Our Own Mary Poppins

It's been a roller coaster week for us. Our beloved day-care that we've been going to for 18 months is closing. It's family run and we've got to know all the teachers and parents and kids so well that it really does feel like a family is breaking up. When they told me last week it was closing I cried and I'll not be able to do the last pick-up this week because I'll be a blubbering wreck. Our Jack talks about his friends non stop but I know he'll move on to new pastures without too much looking back. It's me that's getting upset!

On Friday our Danny's teacher looked devastated, not just because she's lost her job but because she's leaving her babies. She's been with Danny most of his life and taken hundreds of phone pictures of him and told me excitedly every time he's done something different. 

The only good thing to come out of this is that Jack's pre-K teacher Linda, has offered to nanny for us. Fancy us having a nanny! We're not posh by any means, in fact as they would say in Lancashire it's a case of  "fur coat and no knickers",  but it's actually going to be something we can afford to do. 

Child care is the hardest thing for us to work out over here. Finding a place or person that we trust and can afford has been a challenge and given me endless sleepless nights. We had success with a friend Michelle and our current day-care but there have been some pretty unbelievable encounters. Here are a few of my particular favourites:

• The woman with 25 dogs and a house that stunk of ammonia so much it made your eyes water
  
• The woman who accidentally locked a 3-year old out of her house while we were interviewing her. The poor girl had to knock to get back in.
  
• The woman who obviously hated children, glared at Jack when he grabbed her knee, prised his fingers off and said icily "can I put him in a play-pen while we talk?"
  
• The woman who took care of Jack for a few months but wouldn't let us in her house (alarm bells galore!)
  

I have a good feeling about our new venture. I'm grateful we have Linda and looking forward to getting on with it. I'm just dreading the goodbyes this week. I'm really not good at goodbyes.