Rates

A word to the wise. Babysitting or nannying is not the cheap alternative to daycare. It never will be. The babysitters who are willing to charge the same rates as daycares, run in-home daycares with 7-10 kids in them. Better ratios than daycares, but if you are looking for individualized attention for your child, be prepared to pay at least minimum wage for it, and I would think a little more.

The people I’ve been interviewing with who are looking for full time care for their infants, seem really surprised when I don’t jump to meet the daycares $100 dollar a week rate. Ideally, I’d like to make $250 a week. Add in a sibling, and I’d like to make that $300. Is that expecting too much? I’m really curious here. What would be an acceptable rate if you want something better than daycares?

Should I lower my price and take more kids? No... I’ve already decided the most children I would take is three, and that’s only if there are siblings involved. One to two children (again with the sibling clause) full time, with one position available for part time kids. Like this adorable two year old I watch for a few hours on Tuesdays. I can hold out and wait for the right people. I’m in a position right now where I can wait for the right person. So I will. Maybe once fall rolls around, and all the teenagers and students looking for extra cash drop off the radar, I’ll be able to find the right client for me.

Wicked Lovely

Wicked Lovely, by Melissa Marr is available as a freebie on amazon.com, and that is so exciting! I’m only about halfway done, but I’ve been dying to read this book since I first heard of her. It’s the best of The Moor Child, and Tithe.

I’m also loving having a form of transportation. I’ve been going to every kid event in Athens and having a great time. I need to find a Baby Signs class for Bella, but there doesn’t seem to be one in the area. I’m signed up for Mama-Baby Yoga and Gymboree right now, but I’m thinking next month I may just do Gymboree. I love mama-baby yoga, but you only go once a week, as opposed to gymboree’s one class a week with two playtimes a week. Mama baby yoga is more for me than for her, but I can do yoga at home with my wii.

I don’t think I’m going to do Kinder music. There classes are like $95 for six weeks, and again, its only once a week. Bella learns a lot of songs at the free infant playtime. I would sign her up if it had the baby signs class. Ah well.

I’m writing again, and I have a fantastic idea. I want to write a series rewriting the Greek Myths. I can set it in modern day, start with the myth of Persephone, and have her meet all the people from the real myths in the underworld. I could call it the Eleusinian Mysteries (google it, and you’ll get it), rename Persephone Cora (her name changed from Core to Persephone when she was abducted) and go from there.

Very excited.

mobile

I had a great weekend! I Went to Columbus and had a fantastic time. I saw Clash of the Titans (was underwhelmed) and took Bella to the easter bunny. Bella got mum-mums in her basket, and loves them, and I can now drive my car :D. Financially that may not be the best thing for me, lol. When we got back to Athens I went grocery shopping, bought Brandon a present, and have been going to baby places hanging up babysitting flyers today, and consequently buying stuff! I need to stop that right away!

I bought Bella new nail clippers (we lost her old ones) new hangers, and a mirror for the car. (It’s so cute, its shaped like a puppy and now I can see her when I’m driving.) Then I went to gymboree and got her a bubble blower, not to mention the cost of printing the flyers, and buying the gas, and all of that good stuff.

Ah well, I promise not to buy anything tommorow :0

It’s been a great day, heck, its been a great week. I wrote a poem in my poetry class that my teacher said was exceptional, and I taught a poetry workshop at the elementary school tonight. My house is clean, I have three babysitting interviews scheduled this week, and things are looking up :D Now if I could just win the lottery so I could buy the rest of the things in those stores....

And The winner is.....

To find out who won, visit my new blog at http://web.me.com/bevis1/Kats_Cradle/Kats_Cradle/Kats_Cradle.html

This is where I will be posting from now on. Please update your following information accordingly by clicking follow when you go to my site. Thanks :)

Winner!

Welcome to my new site! I decided to make the most out of my mobile me account by creating this little website. Let me know what you think :)

The winner is comment number 1! T, you win! Enjoy your yogurt and goddess kit. This winner was generated at random.org.

Regular update tommorow :)

Yoplait Greek Yogurt Review and Giveaway!

Want to nourish your inner goddess? Try Yoplait's greek yogurt. Did you know that Dannon and Yoplait were the same company? I didn't. Huh.

