Same Job, New Charges & Closer Commute

This morning, I began a new childcare job. It's only 7 minutes from home (8, if I get the red light) and it's part-time! Now, if only I can get B to work OUT of the house instead of FROM it, I might get some "ME TIME" again!

How did my day go? Here are some highlights of my day.

I arrived early to be sure there was time to explain routines, rules and emergency numbers.

I did get the needed info, but I was also met with NO POWER @ their house!

They had no power since midday on SUNDAY!

Yes, they had a generator, but it's not the same thing. Power was finally restored around 10am. Then the smoke detector wouldn't shut off! Had to call the dad to come back home & deal with that annoying noise!

I also got a quick course on how to use an epi-pen and where to find it, in case I needed it.

Turns out the little 2 year old is allergic to milk & peanuts.

She has other allergy symptoms too. Constant sneezing produced clear, runny snot which had to be wiped, a lot! She was a trooper though! Never fussed about me wiping her nose at all!

At nap time, she wanted Daddy, then Mommy when I told her Dad was @ work. Then she wanted Granddaddy, Grandma & Gammy before she understood that I was the only grownup responding to her cries. So she slept... for 1 hour.

The 4 yr old loves craft projects! She created her own projects with paper, markers, stickers and glitter glue from my bag. Most kids are mesmerized by TV or video games. She was mesmerized with doing crafts! This is the best time of year for me & craft ideas. We should be all set, this girl & me.

No problems... yet.

In my experience, kids are on their best behavior for "new" people. They could be saving their worst for me when I least expect it. I hope not.

Their appetites are certainly healthy! They asked for more food @ lunch, twice! This is very different than my previous charges! It's a good thing.

I did notice the girls have the same walking gait as their Auntie S. And I caught quick glimpses now & then reminding me of their older male cousins (the ones that grew up w/my girls) in their facial expressions and overall looks.

Did I mention I'm going to like the shorter commute? Oh, yeah.

I Love Rare Roast Beef!

I will not lie! Hot, rare roast beef is one of my favorite ways to enjoy beef! Yummo! With a side of homemade gravy... ooohhh! Delicious!

I will not lie! I've never been successful roasting beef, on my own. I can do a pot roast and I can even grill a pretty mean steak.

But a rare roast beef and me cooking it, well, we've never been friends.

We began a Monday night dinner & cards tradition with friends a few months ago. We have had many choice meals including tacos, chicken casseroles, spaghetti w/meatballs, chili and even takeout. We began to run out of original ideas for our menu.

I had the day off today, so I offered to try, one more time, to cook a rare oven roast. I was bored during the "hurricane" over the weekend. I had plenty of time to research several recipes & techniques online about successful roasting of beef.

I found a recipe that sounded tasty & easy enough for me to follow.

The end result?

Our friends raved about how tasty it was and B said it was a "keeper recipe" for my recipe box. I must admit, the roast was perfectly pink and tender, with a flavorful, homemade gravy.

So, here is the recipe!

BTW, we used a 3 lb roast called... "sirloin spoon roast".

That's just a fancy butcher term they use in NE. Any good sirloin roast or tenderloin roast w/a layer of fat outside and is tied, should work in this recipe.

And start this recipe 24 hours before it needs to be served

Perfect Rare Roast Beef

• 1- "tied" 4-5 lbs sirloin roast... a good layer of outside fat is perfect! (Don't be afraid to talk to the guy behind the counter! He will tie the roast up for you)
• Salt & Pepper
• 1 T vegetable oil, be sure it's a generous 1 T
• 4 T unsalted butter
• 2 carrots, peeled & cut into 2" chunks
• 1 onion, peeled & sliced into 1/2" thick rings
• 1 celery stalk, cut into 2" chunks
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 tsp tomato paste
• 2- (10.5 oz) cans of Beef Consomme'
• 1 1/2 cups water

1. Remove roast from the store packaging. Pat dry with paper towels. Rub 2 tsp of salt all over the roast. Wrap the roast in plastic wrap & keep in fridge 1-24 hours.

2. Adjust rack to the middle of the oven and preheat to 225 F. Pat the roast dry again, using paper towels. Rub 2 tsps black ground pepper over the roast.

3. Heat oil in an oven safe skillet over med/high heat. (I used my 12" cast iron pan) Brown the roast on all sides until seared. This takes about 8-12 minutes. Transfer roast to a plate, for now.

4. Pour off all but 2 T of drippings from the skillet. Add butter & melt over medium heat. Add carrots, onions and celery, cooking until golden brown (about 6-8 minutes).

5. Add flour & tomato paste, cook for another 2 minutes. Remove skillet from heat.

6. Push the veggies to the center of the pan, creating a bed for the roast to sit on while cooking. Place the roast on the veggies and place in the oven. Be careful, HANDLE WILL BE HOT!

