H's Birthday!

We had such a fun time celebrating H's birthday at the bowling alley! I think it's just me, but she seriously looks like she is 5 years old now. And to sum it all up, here's a quote... "I don't want to drink from that sippy cup, I'm 5 years old!" -H
We stopped at the mall before bowling, and I am in love with these closed in play areas. If we had a mall in our town, I have no doubt we would go there and play on this thing every day.

Happy Birthday Darling! Love, Nanny B<3

Happy Birthday to H!

It's almost my darling dear, H's 5th birthday and my how she has grown. When I met H, she had just turned 3, and I'll be honest, our relationship didn't have the easiest start. I spent a decent amount of time thinking (and venting to Charlotte), "I'm not so sure about this," "Toddlers are exhausting," "I don't understand 3 year olds"," No I do not want to play ponies," "maybe I should stick to babies," and "Yeah babies are definitely my thing," are just a few of the phrases than ran through my mind during the first few months. Keep in mind, H's family was my first nanny family. My first experience working with toddlers, working with babies, working with parents, in someone else's house, etc. And for this reason, among many others, they will always be held very close to my heart.

Anyways, as time went on, H and I grew closer. I began to understand her. I grew to love her. And she taught me a lot. Seriously, a lot. She taught me how loud a child can scream. She taught me how to recognize when a child is lying. She taught me the power (both positive, and negative) of the word "No". But most of all, she taught me the meaning of unconditional, popcorn-and-movie-day, jumping-in-rain-puddles, cuddling-till-you-fall-asleep, love. 

And my how I love that girl. And her wide smile. And her silliness. And her sweet voice. And her ability to care and watch over those around her. And the way she looks out for her sister. And they way she runs and jumps into my arms with so much force that she knocks the glasses of my head and breaks them in the middle of McDonald's. Yes, I love her. Always and forever. Every minute of every day of every month and year. 

Here are a couple of pictures of the treats that H and I made today for her to take to school on her birthday!:

Happy Birthday my darling dear! Nanny loves you so very much<3

Life is short...

Yesterday, I had a 10 hour day with H (age 5) and L (age 2). I watch them 10 hours a day, twice a week (Thursday and Friday). Fridays are our special day, because there is no school for H (preschool, that is) but it is not the weekend. So we decided to spend our day:
-Making peanut butter chocolate chip pancakes (which burnt...yes, every, single, one of them)
-Making cookie dough bars (which were raw because they were so thick, they refused to bake)
-We made a giant couch slide (if you haven't done this with your nanny kids, it is a must!)
-Took a break from our couch slide to run through the sprinklers, in our pajamas
-Ate popcorn...on our couch slide.
-Made the girls favorite mac&cheese, because it is nearly fool-proof, and we'd had enough cooking fails for the day
-We topped it all off with a nice long nap, followed by making brownies (for which we forgot to add the flour)

Life is short, so in the midst of surviving each day, don't forget to live. Run through the sprinklers in your pajamas, make the brownies, and let the kids take the couch apart. Make amazing memories, just don't skip nap-time. It is very important. ;)

Happy Saturday! -Nanny B