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Outdoor Activities

Free weekend fun for all!

The weekend is nearly here and I’ve got a couple fun ideas for you and your family…best of all, they’re free! My favorite type of event 🙂

The first weekend in August is Seafair weekend in Seattle. This is an entire weekend of fun along the shores of Lake Washington. Hydro plane races, air shows put on by the Blue Angels, wakeboard demos, and BMX stunt shows. Depending on what interests you, find a park near the water (early!!!), pack snack and waters for all, a couple blankets to sit on and enjoy the celebration! For a full list of the schedule visit here. Be aware, some parks do charge admission/parking so research before heading out.

Image result for blue angels

 

At the Seattle Center:

-The Fountain!!!! Get your splash on and enjoy the sun!

-5:00 PM Summer Playground Party
Summer fun, music and creative play for the pre-teen crowd FREE
Next 50 Plaza

-As mentioned in a previous post, they are also hosting free movies at the mural starting at dusk. This weeks movie is LaLa Land

Free and fun for the art enthusist:

-Seattle Art Fair is going on this weekend. Many galleries are free and the fair is distributed throughout downtown. Check it out right here!

-Looking to get some music into your weekend? Why not visit the Ballard locks and enjoy a concert at the Locks? Take a glance at the calendar at  Hiram M. Chittenden Locks .

Have a fun free event in Seattle that I may have over looked? Please share here! We are always looking to add to our Northwest Bucket list, when it’s free its even more enjoyable!

Have an awesome weekend everyone! Stay cool and play hard!

 

Hiring a Nanny, Resources, Tools

What’s in a name? Au pair?

Alright, I’ve given an idea of what a mother’s helper, babysitter, and nanny are in previous posts and here is the finale…Au pair!

I’ll be honest, as I have a ton of personal experience in the first three names they were easy for me to address. Au pair is a name I had to learn about. I heard the term in books and movies but it wasn’t until I began my nanny career that I was face to face with a (gasp) real live au pair. I would run into people my age, doing what seemed to be the same thing as I was but they called themselves au pairs. I found this fascinating. What the heck was the difference between them and me?? I had to find out, after all, a name means a lot to most people. What was an au pair if not a nanny?

Well, here is the long and the short of it, they are pretty much the same thing with a few very key differences. Au pair means on “par,” a “visitor” who must acquire a specialized Visa and live with a single family caring for the children of said family for one year, acting as an equal in the family. While living in the home, an au pair would typically have quite similar tasks as a nanny such as household chores, childcare, and meal prep. Some families might like an au pair to teach their children the language and culture of the visiting au pair. Au pairs often work a slightly longer week, unless also involved in an education program paired with employment.

The income of an au pair is something I don’t fully understand. From a little internet research, it seems to me, that depending on how a family obtains an au pair for employment the rates change slightly. I was seeing government stipends, agency fees, reference to “type of visa.” If any one understands this part better then I, please please share it with me!! I’m just curious, is it as confusing as it seems on google search?

My best advice is to do diligent research if you go this route. It is easy to see that if one isn’t careful, the combination of “being part of the family” whilst still being professional could get blurred for the family and au pair. To ensure everyone is happy, the best way to enter into this sort of relationship is with as much clarity of needs and expectations beginning at the first stages. I find its always easier to avoid confusion by explaining up front, often very appreciated.

 

 

Hiring a Nanny

What’s in a name? part 3 (almost done!)

So…I got a little of track and distracted by the weekend and all that wonderful time in the kitchen and forgot to finish off this idea of childcare defined by it’s name, my apologies!

Today’s name is-NANNY!

With a nanny, your child care has grown up or graduated in terms of expectations, responsibilities, and commitment level. A nanny has finish high school but may still be pursuing further education leading to a varied schedule as well as a higher motivation for a steady income. Completion of school work during nanny hours are agreed upon by family and nanny, but may not be an option in all homes. A nanny is generally responsible for their own transportation to and from home.

A nanny becomes the right hand for parents when they are not home. Nanny task often extend beyond strictly childcare including but not limited to household laundry, meal prep, dishes, service appointments, errands, carpool, etc. The degree of involvement should be decided by parents upon hiring a nanny. Do you want this person to have access to your credit cards, fold your under garments, drive your children around, have a house key, drive your car? Is the task list a feasible one to accomplish while providing quality child care?

Most nannies are working full time and are expecting to have some what regular hours/income, it is important to be sure both the family and the nanny are in agreement to what a that looks like. A nanny may be willing to travel with a family or do an “overnight” -a couple days in home while parents travel for additional compensation and as a sub agreement.

