Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Another day at the office....



Note to self: This is what happens when you let a four-year old "help" with the sunscreen on your back. I started my new job on Monday, and so far it has been exhausting. The family is on vacation from Frankfurt to Lake Starnberg, about an hour south of Munich. They have two daughters, but at the moment I'm only caring for the youngest, who is four. And challenging.

The tantrums are getting shorter, at least. This morning there was an 80-minuter about getting dressed, but the last of the day (about drinking some water) was only 15 minutes or so. So, at this rate, we should end tomorrow in 30 second tantrums, right?

She is going through a time of transition, and that can be difficult. Her mother is having a baby, she is on vacation with a new nanny, and she seems to have some issues regarding her gender. I guess its not so odd, one of my previous charges was a puppy for a day, why not the opposite sex?

The major problems arise mostly when her mother is around. Mom is very nice, a PHD in something sciency and is intent on explaining everything to her daughter regarding why she can't come along for prenatal checks and whatnot. I'm all for explaining, however when the child launches into full-on tantrum, I think its time for a new tactic. Also, Mom wants me to only speak English with the girls, insisting they both know it. The older one is certainly fluent, but the younger one isn't. As far as I can tell the only English she knows is "no" and "nyah nyah nyah nyah nyah!" (Is that even English?) So, on that score I can understand when the she gets frustrated because I can't understand 70% of the things she says. But, circumstances have brought us together and hopefully we can learn to get along.

At the very least they are paying me well, and when I came home late tonight Ryan had bought flowers and cooked me spaghetti. Its the little things that make me realize why I work all these crazy jobs in the first place.

1 comment:

Imaginer said...

I looked nyah nyah nyah up in the dictionary and it is in fact a word, but only if you use it multiple times in quick succession. It is of slavic origin and actually is the root of several Russian and English words having to do with or pertaining to stubborness, contraryness, discontentedness and confussion. Nyah nyah nyah can mean several different things, according to the dictionary. The definition that might help you the most is this: a filler phrase that can be applied in many situations. For example, if the user is unhappy or disagrees with a situation the words may be utilized with fierce emotion. It may also be used to expression gleeful bliss or quiet contentedness. And then the words may be softly sung to ones self.

Hope that helps! Way to find a job!!! Are you having many vistors or planed visits?