So a friend of mine, a mother whose lovely kids I look after, suggested I start a blog. She told me I should write about (her words): being a super nanny, knowing where to go for coffees in Melbourne, and how to be happy. She said I am good at all of those things.
It's always nice to hear when somebody says you're good at something, and especially nice when they are things you think are important things to be good at.
So, here I am. This blog is going to contain information about all of those things, and I hope to be a useful source of information for lots of people. This is my first blog with an audience in mind and I hope you'll give me feedback and suggestions, as my other blog was more like a journal or diary.
If you are wanting some sort of credibility assurance as to why you should follow my tips and blog: I have been a nanny for over 6 years, have been a barista and a coffee lover long before that and I have been happy for most of my life. So I guess you could say I am experienced when it comes to those three things. Of course, I know stuff about other things too. I will also share with you my experience with other things, as I talk a lot and since I write like I talk, expect there to be a lot of writing.
In the course of my very exciting life, I have learnt a lot of things from very wise people. Very wise old people, like my mother and other people's mothers, very wise peers, like my friends and role models, and very wise little people, like the tons of kids I have met and love in my life.
You might want to know why my blog is called 'The Accidental Nanny', and that's because when I was younger I didn't particularly like children and I thought I was going to be a novelist. I did a TAFE course in Professional Writing and Editing, and then struggled doing a Masters in Creative Writing. And when I finished I had already lost my mojo, but I tried so hard to get a job in the publishing industry or as a writer for so long, and I was sadly very unsuccessful, and I got very depressed about my abilities and skills and could no longer write application letters stating I was good at writing because I no longer felt that way. Losing one's mojo is a painful experience and it really gets you down.
Then, I very incidentally met two little girls of 4 and 6, my then boyfriend's half sisters. I spent a few days at their house and we got on like a house on fire. I found I spoke their language, I understood and could join in in their imaginative play, and they adored me. Their mum told me I should do something with children, as I was naturally good at it. She said that I should let the whole job application circus roll on without me for a little bit and just do something fun that I enjoyed. To get my mojo back, sort of thing.
So I placed an ad on the website findababysitter.com.au and within no time I had my first family. The one thing that people commented on as being their number one reason for calling me was that I wrote that I do not believe in TV as a babysitter. Children need to be stimulated in more ways than just being given things to look at.
I love children. They are such amazing company. I love their enthusiasm, their directness, their honesty, I also love the hilarious lies they tell, the way they never doubt you, and their eagerness to make you happy. Children are simple creatures, with boundless energy and love inside them, and a curiosity that will drive you crazy. Children are not stupid, and you do not need to talk down to them, or put on a baby voice. You don't ever need to yell at them, either. Children understand so much more than parents give them credit for, and they feel everything, even if they can not talk yet. They need to know what's coming, so that they can feel in control. It's simple, like I said.
I am a strict nanny, but I am fair and fun. I do not let my children watch tv, unless they are sick. I might let them watch a movie every now and then, or a little video (like Charlie & Lola) chosen by me on YouTube as a reward. I believe that today's children will spend enough time of their lives looking at screens. Technology is encroaching on our lives at a deadly pace and as much as I love how it makes our lives easier, I also know it can be a black hole for our time on this earth together.
I have very firm rules, clear boundaries, and I believe that rewards are the better way to teach a child about what's wrong and right than discipline, but I do believe discipline can be a useful tool. But if you guide a child the right way, you will barely need to use discipline techniques.
So, that's a little bit about me as a nanny. I will soon tell you more about me as a coffee snob and me as a happy person, but that'll do for now. I do not claim to be an expert on anything, and my tips and tricks might not work for you. But they work for me and if they work for others, I shouldn't keep them to myself. Who doesn't want to be happy, good with kids, and drinking the best coffee around?
In future posts I will share with you funny anekdotes, the best playgrounds I know, the way to get kids to sleep, where to go for coffee, what to do with kids on rainy days, how to live in the moment, how to be happily married and explain to you my obsession with organisation. But for now, that'll be all.
