Part 2

I emailed back and forth a bit with Miss Kelly and figured she was a winner so we set up a day and time for her to come and meet the kids, meet us and basically get a feel for things. Tuesday morning she showed up right at 10 o'clock and I liked her right away. These are the reasons why:

1. She jumped right in with the kids and started playing with them, acting like she'd known them forever, which I think gave them a since of security and OKness with her, even though they didn't know her from Adam.

2. Took initiative with them, not waiting for me to tell her what to do, she just did everything. (ie. changed Troy without asking me, put him down for a nap when she thought he was tired, spoke firmly to Ben when he was out of line, etc.)

3. She sized up the kids personalities really quickly and related to them well.

One very cool thing that happened right away was when she saw Ben's school bag she told him she had gone to that school also, years ago, and it turns out she had Ben's teacher, Mrs. Keller too! So that was a neat way to break the ice with Ben and also give him something to attach her to as opposed to just being a total stranger. Miss Kelly also taught at Ben's school for three years a few years ago. (She's 26, if you're wondering).

While she was here I spent the first hour running errands and when I came home she had taken the kids to the park. So Mark and I cleaned the house really well, since it's so much easier to clean the house without kids in it. I left again, (this time for a little quiet time at Starbucks - all by myself!!) while Mark had some clients stop by. Here's a funny story; Miss Kelly and the kids came home while the clients were still there and when Ben walked in the door he stops and says, (in front of the clients mind you...)

"Wow!! The house is so clean! Did the cleaners come?"

Mark: "Ha! Um no."

Ben: " Who cleaned the house?"

Mark: "Mom and Dad."

Ben: "Whose Mom and Dad?"

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Um yeah, I guess I do need a little help. One of the (many) benefits of Miss Kelly being here on Tuesdays is that I will be able to take Ben to school while she stays home with Addison and Troy. Not having to get them in and out of the car saves me probably 20 minutes and about 1,000 stress wrinkles. I loved coming home from taking him and walking in to find her, after already cleaning up lunch, putting Troy down for a nap. I really liked that she didn't feel like she needed to wait for me, she saw that he was tired and though she had never put him down before she was willing to figure it out. Unfortunately I walked in his room not realizing what she was doing and totally set him off, but it's good to know that up until my entrance he was totally fine with her putting him to bed. He also gladly went into her arms from mine once or twice, which is really big.

So I'm excited! I am so thankful for Miss Kelly and her great childcare skills and that my kids liked her and she liked them. This is a huge blessing for me, and I am SO thankful! I will have to figure out the best way to use my time, and her time, wisely, but I really don't think that will be a problem.

So if you live in the south county area and need a fantastic sitter Miss Kelly is the gal for you! (Just not on Tuesdays between 10 and 1.) :-)