A nanny can quickly become part of the family so it is wise to discuss how much interaction the family would like to have with nanny outside of work hours. Ponder this, would you want your nanny to attend sporting events/plays/concerts of your child? Being a volunteer chaperone at school? There is no right answer but may be something you’d like to consider!

A great nanny, is an amazing person. One full of energy, motivation, laughter, and endless ideas. Someone who will encourage growth and learning, who will help foster young minds to accomplish great things. They will be able to anticipate the needs of those around them, be full of compassion, patience, and understanding, and no knowledge of the meaning of “can’t.”

 

Food/Recipes

What to do with last weeks groceries…

Growing up dinner was often decided by a quick glance in the fridge, followed by an inventory of what was most in need of being used. Recipes were referenced but I really wouldn’t say “used.” When I was learning to cook, I was taught using a method of waste nothing, don’t follow the rules, and measurements are for suckers. Of course while this was going on, I was under the impression this was how everyone prepared a meal.

Waste nothing is still one of my favorite “rules” of my kitchen. Every weekend I like to open the fridge and clear it out…but not into my compost bin (the horror!), instead I pretend I’m on one of those cooking shows with mystery baskets and I’ve got to use every item. This week I was incredibly impressed with that came out of my kitchen (and my fridge) so I just have to share!

This week my fridge was an “odd” mix for me. Items I generally don’t have on hand were inching toward their expiration dates (guess that’s why I generally don’t have them, haha) and I was thrown a little of my game. I had french bread for sandwiches I never made, too many cherries, sour cream, mushrooms, and eggs for days. Now when I play my version, I’m allowed research so pintrest and allrecipes are top on my list and almost always save the day.

Yesterday my husband got busy doing man stuff aka the stuff I don’t really want to do (hang shelves and wash the car) and I got busy in the kitchen.

To my delight, I found a recipe for an overnight french toast that not only tackled most of my bread dilemma, it also used almost half my eggs! Even better, I got to use a pantry item that has also been sitting on a shelf way to long without a purpose (bye bye pumpkin butter, love you but you’ve got to go)! Eggs -check, bread-check, breakfast for this morning made before I open my eyes-check! 🙂

I finished of the bread by slicing thin and spraying each side lightly with olive oil, popped them in oven for 10 minutes per side at 350 and made crostinis. Snack for this afternoon-done (we always have some hummus or cheese on hand for easy snacking).

The mushrooms and sour cream got turned into a hearty dinner of beef stroganoff…only 5 ingredients and soooooo tasty.

And finally the cherries. I made the most amazing sauce for pork chops. A sweet twist for the taste buds and the menu. I’ve heard they pair well and was so pleased with how well they truly play together. Yet another reason to support the local fruit farmers.

With my fridge now back to the basic staple items, my tummy full and my heart content I can look forward to another wonderful week without any unpleasant fridge finds.

 

Education, Hiring a Nanny, Resources

What’s in a name? cont.

Today’s name is babysitter!

What’s the first thing that pops into your head when you hear “babysitter”? For me it’s a term I’ve heard nearly all my life but not because we frequently had one, with 3 older sisters I was well looked after…believe me.  I first became familiar with babysitting as a young reader who enjoyed reading the adventures of a certain club. Then my sisters started becoming babysitters. They would be gone for hours, making money then buying themselves clothes and make-up my parents wouldn’t splurge on (the ultra trendy, will be worn once but worth a months pay sort of things). That was exciting to watch, I wanted things too, but what exactly is a babysitter?

Here we go…

A babysitter tends to be young adults who are a little more independent and responsible. They are able to find their own transportation to and from jobs. They are looking for cash (immediate) and job experience/references. Often they are in school so available hours vary but lend themselves to afternoons and into early evening. With that in mind, many sitters will have homework they might want to work on with the child they are caring for as they complete their own or after children are in bed. Babysitters are responsible for well being and safety of children, regularly without adult supervision. Activities can be provided by parent or generated by sitter but usually do not require much travel outside of home/neighborhood. Babysitters might be asked to do light housekeeping (i.e. put dish into dishwasher, make snacks/dinner, pick up toys) however chores should be related to child and items used while sitter was “in charge.”

As each family unit varies greatly, it is helpful for the sitter to have very clear guidelines and expectations. Family rules, culture and routines should be followed and respected. It is up to each family to discuss and provide these to babysitter prior to leaving the house, and highly advised. What one family may find acceptable such as using cell phones, eating family food, and having friends over may be greatly frowned upon by another. As a babysitter, it is wise to ask as many questions prior to parents departure…better safe than sorry.

Shout out to all the babysitters! You all rock! You are needed, appreciated and help so many parents with sanity, marriage, and socialization…keep up the awesome work!

