Work countdown

I officially return to work full-time in less than two weeks. I can't believe that it's August already. Where did the summer go? It seems like just yesterday we went to the pool for the first time this year, and now, the summer is winding down. It's been a busy one, filled with preparing for my new job as a reading specialist. This will be my first year working in this capacity. Prior to this, I taught middle school language arts. I feel good though. I am very prepared, organized, and ready to go. My main stress this summer has been developing a good childcare plan for my daughters. Since I begin my job so early in the morning (7:30 a.m.), I need someone to care for my big girl before and after kindergarten. I thought everything was set weeks ago. I had her scheduled for before care at her elementary school, and she was going to do an enrichment program in a local Montessori after-school. My little one was going to come with me to our on-site daycare facility within my school district. It was all arranged, or at least, that's what I thought until I called the on site facility to confirm everything, and was told that they lost my paperwork causing us to lose Little Sister's (LS) spot. With these change of events, my stress level went way up. My next plan was to put LS in another daycare. I visited a few, but found dirty facilities, outrageous prices, and inadequate start-times. I finally decided to look for a full-time nanny to come early in the morning, get my big girl off to kindergarten, and spend time with LS. Last weekend, I interviewed ten candidates, and wasn't too impressed with the majority of them. Finally, I met someone that I feel very comfortable with. She was the first candidate who immediately wanted to meet my children. She greeted them, hugged them, and talked with them. Rachel starts next week so that I can observe her with my kids, and help us all adjust. I'm praying that she works out because I really need someone to help me out with the kids, especially since their dad lives several states away.