Wiggles And Giggles In This Dance We Call Life: Loosing "Our Brittani"

She was one of the first pillars of stability for both my daughter and I. She was sweet and honest, vibrant and fun. We found her through family friends and after four months of shuffling my daughter between grandma's house and the daycare/preschool I had her enrolled in... she was a Godsend. She was our "Live-out Nanny".

My daughter combined her name, Brittani, and her title "nanny", and coined the name "My Brittani"... and it stuck. She was our Brittani. She would get my daughter ready for preschool in the morning and drop her off before I got home from work. She made my daughter dinner, bathed her, hugged her, loved her, and made some very special memories with her.

Because I work for the Fire Department, my job can sometimes be demanding. When I was working Halloween and didnt want T to miss out, she got my daughter ready in her costume and took her to T's cousins house for Trick or Treat fun. When my daughter was sick at home, and I couldnt get to her, I never feared that she wasnt getting anything but the best of care from "her Brittani".

Our Brittani wasnt just there for T solely either. She listened to me ramble about how much I hated my divorce, the bitterness I had towards the other woman, custody battles, child support, T's father's absence in her life, new friendships, new boyfriend, family, break-ups, she heard it all. If she ever complained, I never heard it.

She made cookies, helped me with household chores, ran errands for me. . . the list went on.

I choose a live out nanny, mainly because I had grown to love the peace in my house. I love that I can run around in my tee shirt and socks if I needed to without fear of running into a roommates guest!

She is going to school to be a teacher, and the classes this fall make it impossible for her to work with my schedule. So it is with a heavy heart that I read her resignation. I am so happy for her to move on and continue to follow her goals... but deeply saddened to loose such an important part of our team... our family.

My daughter has always had a hard time with good byes. Seriously, I think from the time she was an infant, she hated them!! Being that she has dealt with the sudden absence of her father at such a young age, I am concerned with trying to explain to her how to say good bye- or see ya later- to "her Brittani".

I guess I will just attempt to point her attention to the fact that we have been so lucky to have a "Brittani" in our lives... and we are so proud of her for taking those steps to move forward and become a teacher. Maybe if I get her excited about "her Brittani's" future it will help ease the pain and not feel like we are loosing her, but rather transitioning into another phase with the promise of "see ya later" parties and "we'll talk soon" chats. I hope that works. We have been so blessed with "our Brittani". She will forever be a part of our hearts.