Nanny Adventures - Episode 1

"Weeping may endure for a morning, but joy cometh after nap-time."
- Katrina's Paraphrase of Psalm 30:5

Day 2 on the job started out great.
I arrived on time, began breakfast preparations, and put away clean dishes. As bacon sizzled in the oven and eggs bubbled on the stove, sleepy children were awakened and called to the table. Breakfast passed peacefully and then it was on to the morning routine - clean diapers, clean clothes, clean teeth, combed hair, and a few simple chores. Hannah (age 9) left for her day's outing with a friend, and the little ones played. There was no bickering, no disobedience, and only 2 spills - thankfully, it was only water both times.
A good morning.

Somewhere, along the way to lunch, things changed.
The baby, Ethan (age 1), who has been fussy these last couple of days due to a cold, decided he had had enough of life outside of his crib. It was time for bed. End of discussion.

The problem was, his nanny didn't recognize this fact soon enough. As his fussiness and the accompanying volume of noise in the house escalted, I tried everything to bring a bit of happiness and peace.
Water bottle.
Cold wash cloth.
Fun toy.

Waaa-aaaa!

Meanwhile, I set up a painting activity on the kitchen table for Zion (age 2) and Jessica (age 4) hoping it would pique their interest so I could make lunch.

Waaa-aaaa!

I picked Ethan up. He fussed.
I put him on the floor. He fussed.
I tried feeding him his formula bottle. He sucked most of it down, but then tossed it aside. Not interested.
Waaa-aaaa!

Lord, give me patience!

Since he seemed to indicate that he wanted to be with me while I attempted to make lunch in the kitchen, I tried strapping Ethan into the baby carrier on my back. That was a flopped attempt since I couldn't seem to get him and it on me at the same time. So we switched to the front. After what seemed like 10 minutes of trying to work with the silly contraption, I finally got the straps buckled! At last! Success!
Waa-aaaa!
Urgh.

Beginning to feel that nap-time was becoming absolutely essential, despite the fact he hadn't eaten any solid food yet, I hastened to put sheets on Zion's bed (which is in Ethan's room) in preparation for nap-time. As I dashed through the kitchen with an armload of sheets and a fussy baby in my kangaroo pouch, I was grateful to see that my other young charges were actually managing to keep most of the paint on the paper!

Just for the record, let me say that putting sheets on a toddler bed with a crying baby strapped to your front is not the best idea in the world - nor the easiest. When Ethan's cries escalated to those of desperation, I felt rather desparate myself! I took off the baby carrier, cuddled him for a moment, then tucked him in his crib. Immediately, the crying ceased, his thumb found his mouth, and my poor little baby was soon fast asleep.

Meanwhile, back in the kitchen, there were pictures to be admired, paint to wipe off the table, and lunch to be made. When we finally sat down to eat, I was spent. I felt like I had just emerged from a storm. The calm was welcome!

It was at that moment that little Jessica piped up.
"It sure is a beautiful day..." (looking out the window)
"Yes, it is," I responded, biting into an apple with a crunch.
"And a special one," Jessica continued.
"Yes, it is, " I said. "Why do you say it's a special one, Jess?"
She turned to look at me with big, serious eyes.
"Because you're here, " she said simply.

I gazed back at this precious, golden haired child, hardly believing I just heard what she said.
She kept looking back at me intently like she wanted me to know she meant every word.

In that moment, all the difficulty of the last two hours melted away. How very like the Lord to send a message of His love just when I needed it most.
I blinked hard.
"Thanks, Jessica. That's sweet of you to say."

From then on, the rest of my day went fabulously.