Visiting Rebecca, Mitch, Rubin, Ellis and twins Cassie and Shay always feels like coming home. They're a lively, crazy bunch; the sound decibels are ear splitting, but their genuine and welcoming vibe of family keeps me grounded in the busy-City-living I sometimes get swallowed up in.
I am always reminded of my roots, my coming of age, my dreams, my goals, where I started, where I am, and where I want to be. This visit, though long overdue and lately too few and far between, was no different. It was an important check-in with myself amidst job-hunts, interviews, trials, and decisions.
Not long into my visit, Rebecca and I started reminiscing about one our favorite moments from six years ago when I was working a summer in CT with them. I haven't been blogging much about my job or kid related things lately, and I really wanted to share this treasured and fun memory. It's a staple in my bank of "good ones". A moment I immediately wrote about at the time so I'd never forget, and have treasured ever since. It's times like these that remind me to write down the silly things more often, because this is what my career is filled with and what I am asked about the most! I love it!
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Introducing, "The Bubble Rash" By: Sarah L., so no stealing
You think you've seen a lot as a nanny but, really, you've just never seen enough!
While getting read for bed on 7/7/2005, Ellis and Rubin started off their usual bedtime ritual by taking a bath. Naturally, bath time is at the peak of its enjoyment when you're 6 1/2 and 9 3/4 years old. You're independently left alone by your caregivers to "responsibly" wash up but, really, you just want to splash in the water, amuse yourself with toys and, of course, add lots of BUBBLES! It's pure luck if you happen to get clean in the process.
After a half hour of brotherly tub-time fun, Ellis, 6 1/2 yrs old, emerged from the tub and came streaking down the stairs into the kitchen to tell his mom, Rebecca, some very important news.
"MOM! MOM!" he screamed, interrupting her phone conversation.
"LOOK AT MY BUTT CRACK! LOOK AT MY BUTT CRACK!" he enthusiastically instructed while spreading his cheeks as far apart as they could go and proudly displaying one squeaky clean little rump to Rebecca and me.
"Do you see any bubbles?" he asked quizzically.
"No" Rebecca answered, holding the hone down for a moment.
"Well, look at my butt crack", he continued as he flashed her a peek once again, "there were bubbles in there! We were playing in the tub and I put bubbles in my butt crack!"
"ELLIS!", Rebecca exclaimed, "Go upstairs and rinse yourself off and get pajamas on!"
"Why? Why do I have to rinse off?" he asked innocently.
"Because, Ellis," she began to explain with frustrated control, "bubbles are NOT supposed to go in your butt crack. You could get a RASH! You really need to rinse off and get ready for bed!! ...And if my bathroom isn't in the exact same shape as it was before you boys got in there and messed it all up then you're going straight to BED!"
"But Mom, I don't need to rinse off," he calmly protested. "They're all gone... Do you see any bubbles?" he then asked very adamantly, again giving a broad display of his hind quarters.
With serious pause and concern Rebecca replied, "No... but is your butt feeling a little bit bubbly?"
With that, I just could not keep myself from laughing out loud any longer at the hysterical situation I was just witness to. The funniest part was that it was being handled VERY seriously and straight faced by both mother and son. As if every day the dreadful risk of a Bubble Rash is something this household has to face together, and being flashed is just one of the perks!
In the end, Ellis made it known that he did not feel the slightest bit bubbly in the back side and took his naked self upstairs to get on some PJs.
Ahhh, a safe and sound end to the Bubble Rash scare of 2005.
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Although the kids are big beyond belief, it still felt like nothing had changed. We still quote each other with "Is your butt feeling a little bit bubbly?" and share a good laugh every single time. We remember the days when I was still a California girl who wanted to walk barefoot in a New Yorker's world. The twins aren't two and a half anymore...they're eight and a half! Reading, attending different schools, one about to get braces, both thriving. The boys are both teens. Ellis has gone from a six year old bubbly butt to a thirteen year old bar mitvah'd young man; still hilarious and ever so entertaining in or out of the tub. Rubin is no longer eight, but now fifteen with a girlfriend! Nothing could have prepared me for that. I still think it's so weird! He's smart, funny, and awesome at playing Words With Friends. They're all the same and of course so different. We have all grown up, yet nothing has changed. At the core we are still ourselves, we are still connected, and there is still a remnant of the old me within those walls that I cherish being reminded of.
We gathered around the table and ate Chinese take-out while shouting over the tops of each other, each of us wanting to be heard above the rest and before the rest, like the good ol' days.
I feel so grateful to have this safe haven to go to when I am feeling a little too caught up in my own whirlwinds. I am so lucky to have such a strong support system in my New York built families, friends, my own family, and of course my boyfriend.
As I make some big decisions and changes that will propel me forward to new phases of my life and career, it feels so much safer than in times passed knowing that if I trip and fall I've cultivated a big cushy safety net to catch me, made up of laughter and love, which is the softest kind of net I can think of! Because in all honesty, I'm a balled up combination of terrified, calm, proud, and nervous about the real life shifts happening right now, and having pillars of support to lean on keeps me confident on the outside and balanced on the inside. Thank you, thank you, thank you all you balance contributors and nanny jobs turned family!
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