7. Cook for 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 hrs or until an internal meat thermometer reaches 125F.

I began the roast @ this temp and set the timer for 2 1/2 hours. My guests called & said they were coming early! Over the next hour, I slowly raised the temp by 50 degrees every 10 minutes or so until it was at 350F. The timer said it had 45 minutes to go when the thermometer reached 125 degrees. Meat came out perfect!

8. Remove to a cutting board. Cover w/foil tent and let the roast REST for at least 20 minutes. Letting the roast rest is VERY IMPORTANT! Besides, it gives you time to make the gravy!

Gravy

1. After removing the roast from the skillet, return the skillet of veggies to the stove.

(Reminder: HANDLE IS STILL HOT!) Cook, slowly stirring the veggies for 5 minutes.

2. Slowly whisk in the consomme' & water scraping up the bits & pieces from the bottom of the skillet. Bring to a boil.

3. Reduce heat & simmer for 10-15 minutes or until thickened.

4. Using a fine mesh strainer & a ladle, strain the gravy.

(I tossed out the leftover veggies. Their flavor was in my gravy & now they were super mushy!)

5. Add salt & pepper as needed.

ENJOY!

Me, Myself and Irene

Irene is on her way outta here!

She left a path of wet, windy destruction in many places of NE.

She's knocked out power to several communities and blew down many trees.

Or so I've heard.

Because here, in my little NH town, in my neighborhood... she was just a rainstorm.

Windy enough to keep my cats from venturing out to their tent on the deck and wet enough to make a few puddles, but that was all she gave us.

Oh, she blinked our electricity off for a second or two every once in a while just to keep us wondering, but she ended up being a DUD of a storm!

Phew!

The college cancelled classes until Tuesday, so C came home to ride the storm out after all. Irene went by so quickly & with very little negative effects, C decided to go back to the dorms tonight. She's safe there now.

I think we bored her to death!

B made it home from his camping trip safely. Except for saying he had to find alternate roads home due to fallen trees, he's been mum on details. And I am not an inquisitor!

So tomorrow, I'll put the emergency supplies back into the closets and empty the bathtubs.

I filled them just in case we needed to flush toilets w/o power.

Turns out we didn't need all my preparations after all.

I hope a farmers stand in open tomorrow.

I have guests coming for dinner &

I promised a medley of fresh summer veggies to go w/a roast.

Good night!

Come On, Irene!

Within 24 hours, a BIG storm is expected to hit New England.

Hurricane Irene is currently a Cat 1 hurricane. But earlier this week, it was a Cat 3!

By the time it reaches NH, it should only be a tropical storm.

Connecticut, RI and Cape Cod are the areas of NE that Hurricane Irene will hit & still be a hurricane. It is then expected to downgrade very quickly.

Our batteries, flashlights, candles and water supplies are stocked & easy to find. My freezer & fridge are packed with cold things. It has been said that a full fridge/freezer keeps your food colder and longer than a half filled one. Recycled milk jugs & soda bottles filled w/water help to fill up the empty spaces in freezers and help keep things cold when the power goes out. There is plenty of nonperishable food in our house as well.

A few new books & magazines will help pass the time if the power goes out. We have an extensive board game collection and both DSlite game systems are charged up & ready to go!

Our outside furniture has been put away and other "launchables" have been secured. The cats tent will remain set up until the last minute. I refuse to remove our window A/C units though. The winds won't be THAT strong and we'll have more days where the units will be needed before October!

C is safe in a 2nd floor dorm room. She has a car, gas money, food, water and emergency lighting. Her RA training courses make it impossible for her to come home for the storm. I believe she will be safe there. Hopefully she'll remember to charge all her electronic stuff tonight and stay clear of windows during the storm.

T & her family are safe in western VA. It's nice Hurricane Irene is missing them. Their state had a small earthquake last week. B is spending tonight... CAMPING! He should be back home before the storm reaches NH.

With all this storm preparation, perhaps I have scared Irene away & all will be fine!

Tornados, earthquakes and hurricanes.

They say bad things come in 3's, right?

So then, NE should be all set for a long while!

BE SAFE!

Just a Spoonful of Sugar...

I'm going to go silent on my blog for a little while.

I am finding it hard to write upbeat entries when I am not feeling upbeat of late.

I'll be OK. I'm not stressed out.

Only sad that a part of my life is ending (well, except for a few hours on Fridays, for a while).

I feel much like I did after T left home in 2006 followed by C in 2010.

I knew this time of parting would come, eventually.

I should've prepared better, emotionally.

Four and a half years have flown by sooo fast!

I go now, to join the ranks of other former/future childcare providers such as Mary Poppins, who said,

"That's as it should be."

