 3. When I did, I was disappointed. Nanny 3 was very sweet but quite overweight. She could not get around very easily. Roman is wild now, I can't imagine in a short time when he can walk. My heart was broken that Nanny 3 did not live up to what I anticipated.


We had put a lot of stock in meeting Nanny 3. So we went back to the drawing board and interviewed Nanny 4. Nanny 4 originally wanted to watch kids in her own home, and then had written me back to tell me she had reconsidered. I LOVED Nanny 4. She was the whole package. A teacher, tired of teaching and financially able not to. Perky, warm, smart. Mother of a highschooler and college student. We offered Nanny 4 the job. She took a week to reply, only to say no, that she really just wanted to watch kids in her own home. REALLY?!?!?! Waste of time.


By the way this all took place over a month. Ugh.


So before Nanny 1, before before Nanny 1,my friend Elizabeth had said her friend was a nanny. She, now referred to as Nanny 5, has a son that is four months older than Roman. That made me very nervous and not very interested. Then, I honestly had forgotten about it. So Elizabeth reminded me and since nothing else had worked out, I made plans to interview Nanny 5 after our vacation.


While on vacation, hippie daycare called. They informed me of progress and I began to reconsider them. The money being one big reason. After vacation, we interviewed Nanny 5. I really liked Nanny 5, but I could not get over her son. And I was reconsidering having a nanny at all for financial reasons. I asked Nanny 5 if she would watch Roman until the hippie daycare opened. She had been offered another job and didn't want ours if it had the potential of ending in a matter of weeks. Fair enough.


That week I started working whenever I had someone to watch Roman. I spent Wednesday at home in tears most of the day. I had let myself be convinced that I could live with him going to Baptist East daycare until the hippie daycare opened. I guess I convinced myself. The entire day of crying and depression didn't seem very convincing. The next morning Elizabeth watched Roman. I told her about our decision and she really made me reconsider. She reassured me about her friend (Nanny 5) and her son. She really helped me see things clearly. I talked with friends and family and the load already began to lighten. I called and hired Nanny 5, LINDSEY, that night. That evening was filled with more smiling and laughter than Warren and I had seen out of each other for days.


So Lindsey started last week and things have been great! It is so relieving to have someone I trust and feel comfortable with watching Roman.

Super Nanny

Our plan all along has been to go to the daycare at Warren's work. I visited last summer when I was pregnant and thought the preschool program was great. However, in the past few weeks I have been very seriously panicking about leaving my boy. I mean, with anyone. I have spent every day with him for four months and I cannot imagine not being with him. Don't get me wrong, I love my job. Honestly, my ideal would be to work part time. Which we can't afford and if we found a way, I doubt my boss would let me. So along comes childcare. I was freaking out and sporadically crying about leaving Roman anyways. And I got this image in my head of Roman crying in a crib all alone, as such....


This was breaking my heart. One day I was perusing facebook and saw that Mama's Hip had posted about a new childcare center being opened. It is supporting a national program called Lively Children. I read up on it and was OBSESSED. It is all about organic food, nurturing the baby, free play, home like atmosphere, only TWO babies etc. It was out of the way, but I didn't care. I got an appointment to meet with the director and so super excited. However, when I met with her I was terribly disappointed. She was really nice, but just kind of out of it. I mean she was an intelligent lady, and I think she would love on my baby, but I just couldn't imagine her running a daycare. She did not instill confidence in me and Warren. That said, we have not completely discounted this place, just sort of put it on the back burner.
I emailed my doula Kim, who always knows the right thing to say, and she definitely encouraged me. I decided that my invented crib crying fantasy was no reason to discount our original plan. So I went to Warren's work yesterday to check things out. I left Roman with Warren to be ogled by the nurses and stopped in the daycare. I had a lovely, reassuring chat with the manager. I had a smile on my face as I walked for her to show me the 0-6 month room. When I walked in I could feel my face drop. I had to will myself not to throw up. There were two adults and ten babies, a ratio I was prepared to accept. However, there was not one baby, NOT ONE, being played with. They were the most lifeless looking little things compared to my (and my friends) babies. Two babies were in cribs asleep. Two were in cribs staring at the ceiling. Two were in Boppies staring at a wall. One was getting a bottle without being cradled. A few were in swings staring into space. It was heart wrenching. I fought back tears and tried to get out of there as soon as possible. When I left I texted Warren not to ask how it was, that we would discuss later. I didn't want to cause a scene at his work. But when I walked in, Theresa and Kristen, his closest co-workers had funny looks on their faces and asked how it was. I just started crying. Kristen hugged me and I just cried.
Obviously, I got my ish together and moved on. So now we are looking for a nanny. We have a job posting on both sittercity.com and care.com. We have had one applicant I am very interested in already. So wish us luck!