Posted: April 4, 2013 | Author: Mrs. Cheryl | Filed under: Miss Cheryl, Tales, Tips, Tunes | Tags: children, children and their bodies, funny, nose, pat your head and rub your tummy, playing nose, raise eyebrows, whistle, whistling, wink, winking |
Kiddos’ bodies are still a mystery to them, capable of many surprises. The discovery and intrigue of their corporal containers leads the kiddos to many a revelation. I encourage them to view their bodies as vessels of endless ability! Read the rest of this entry »
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted: September 14, 2012 | Author: Mrs. Cheryl | Filed under: Miss Cheryl, Tales | Tags: bellybutton, bellybutton time, bellybuttons, Doc, funny, game, midriff, Rebel |
It’s amazing how in a matter of minutes something hilarious and heartwarming can happen- many times out of the oddest situations. Perfect example: “Bellybutton Time” with Doc and Rebel. On a typical (though no day with these two is ever “typical”) day with Doc and Rebel, the three of us were hanging out post “rest time” and nap, when all of a sudden Rebel lifts up his little shirt and says, “Bellybutton!” Doc follows suit and lifts his little shirt and says, “Bellybutton!” Then they both look at me expectantly, eyes wide, facial expressions reading, “Ok, Miss Cheryl it’s your turn.” I balked. Read the rest of this entry »
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted: August 17, 2012 | Author: Mrs. Cheryl | Filed under: Miss Cheryl, Tales, Tips, Tunes | Tags: baby, Big Cat, calling babies by their names. proper names, funny, funny nicknames, Mr.Man, nanny nicknames, nicknames, Rebel, Snuggles |
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, just because I’m a Supernanny does not mean I don’t make mistakes. It only means that I learn from my mistakes and hopefully become better at my job. One thing I’m always working on is referring to kiddos, particularly infants, by their given names, and not just by “baby”. It’s much harder than you think, considering that what I love most about them is their babyness- it’s the first thing that comes to mind, “Hey look, it’s a baby!” I have been working on being more mindful of this habit because it is important to refer to each child as an individual. Though I see each one as a unique person, Read the rest of this entry »
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted: July 19, 2012 | Author: Mrs. Cheryl | Filed under: Miss Cheryl, Tales, Tips | Tags: Big Cat, captain awesome, children, funny, grocery store, humor, injury, joke, joking, laughing, Mr.Man, nanny, park, princess, swings |
Having been a Supernanny for years now, I’ve developed the ability to hone in on a kiddo’s individual sense of humor, and adjust my stand-up accordingly. With so many different little personalities there will naturally be a grand scale of things that make them “Haha!” and I mix it up to get a chuckle out of each of them. There are, however, two main veins of comedy that are met with a laugh- ranging anywhere from a snicker to a necessary change of shorts- across the board: 1) When I joke about inflicting disciplinary pain on the kiddos, 2) When I am actually, or just pretend to be, injured.
Read the rest of this entry »
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted: June 11, 2012 | Author: Mrs. Cheryl | Filed under: Miss Cheryl, Tales, Tips, Tunes | Tags: Big Cat, funny, Mr.Man, nannying, Rebel, singing, Snuggles |
The hill country is alive with the sound of music! Or at least it is when I’m around. I have a fondness for reworking lyrics to existing songs, or inventing new ones on the fly for entertainment and education. Here are some of my favorites.
