Ugh, the nanny search has tentatively begun. While I haven't yet brought out the big guns -- aka the Evanston PTA -- I did manage to place an ad on Craigslist and put the word out on a mailing list I frequent. The CL ad went in on Sunday night, and so far I've gotten about 30 responses. Some of my favorite bits:

- "Member of Mizzou students for Christ"
- "Nanny at your service"
- "Another asset I carry to a job of this kind is my global perspective and experience."
- "I have grown up in a Christian household that has taught me the value of honesty, hard work, and integrity."
- "I also worked as a nanny for a family for four years taking care of their two girls and then (when he arrived) their son.
- "Hi there!!! How are you?? :) "
- "I was doing everything with the kids: waking them up, making breakfast, lunch, sneak, dinner, laundry, tidding up the rooms, put them to sleep, driving to school, to parks, etc."
- "I am pacience, independent, outgoing, warming, and I love kids a lot."
- "Do you provide a car for the nanny?"
- "I recently discovered that the perfect job for me would be childcare, and would like to be given an opportunity to do so. "
- "I am responding in regards to your post in search of a wonderful nanny for..."
- "I’m e-mailing you because I saw you job offer on the creglist.org."
- "I take great delight in pouring into kid's lives..."
- "I am basically on the lookout for a job that I enjoy doing"
- "I have expirience in childcare, mostly for my family members and I am very good in it  and I love it!"
- "I was also a recreational leader who was 1 of 8 leaders who watched 75 children ages K-5th grade"
- "I have an interest in your job offer because I believe I am a great fit after reading your description of the baby sitter that you are looking for."
- "I am a 28 years old professional childcare provider and have been for the past 15 years and with a total of 10 years worth of experience by now"
- "I left my last nannying job due to a bad case of mono!"

I'm being snarky about a lot of these -- unfairly, I know. I've nothing against Christians, people with weaker language skills, or even just those reaching for a job I know they won't want to keep. I guess the problem is, a nanny isn't someone whose resume you read. A nanny is someone you come to rely on more than anyone else -- how else to explain the trust you give to, basically, a stranger?

When Alberta started working for us, I remember my therapist telling me that I was DH's wife, and Alberta was mine. In an old-fashioned sense, she has been -- I'm responsible for providing her a safe place to care for my children while I'm off earning a living, and then I turn all my salary over to her. [grin]

I already know I'm going to be biased against almost every candidate so far, since they're all pretty young. Don't yell at me -- no 36-year-old mother of three needs to have to worry about her husband ogling the barely postpubescent who washes his boxers.

So even though Alberta is very grumbly right now, I don't see the light at the end of the tunnel yet. Which is probably for the best -- we have to get the kids settled in to their new summer schedule; Benjamin is supposed to start having three meals a day, and Danny is still deliberately pissing on the floor (don't get me started). We have plenty on our hands right now.