Hiring a Nanny, Uncategorized

What’s in a name?

What’s in a name? What is the big deal and why do people care so much about their name? Like when you meet someone and before you even have a chance to forget their name, they tell you “my name is Jennifer…not Jenn, or Jenny…don’t call me anything but Jennifer!” Whoa, why so bothered? How many times have you introduced your self this way, I wonder. I’ve actually been overhearing this as my work place is on boarding new staff, during my time volunteering at the zoo, or just sitting at the local bar . I suppose since it’s pretty hard to shorten Laura, I find this whole thing slightly interesting and I obviously haven’t had the experience of those with long names but the all of it got me think, what’s in a name?

What does this have to do with anything relevant to nanny consulting you might being asking yourself (or shouting through your screen at me)…here’s how. If we consider names are also job titles, in the world of child care there are so many different titles people use: babysitter, mothers helper, nanny, au pair just to name a few.

It’s confusing for those looking to find the right fit for their families when you aren’t sure which “name” to use when on your search. Do you need help Monday-Friday 9-5? Do you want to be able to run a few errands in the afternoon and maybe a date night once a month? Do you need some one to help entertain your little one and fold some laundry while you unload the dishwasher? Or are you looking for some who can live in and is also fluent in another language or culture then English?  Finding your fit is as easy as remembering the right “name.”

This week I’m going to give you my spin on each of these different names/titles.

Today’s name to think about is Mother’s helper.

Mother’s Helper: Ideally, a neighborhood preteen looking for a little cash and babysitting experience. Not quite old enough to be left home alone with children but responsible enough to be in different parts of house/yard to allow parents time to do some chores, get dinner started, get into the garden, etc. Usually will need transportation assistance if beyond short walk to and from home. There are varying degrees of a mother’s helper, some can be left home alone during a quick errand to the store, or run around the block. This is up to the parents of all involved (the child who is being looked after and the helper’s) based on safety and comfort levels of both parties. This may be revisited as helper ages. Usually paid day of service or as arranged by parents.

*A mother’s helper could of course also be an adult but may be looking for less then part-time (think in school, has a desire for second job/additional income, retired but still active). Beyond that I would begin to consider said person to be more along the line of babysitter/nanny which “names” I’ll ponder later this week.

 

Outdoor Activities

How was your weekend?

Hey all, hope you’re enjoy all the joys of summer! Just wanted to send out a quick shout out to a wonderful weekend. What could be better than a couple hours floating on the river? Maybe watching bald eagles fishing just feet away from said float? I had an amazing weekend, spent celebrating a fabulous brother in law’s birthday. Eating, floating, surrounded by children’s laughter and fantastic food…I will not complain!

How was your weekend? What did you get up to? Who went to the bite of seattle, or participated in the Capital Hill block party? Maybe you saw or even went to the WNBA All-star game?

Inquiring minds are dying to know where you got your fun on this weekend! Go ahead and share.

Indoor Categories, Outdoor Activities

Whatcha doing this summer??

Summer is here and in full swing! I’m guilty of being a little swept away with all the possibilities of  summer. Late nights outside because the sun sets at 9. Me staying up too late, warm weekends lending themselves to brunches out with day drinks with friends, baseball has me glued to the TV nearly every night past bedtime and then some and I’m not sorry about any of it! Well, I’m a little sorry in the morning when the alarm signals another day of adulting before I get to slip back into my summer attitude. I’m also sorry I’m not getting as much posted as I “should” but that got me thinking about what it is that has you disregarding your routine this summer…

My bucket list: Movie in the park, camping, hiking, visit a body of water not in the immediate seattle area, continue filling my rooftop with plants (and perhaps a little less killing/frying the ones I have up there), get a cabin on the island for a weekend, go to a baseball game, maybe an outdoor concert (bumbershoot anyone)?

What else can I add? What’s on yours?

Summer is so much more fun when it’s shared! Give me all the ideas and I can pretend I have all the time! Looking for kid friendly, as well as date ideas.

 

Outdoor Activities

Movies in the park!

Free movies in the park! I just had to share as whats better then a free event for a family on a budget or a nanny looking to spice up the day to day routine? One that last through dinner ( picnic and popcorn!) and up to bedtime.

Might I suggest checking out:

Crossroads Movies in the Park  for August shows

Downtown Bellevue Movies in the Park shows in July and August!

Movies at the Mural (aka the Seattle Center) also showings July and August

For a super extensive list of movies in the park go to https://www.seattlemet.com/articles/2017/6/9/seattle-summer-outdoor-movie-guide-2017