Class dismissed!
It's always nice to hear when somebody says you're good at something, and especially nice when they are things you think are important things to be good at.
So, here I am. This blog is going to contain information about all of those things, and I hope to be a useful source of information for lots of people. This is my first blog with an audience in mind and I hope you'll give me feedback and suggestions, as my other blog was more like a journal or diary.
If you are wanting some sort of credibility assurance as to why you should follow my tips and blog: I have been a nanny for over 6 years, have been a barista and a coffee lover long before that and I have been happy for most of my life. So I guess you could say I am experienced when it comes to those three things. Of course, I know stuff about other things too. I will also share with you my experience with other things, as I talk a lot and since I write like I talk, expect there to be a lot of writing.
In the course of my very exciting life, I have learnt a lot of things from very wise people. Very wise old people, like my mother and other people's mothers, very wise peers, like my friends and role models, and very wise little people, like the tons of kids I have met and love in my life.
You might want to know why my blog is called 'The Accidental Nanny', and that's because when I was younger I didn't particularly like children and I thought I was going to be a novelist. I did a TAFE course in Professional Writing and Editing, and then struggled doing a Masters in Creative Writing. And when I finished I had already lost my mojo, but I tried so hard to get a job in the publishing industry or as a writer for so long, and I was sadly very unsuccessful, and I got very depressed about my abilities and skills and could no longer write application letters stating I was good at writing because I no longer felt that way. Losing one's mojo is a painful experience and it really gets you down.
Then, I very incidentally met two little girls of 4 and 6, my then boyfriend's half sisters. I spent a few days at their house and we got on like a house on fire. I found I spoke their language, I understood and could join in in their imaginative play, and they adored me. Their mum told me I should do something with children, as I was naturally good at it. She said that I should let the whole job application circus roll on without me for a little bit and just do something fun that I enjoyed. To get my mojo back, sort of thing.
So I placed an ad on the website findababysitter.com.au and within no time I had my first family. The one thing that people commented on as being their number one reason for calling me was that I wrote that I do not believe in TV as a babysitter. Children need to be stimulated in more ways than just being given things to look at.
I love children. They are such amazing company. I love their enthusiasm, their directness, their honesty, I also love the hilarious lies they tell, the way they never doubt you, and their eagerness to make you happy. Children are simple creatures, with boundless energy and love inside them, and a curiosity that will drive you crazy. Children are not stupid, and you do not need to talk down to them, or put on a baby voice. You don't ever need to yell at them, either. Children understand so much more than parents give them credit for, and they feel everything, even if they can not talk yet. They need to know what's coming, so that they can feel in control. It's simple, like I said.
I am a strict nanny, but I am fair and fun. I do not let my children watch tv, unless they are sick. I might let them watch a movie every now and then, or a little video (like Charlie & Lola) chosen by me on YouTube as a reward. I believe that today's children will spend enough time of their lives looking at screens. Technology is encroaching on our lives at a deadly pace and as much as I love how it makes our lives easier, I also know it can be a black hole for our time on this earth together.
I have very firm rules, clear boundaries, and I believe that rewards are the better way to teach a child about what's wrong and right than discipline, but I do believe discipline can be a useful tool. But if you guide a child the right way, you will barely need to use discipline techniques.
So, that's a little bit about me as a nanny. I will soon tell you more about me as a coffee snob and me as a happy person, but that'll do for now. I do not claim to be an expert on anything, and my tips and tricks might not work for you. But they work for me and if they work for others, I shouldn't keep them to myself. Who doesn't want to be happy, good with kids, and drinking the best coffee around?
In future posts I will share with you funny anekdotes, the best playgrounds I know, the way to get kids to sleep, where to go for coffee, what to do with kids on rainy days, how to live in the moment, how to be happily married and explain to you my obsession with organisation. But for now, that'll be all.
Class dismissed!
Dear Florence,
ReplyDeleteI don't have kids, but I do love coffee and I do be happy... I already love your blog!
Big hug, Renée