To celebrate its new Greek yogurt and to encourage women to nourish their inner goddess, Yoplait has teamed up with actress Izabella Miko, who plays Greek Goddess Athena in the Clash of The Titans. (I can't wait to watch this! I will be in Columbus next weekend for anyone who wants to go with me.) Check out this cool trailer.

Anyhow, the people at yoplait and MyBlogSpark, were kind enough to send me a goddess kit, that you can also win. I tried to yogurt, and found it to be rich and thick, and yummy. This greek yogurt is to regular yogurt what custard is to ice cream. Thick, creamy, and delicious.

Only unlike custard, this yogurt has no fat, and is 120 calories per container.

There are three different flavors of Greek Yogurt from Yoplait: Strawberry, Blueberry, and Vanilla. My favorite was the vanilla, which surprised me actually, but it was really good. The strawberry and blueberry were also very good.

I normally eat the yoplait whips, raspberry flavor, so this yogurt was a complete different experience for me. My husband also enjoyed them, though his favorite flavor was strawberry.

Want a coupon? Visit this link to save .30 cents on Yoplait Greek Yogurt today!

Want to win your own goddess kit?

Tell me in the comments which flavor of Yoplait Greek Yogurt you are most likely to try, and tell me how you get in touch with your inner Goddess.

I was not paid for my review or give away of Yoplait Greek Yogurt, I only wish I was ;)

So busy!

We've been super busy moving, but I have something I just have to blog about.

Mama-baby yoga, at athens regional medical center, is awesome. I just got back and am feeling GREAT and ready to start unpacking boxes!

In case I didn't say or wasn't clear, the water from our ice maker line in our old apartment, kept leaking to the downstairs apartment. They would complain, the apartment would fix it, and then it would break again. After the last fix, our downstairs neighbors moved... so no one to report leaks. Whoops!

They inspected the apartment prior to some new person moving in, and discovered major major issues with the ceiling, and in order to fix it, we were relocated, and upgraded to another apartment in the same complex. We weren't supposed to be upgraded, but the husband and I discussed it and decided the difference in rent was equal to what we paid to use the apartments washer and dryer, so we upgraded. I managed to negotiate rent down for the inconvenience and now we are actually saving money! It's more than our old one, but less than cost of laundry.

We were reimbursed for movers, so they got everything over here, now it's just a matter of putting everything away. Our couch did not survive the move :( It was DOA anyway, one seats been broken for awhile, but the husband was content to sit on a pillow, so we are making use of our seldom used love seat until it sells on craigslist, and our new couch (also from craigslist) is being delivered in two weeks.

It's pretty, its a brown leather like couch, its really vinyl, but its in great shape, and I can wipe it off when Bella spits up :D

Our washer and dryer is coming up soon, and then we will be done with the moving thing. We put a few things in storage because Bella is getting ready to crawl and when I babysit I don't want the kids to be cramped, so our coffee table, and some shelves that never really fit in these apartments after we moved from Sandy Springs are now out of the way. I wanted to keep them because they're so pretty, and one day we will have room for them.

I feel kind of bad for the husband. I get everything I want. I've been off doing new things, and we moved, and I got my new couch, and so on, and the poor guy has wanted a flat screen/big screen tv for SO long, and it's never even been debated whether we can get it or not.

It's too much, and our other tv works fine (unlike the broken couch) it's never been and will never be a priority :(. I wish I could get it for him, and one day I will. It would be ideal to babysit 40 hours a month to repay a little borrowed savings, pay for the couch, washer/dryer transport, and the difference in rent + storage, as well as some other expenses I'd like to take on. Once basic expenses are covered, and Bella is covered (baby gates, new car seat (love the old one, but she will outgrow it soon), convertible crib, baby sign language, maybe gymboree, things like that) then I am going to try to get him the TV. I'd like to get it for him for Christmas, or maybe his birthday, but I doubt it will happen. I've been saying I'd like to get it for Christmas or his birthday since 2005. Ah well, he will surely get it for himself once he gets out of pharmacy school.

In the meantime, I need to do something special for him. He's been so great, and schools been hard. Must think of something....