"Practically perfect people never permit sentiment to muddle their thinking."

and Nanny McPhee,

"When you need me and do not want me, then I must stay. When you want me but no longer need me, then I must go. It's rather sad really, but there it is."

I'll miss them.

I'll talk to many of you when I see you.

Otherwise... TTYL!

ps to Larry, TTYL means: "Talk To You Later"

Life Is A Beach?

I never quite understood this saying.

The beach has lots of bad & dangerous things like: no parking, big waves, rip tides, sharp stuff to step on or fall on, sand in the eyes, twisted ankles from uneven walking surfaces and don't forget those pesky SEAGULLS!

Is life really like a beach?

Could've been today.

Sunny skies, NO humidity, perfect temperature, warm land breeze, low tide, tidal pools filled with wonders and friends to play with.

Krista brought us to the beach (Plum Island) today where she met her friends, the Timothy's.

The kids each had a playmate, making my job very easy today.

It was a long day, I just got home @ 9pm, but a good day. My face is wind burned. Old people look funny when their face is red. I think it makes me I look like I have a drinking problem!

Got an unexpected day off tomorrow. My car's "check engine" light came on.

Here's hoping I forgot to tighten the gas cap again!

Just a Few More Days

Krista asked her children if it would be OK with them if I, Miss Jen, came in later or not at all on some days since I only have a few days left before I am no longer their caretaker.

After all, Krista isn't working full time @ her new business venture yet

& it seems silly to have 2 adults there all day.

I thought the question she posed to them made perfect sense!

Surely, the children could see the logic!

Then, Connor (yes, Connor!) said the best thing ever!

My ego, self confidence, morale or whatever soared to great heights when I heard these words!

"NO! We only have a few more days with her and we want to enjoy every moment with her!"

Heartstrings, tugged! Gonna miss this kid after all!

This WAS Connor.

He was a few days from starting Kindergarten in 2008.

I had known him a little over 1 year at this point.

I noticed in this photo, he hadn't lost any of his teeth yet!

By the end of the year, he had lost two of them!

THIS IS CONNOR, today!

Well, actually, it was @ the end of June 2011 after he got his summer haircut.

He wanted a photo so he could get the same cut before school began in September!

He likes that it resembles Justin Biebers hair style!

Thank You

Well, I feel much better about myself & what I am worth.

And not just what I am worth in dollars.

Thank you friends & family who left encouraging messages, comments & phone calls!

You helped to make my decision a bit easier.

I'll continue to work @ my current job on Friday nights (so parents can have a date night).

At the end of the month, I'll begin working about 20 hrs/week for a dear friends sisters family.

(Thanks Sue, for the contact!)

This job has fewer kids and is very close to my house,

so... I'll be driving about 6 hours LESS a week!

Less time in the car, less chance of a traffic accident, less expensive gas to put in my tank, less wear & tear on the car, less money spent on impulse purchases (no stores between me & them)...

so I think we'll be OK with a slightly smaller paycheck from me.

Working 20 hrs/week means I could still take an emergency sitting job every now & then.

It also means I'll have more time ALONE @ home during the week!

That's exciting! Watch out weeds & dust!

The more I type, the better I feel about this change.

I get a feeling of sadness when I think of not seeing the kids every day anymore.

Especially, the youngest. But she needs to go to school to learn & make friends her own age.

I'll miss her the most.

Change is good every once in a while.

What Are You Worth?

As I begin searching for a job in childcare, the question of "What are you worth?" keeps popping up into the conversation.

I must say, finding an answer to that question has been very unsettling.

Do we really know what we are worth?

We know what the going pay rates are for a certain job,

but are we worth more or less than that rate?

Am I thinking too highly of myself or too little when I quote what I think I am worth?

In my research on childcare rates, someone having experience, is "mature" & has a reliable car should be getting $10 - $15 per hour, whether it's 1 kid or 3 kids.

If I were looking for childcare today, I think those rates were a little high.

But I'm not looking for childcare, I'm providing it.

Those rates sound too low looking at it from this point of view.

I've been making about $12/hr, give or take, @ the full time job I'm leaving in 3 weeks. There were days where I thought I should've been paid more and other times where I know I was being paid too much. My philosophy was... it all evened out at the end of the year.

Was I worth it? I think so. She always told me I was worth it.

My babysitting gig last weekend paid $12/hr for 3 kids. She called me back to watch them tomorrow, all day, so maybe I am worth as much as I thought?

I do need some sort of employment. For expenses and for something to do.

I am not SAHM material! Boring!!

But... do I turndown a job because someone is offering less money than what I think I'm worth? After all, something is better than nothing, right?

What do you think I'm worth?

What are you worth?