The teacher within

"The teacher within this one is strong." is the statement one of my friends made when I was telling her the goals I set for the children I am nannying. A little corny, yes, but still true. If you have been following my blog at all since October, you know that I do a variety of things job-wise and nannying is one of them. Currently, I care for a family of three boys, ages 9 months, 2 and 4. These boys are all boy. They are dirty, like to wretsle each other on the floor and assert their athority. Some of my goals for them (the two oldest) include taking dishes to the sink after meals, learning to dress themselves (with the exception of buttoning pants), reducing the amount of backtalk, increasing the amount of respect for adults and trying things on their own before asking for help. This is my fourth week with them (two days a week, 5 hours a day) and the four year old is making progress, the two year old still needs reminded, but is able to do most things himself as well. This morning I was thrilled when the four year old said (after he was finished eating breakfast), "do I have to scrape my plate if I ate all my food?", I smiled and told him "no, just take it to the sink". But inside I was jumping up and down and clapping in delight. Small steps are still steps~and with feet that little, the steps have to start out small :) I'm happy for their progress and I hope they continue thriving on the journey to independence.