brooke's nooks.

nannying three very energetic girls is always an educational experience.

today’s lesson?

waking up at 8 a.m. on Sunday is not always for caffeine & a old-fashioned newspaper on the couch,

it’s also for no make-up & an early morning run [of the bagel & coffee variety].

over the last two weekends, the girls have also taught me the following life lessons:

• every girl needs a hair donut
• j.crew makes adorable cashmere sweaters w/ elbow patches
• nordstrom is not only my former place of employment, it’s also a favorite saturday afternoon hang out
• fro yo on a friday night is totally justifiable
• just because a boy is cute doesn’t mean he’s dating material- especially if there’s no spark
• playing in the orchestra is seriously impressive
• leggings can be worn as pants if paired with a boyfriend sweater & slouchy motorcycle boots
• sleeping in until 11 a.m. is still something teenagers do
• capri suns > pop
• drinking starbucks is not limited to adult consumption
• ordering pizza from a local establishment where a crush happens to work is the way to go… carbs & creeping on a crush? so necessary.
• not having an instagram account is like being a girl & not utilizing a hair donut
• being called a hipster can, in fact, make you feel cool
• radio disney plays some pretty decent tunes
• pizza for breakfast? duh.
• abcfamily = the new nickelodeon
• holey jeans? hip for 28 year olds & 14 year olds alike
• it is totally possible to be in charge of carpooling & not be driving a mini-van

this weekend was for the following:

• arriving at my temporary home. i will be here until 1st of May. eek.
• being welcomed by the youngest girl saying, “Brooke, after school today i bought you a red velvet cupcake when we stopped by the bakery.” (um, she’s my favorite).
• quickly adapting to being a chauffeur 
• making the decision not to run an 8k on Saturday morning. 
• baking Orange Cinnamon rolls. (side story: when i lived in california, my bff across the street always had these in her fridge. it was one of the many things i looked forward to when we had slumber parties.)
• finally finishing the Hunger Games trilogy while said rolls baked up (my reaction to the series: meh.)
• watching some classic ABC Family movies while six high school juniors prepped for prom night
• mid-day workout
• becoming the best Annie Leibovitz i could muster as i picked up photographer duties pre-prom
• mentally judging & selecting my picks for best dressed prom go-er of the evening. (she was wearing this.)
• hanging out while the middle daughter baked chocolate chip cookies from Magnolia Bakery’s cook book
• miraculously sleeping for nine hours straight…minus the 4 a.m. panic when the girls had yet returned from prom
• waking up to a house full of 8 girls. (phew!)
• whipping up more than two dozen pancakes, slicing & dicing a bowl full of fresh fruit & choosing to include the plate of baked cookies on the spread, too!
• teaching the youngest a couple rules of simple baking
• painting nails
• reading a few magazines
• making lunches
• prepping for the busy week to come. oh man, will it be busy!

(picture taken a year or so ago while i was still in Manhattan, KS. a calm Sunday morning spent with the printed word, a cup of coffee & a dog who never gave up craving attention.)

“i thought you said you were going to make brownies,” the youngest one remarked.

“thank you for reminding me,” i replied as i quickly grabbed my diet hot chocolate & headed straight to the kitchen.

brownies are the last thing i should be eating as this five-day nanny stint comes to a close, yet i feel like baking some sweet treats is the least i can do for three young ladies who have been the best behaved munchkins in all the land.

between all the running around, the movie theatre meet-ups, the take out pick-ups, the early morning wake-ups, the multiple coffee pot fill-ups, the few & far between sisterhood fighting break-ups, & the multiple personality switch-ups, these girls have been fabulous to watch.

my job, here with them, is easy- as long as i wake up on time, entertain them throughout the day, occasionally feed them, & make sure the house is standing in one piece, i’m good.

i’m reminded of this ease of living as i think about going back to work tomorrow afternoon. 

