Week one down

So I'm done my first week of being a real working mother. That is, actually working (outside of the house) over the summer. I had the gang in camp last week and that worked fine for the afternoon but my boss needed me in there more hours these next two weeks. So, to the rescue... Erin!

Erin is 14 years old and has all the youthful enthusiasm you'd expect comes with her age. Enthusiasm with the kids. With me? Not so much. Example: I'm not one to call a sitter once I'm out. It tends to stress me out more than comfort me. But Monday was her first day and she'd only sat for us once before so I thought it'd be okay to just give her a quick shout at lunchtime. Here's how the conversation went:

Me: Hey Erin, how's it going?
Erin: Fine.
Me: How are the kids?
Erin: Fine.
Me: So everything's going smoothly? No problems?
Erin: No.
Me: So do you have any questions?
Erin: Nope.
Me: Feel free to use this number anytime. It's not a problem at all.
Erin: Okay.
Me: Well... umm... bye! See you at about 2:15!
Erin: Bye.

Argh. I really had to restrain myself from asking to speak to the kids. Just to see if they weren't bound and gagged or something. I spent the rest of the day with my stomach in knots. When I got home the kids were happy to see me and delighted to tell me about all the fun they had. They went on a bike ride to the park, they had a picnic (with popsicles), then out to the pool. Huh? Why didn't she mention it when I called? Geez, way to freak me out.

She's quiet but full of ideas. Tuesday she brought faceplates to paint and decorate, Wednesday she baked muffins and yesterday I came home to find them all having a waterballoon fight in the backyard. Whew. She's only weird with me.

She's called me at work only twice. Once she was looking for the cookie sheets and the second time (slightly more alarming) was the "does your stove burner always smoke like that?" conversation complete with whirring exhaust fan sound effect in the background. Oops. I forgot to tell her that we only use the back burners. It stemmed from when the kids were toddlers and just became a habit over the years. The front ones are pretty much just for catching errant pieces of macaroni and crumbs and also for being a quite convenient spoon rest. Which explains all the smoke when she switched it on. Poor girl.

And I can't forget the call I got yesterday from Erin's mother. That was a sinus clearer. Thank goodness she began with an "everybody's fine" because I had immediate visions of the four of them being airlifted to CHEO. Supposedly Erin got her period at my house and was embarrassed to ask me if I had any pads. Poor girl. I didn't so she and the kids went on a field trip to her house for supplies.

So it looks like aside from parting with $300 for these 2 weeks (so I'm basically working to pay Erin), things are working out okay. Now let's hope I haven't jinxed myself just then...
Have an excellent weekend!

kxx