Change is Gonna Come

Big changes are happening around the Okrzesik house. This is the last week that Ms. Krystal will be with us! Next week Colin will start going to an in-home daycare here in Dublin.

We decided about two months ago that we were ready to save some money and that Colin was ready to be around other kids his age. Because he has been at home until now, we thought he would be more comfortable in another home environment...even if it is someone else's home! So we began our search for the right fit. I scoured Craig's List and got a subscription to Care.com. We went on seven in-person interviews plus a few additional phone screenings. It was starting to look like we'd never find the right place. We were looking for the right balance of proximity to our house, small caregiver-to-child ratio, a nice, clean home that has enough room for kids to roam plus a yard, and a strong connection/sense of comfort with the caregiver. I was starting to think we would never find the perfect place - almost like searching for the perfect house that doesn't exist!

Finally we found Ashley. She lives 2.5 miles from our house. She is 28 with a 3 year old daughter of her own. She has been a nanny for the past 10 years and just opened her own in-home daycare this summer. She only watches 2 other girls besides Colin and her daughter. Her house is big with plenty of room for the kids to play and her yard is huge, fenced, and has a playset. Colin will have his own bedroom to nap in plus his own crib. And I immediately liked her - she is super energetic, professional yet warm, and down to earth. She has fantastic references. And we like the fact that she has been a nanny since that is familiar to us. We met her husband as well as her daughter and liked the whole family. So we decided Ashley is the one.

As we were nearing the end of our search and finalizing things with Ashley, Krystal approached us and told us she was going to be moving across town and was going to look for another position closer to her new house. We couldn't quite believe the timing and how well it worked out. We hadn't yet told her about our plans because we didn't know how long the search would take and we weren't in a big hurry. So now Krystal will be caring for two-month old triplets starting in October!!

We will certainly miss her and this will be a big change for us all. Colin actually has gone to Ashley's house for a couple of trial days already (they've gone well) and next Monday he'll start there full-time. I'm sure there will be some tearful good-byes tomorrow with Krystal but she has offered to still babysit for us and I'm sure we'll take her up on it. We had a really good run with her and we're very greatful for all she's done for Colin. We're hoping for smooth transitions all around!