(it’s the oddness of hours, the uncertainty of a growing future, & the constant thought sitting in the back of my mind that i am not actually utilizing my degree ((mainly those two letters that casually sit behind my signature)))

the thing is, when i’m here, surrounded by three brilliant & creative minds, my other life doesn’t matter, nor should it. 

when i’m here, all that matters is that they’re safe, that i check the locks before bed-time, that i am the first to exit into the garage in case a hairy scary man is lurking, that i have the pantry stocked with propel waters, goldfish crackers, oreo cookies & dark chocolate covered acai berries, & that i drive carefully, no matter the destination.

though i did recently question whether or not i’ll be asked back due to a recent trip to the grocery store where i looked at the girls & said, “can we just check out what y’all are holding right now? do you really think your mother would approve of your not so healthy choices?”.

that was when they quickly replied with the best answer possible, “that’s why you’re here! she’ll never know.”

& that’s the beauty of it all.

when i’m here, i can step away from my life, if only for a few days, & they can do the same.

it’s a trust in one another & it’s a pretty luxurious escape…

…full of late-night laughter & surprise adventures & varied entertainment & before bed-time thick, decadent, triple chocolate ghiradelli brownies & whatever other secret behaviors occur along the way…

after all, she’ll never know.

(photo taken during last friday’s after-school pick-up rotation)

today was/is for the following:

• a 5:45 a.m. alarm buzzing underneath my pillow
• waking 2/3 of the girls from their sleepy dreams
• making a pot of coffee & fancying up a to-go cup while it brewed
• helping with last minute put-together-lunches preparation
• dropping said girls off at school by 6:20 a.m.
• downing three cups of said coffee 
• dropping off the third sister by 8 a.m. at her respective school
• running back to my house & getting in a much-needed cardio sesh
• showering
• throwing my second-day-hair up in a messy high pony
• shuffling into some sequin jack purcells
• debuting my new handbag for those who care myself to enjoy
• running a few errands…(cough-costco addiction-cough cough)
• picking up sister #2, then sister #3, then sister #1 from respective schools
• driving thru mackey’s for a 32 ounce diet coke
• stopping in at their house for a quick after-school snack
• taking sister #1 to speech/debate, sister #3 to hip-hop, sister #2 to violin
• picking up sister #1, then #2, then #3
• dinner time! figuring out what’s for dinner!
• jumping into my flannel jammies
• bonding over the return of Grey’s Anatomy
• making a stiff drink diet hot chocolate
• heading up to my nanny quarters
• crawling into my king-sized bed
• reading a chapter or two or three of Mockingjay
• turning out the lights
• dreaming sweet, sweet dreams.

in approximately twenty minutes, my five-day stint as brooke the nanny commences;

therefore, this afternoon is for:

• naturally curly hair
• a bright peacock print Yarnz scarf
• a slouchy Vince sweater
• a K-State (represent!) Alumni t-shirt
• skinny Gap cords
• oh, so comfortable tall, brown Uggs
• a shiny silver ring from DanniJo (gifted from Bro #1) 

let the exhaustion fun begin!

monday confession.

in my defense, i had been helping out with some greatest common factor math problems, & kind of escaped into her closet…just to peek around… math or fashion? math or fashion? math or fashion? …& i think this was my reward?

B: Oh My Gosh, this is so precious! Do you wear this alot?

Girl: No, not really. 

B: You don’t wear it in the fall & winter with black tights & boots & a cute little top?

Girl: No, not really.

B: Why not? It’d look real good with those hipster boots you own.

Girl: I’m not really into all those fancy things.

B: *dumbfounded* oh, but it’s in your closet…next to the Juicy Couture collection…

Girl: Do you want it? You can have it.

B: *sizing it up to my clearly no longer a small child waist* No, that’s ok…

Girl: you can have it, really. i wore it once & it was super uncomfortable.

B: *moving on* …what about this J.Crew CrewCuts one?*

*for the record: i didn’t take either skirt. i may love clothes, but even i draw the line when it comes to taking designer duds from a small child who doesn’t understand the value of such beautiful, expensive goods.