A Very Lucky Girl

God, I'm so bilingual. Nahhhht. Another week, another check. And I haven't had to work past 4 PM yet this summer. So far, so good. This week I: corrected grammar: "She jamped!" No, she JUMPED.  made breakfast: chocolate pancakes. They asked for extra chocolate chips AND syrup. AM I mean for refusing? sat stonily when they tried to tickle me overused the word/sound "shmeh" to the point where they have begun to mimic me avoided Sister's cuddles at all costs. She is always wanting to hang on me in the heat of the day. CHILD, IT'S FAR TOO HOT FOR THAT. Learned that Pluto is officially no longer a planet Learned a continent named Oceania exists was stumped when asked, "how many movies have you seen in your life?" Overall, a pretty uneventful week in the life of A Very Lucky Nanny. Except for when I impaled my shin on rocks by the creek after our picnic lunch on Wednesday.

dragonfly...? trash can diary key Do you remember the adventures of Brother and Sister (E and C) from last summer? (If you need a refresher, you can look back on the months of June and July from 2012 in the right side bar).  They're back. And I'm back. And we're already sunburned. I also add two of their friends (Mc and Mk) to the mix on Tuesdays and Wednesdays after swim practice.  They never cease to keep me laughing (at least inwardly) and I'll highlight the best of the week in a post every Friday. Quotable Quips: "Are we there yet?"-C. "Has the car stopped moving?" You may think I'm sassy for a nanny, but I like to think I'm real.  "How far away are we?"-C. "Everytime the tires move we get a little bit closer!"  When C was eating her lunch on Thursday (turkey and cheese on crackers), she asked, "was this cheese already sliced?" Yes, that was what was in your fridge. "Oh." She set do...

"... she rejoiced as only mothers can in the good fortunes of their children ." -Louisa May Alcott I should probably begin this tribute to these certain 21 influential people in my life with a post dedicated to the woman who experienced labor in order for the world to experience me. If you're about those Thank-You notes I can provide an address for her upon request. Shari Nelson Arceneaux and I have a running joke about what a "good mother" would do (which is typically the opposite of what actually happens). It came from a novel that we both read that I can't remember the name of now. But my good mother instilled a love of reading in me from a very young age. I can remember being put to bed with visions of Laura Ingalls Wilder and Anne of Green Gables swirling through my imagination. She taught me how to make the essentials in the kitchen: spaghetti, spicy pretzels, and ultimate chocolate chip cookies.  She's one of my biggest cheerleaders and the b...

I never fail to blush furiously when I reread my old journals. There are pros and cons to keeping track of my life events since the 6th grade. And a pro is seeing the growing up process and discovering 8 specific things I'm SO glad I have left in the past: 2007-"...he said I was smart, funny, clever, and beautiful. And made him feel like he could be himself. How does he always know what to say?" I outgrew the terrible trait of fishing for compliments by asking that awfully annoying question, "but, like, why do you like me?" of guys I talked to, and actually believing their answer. Side note: Tyler tried to tell me I didn't need to fish for compliments, and without reading what this unnamed previous guy had said, began to tell me, "you're smart and funny..." Oh. Well, that's familiar. 2008-"I also wrote a sonnet about NH." I haven't written a sonnet since. To be fair, it was an assignment for a class, but the subject ma...

I go through phases of addictiveness to Pinterest. I'm currently in an "on" phase, partially because it's one more thing I can do on my phone while I nanny, and partially because I have a little bit more free time for arts and crafts projects. Or, at least, I tell myself I do.  I have 18 boards. And within those boards are far too many pins to count. T.S.M. This is my catch-all board. A miscellaneous category, if you will. It contains workout pins, Alpha Delta Pi paraphernalia, and random projects that I mean to get around to completing. Eventually.  For the Love of All Words. The board of quotes. Any phrase that I relate to gets re-pinned. My current favorite is a Proverb, "She is clothed in strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future." I am in the process of crafting a wall ornament with those words to inspire me to be that woman.  CLICK. I'm not a photographer. But if I ever suddenly get really talented, or more likely, ...

The other day I was texting one of my friends and mentioned that I was jealous of his life and wished that I was him at that moment (he was taking a nap. one of my favorite things in the world) and he countered with, "...but I like you for being Taylor." 1, 2, 3...d'awwww. And it reminded me of one of my favorite quotes in all the world from 27 Dresses, "Why would you want to be me if you get to be you?"  But I recently got to thinking, who would I want to be, if I wasn't me? Obviously, Jennifer Aniston is high on that list. She is one of my all-time favorite women. I love her in every single movie she stars in, but I have a secret girl crush on her as Rachel in Friends. She possesses this likable quality that I would give anything to have, her ditzy actions overshadowed by her good intentions and easy laugh. And Jen herself isn't too bad, either. I don't know her personally, unfortunately, but from what I've seen of her in the Hollywood world,...

"Kindred spirits are not so scarce as I used to think. It's splendid to find out there are so many of them in the world"-L.M. Montgomery (Anne of Green Gables) My mom read this to me when I was little and it quickly became one of my all time favorite books. I longed for that real, true friendship that I saw between Anne and Diana and I have been lucky to find it, many times over.  Moriah I met her the summer before my sophomore year of high school when my family moved to Beaumont, Texas but I could swear that I have known her my entire life. I truly consider her my sister, and we are less than 2 weeks apart in age. She's older...but she sure doesn't act like it ;) (total lie, everyone knows that I can barely spell maturity, let alone act it out). Bottom line: she loves Anne of Green Gables nearly as much as me. She claims the part of Anne but I let her. I'm more than happy to forego being a ginger! Megan I only met her a year ago. Seriously, o...

"What a world we live in. I want to be incredibly close to the heart of it all. To live honestly, truthfully and to be completely present is the ultimate enterprise. And right now, I couldn't possibly ask for anything more. I am a very lucky girl." Those are the words of Dianna Agron. I can't say that I am a huge fan of hers, but I think these words are very powerful. And I thought I should explain the title of my blog, before all else. Because I am , you know. A very lucky girl. I don't want to make this a place of complaining or ranting or pity. I want this to be a place of growth and this title will remind me everyday of how blessed I am.   Beyond that, I am such a lover of words. My Pinterest board of quotes is titled: "for the love of all words" because I do love them all (except of course for those disgusting words like moist, panties, and supple. seriously, those are gross. English would not suffer with their destruction). I finally FINALLY d...