Snuggles, like many babies, inexplicably stopped being cool with having his diaper changed. As someone who can’t imagine ever being cool with having another person change me, I wanted to find a way to make our diaper-changing sessions less of a dreaded duty, and more fun. This led me to rework the lyrics to the oh-so-catchy Single Ladies, by Beyoncé:
“Little Snuggles Baby (Little Snuggles Baby), Little Snuggles Baby (Little Snuggles Baby), Little Snuggles Baby (Little Snuggles Baby), Little Snuggles Baby, Now put ya legs up! Read the rest of this entry »
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted: June 7, 2012 | Author: Mrs. Cheryl | Filed under: Miss Cheryl, Tales, Tips | Tags: Big Cat, clean house, cleaning, discipline, Doc, eating, funny, messy room, Mr.Man, nanny, nannying, Rebel, tips |
As a Supernanny, I uphold a very high standard of household upkeep for the duration of my time with a family. That being said, messes still happen. When I first started nannying for Mr. Man and Big Cat, they were 3 y/o and 8 months. At mealtimes, I was always trying to stay on top of things—cleaning up every spill, scooping every morsel off the floor as it fell, wiping Big Cat’s lips after every bite. But as our days together continued, I learned a valuable piece of mealtime know-how: During meals, let their freak flags fly. Let the proverbial chips fall where they may, and do a clean sweep after. Otherwise you’ll drive yourself crazy and waste valuable energy better spent confronting post-meal hurdles (a.k.a. naptime, the word “no,” etc.). Read the rest of this entry »
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted: May 31, 2012 | Author: Mrs. Cheryl | Filed under: Miss Cheryl, Tales, Tips | Tags: Big Cat, Doc, funny, Mr.Man, nannying, Rebel, vocabulary |
For every SAT vocab word absorbed by Mr. Man and Big Cat that makes me swell with pride, there are ten other Miss Cheryl-isms they and the other kiddos adopt that I don’t count among my most intellectual. Among them are:
“This isn’t ’Nam—there are rules!”(from The Big Lebowski) | Invoked when the kiddos “go nuts” on me (a.k.a. try to jump out of the car without their backpacks, kick off their shoes and leave them in middle of walkway, pull out a snack post-lizard-petting without washing their hands, enter an occupied bathroom without knocking, etc.) Read the rest of this entry »
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted: May 23, 2012 | Author: Mrs. Cheryl | Filed under: Miss Cheryl, Tales, Tips | Tags: Aspen, discipline, Dixie, Doc, funny, infants, Mr.Man, nannying, naps, tips |
I was hanging out with my pal Aspen and her 3 y/o nephew, Doc. He loves my fat cat Dixie “soooooo much”, and always wants to see her when he visits our apartment. On this particular day, Dixie was fast asleep (as she is wont to do sixteen hours out of every day) in her kitty bed, on my queen bed. Doc ran into my room, saw Dixie, and immediately started the slow and (as he is tiny) arduous process of climbing up the side of my bed. I immediately started smiling, stifling a giggle. Aspen looked at her nephew then back at me, laughing. “What’s so funny?” she asked, smiling and inquisitive. I replied, “He must really want to see her and pet her! That’s a lot of work for him to get up there!” See, when I saw him climbing up the side of my bed, I pictured myself with a mountain to climb, of that relative scale. What would I put out that effort and physical exertion for? A glass of red wine after a long day, that’s what!
Read the rest of this entry »
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted: May 23, 2012 | Author: Mrs. Cheryl | Filed under: Miss Cheryl, Tips | Tags: funny, nannying, tips |
Where IS IT?! We’ve all been there- losing something and feeling powerless to find it. Children, I’ve found, are not only more prone to lose things than adults, but give up the search a LOT quicker. A cursory glance and a shoulder shrug is the most scouring you’ll muster from the majority of children. I myself was rather famous (or infamous depending on which family member you ask) for invoking the phrase, “I’ve looked everywhere, it’s gone!” to which my mama replied from another room—without looking up from what she was reading, or stopping what she was doing—“If I go into that room and find that toy, you’ll be in BIG trouble, missy!” Well I didn’t want BIG trouble, medium trouble maybe but not big, so I would begrudgingly go back into my room and actually look for whatever it was, almost always finding it. Read the rest of this entry »
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted: May 22, 2012 | Author: Mrs. Cheryl | Filed under: Miss Cheryl, Tales, Tips | Tags: Big Cat, discipline, Doc, funny, goat maw, Mr.Man, nannying, Rebel |
Regarding discipline, I am not of the corporal inclination. If you have good discipline, physical force is a last resort, and for my purposes as a nanny I would never feel comfortable using it. No, when it comes to deterring delinquency in my young charges, I rely on their respect and affection to serve me well. In my long-term charges, some of whom I have been with for over six years, I find that seeking my approval is a very powerful incentive for them to behave. Mr. Man and Big Cat are constantly asking my opinion on all matters, not only the behavioral. Throughout most of our years together, my last line of disciplinary defense has been to say, “I’m not going to say it again.” I think they are terrified of what will happen if I have to say it again. And frankly, their active imaginations can come up with far worse potential punishments than I would ever implement, so I just let them wonder. My mama, an elementary school teacher, used a similar line with her students, my siblings, and me: “If you do that again, I just don’t know what I’m going to do.” Now as harmless a statement as it was for her to make, I know I always imagined her pulling out her hair, burning my toys, etc. so I would hop to when that phrase was uttered!
Read the rest of this entry »
Like this:
Like Loading...
Y'all Behave! 