When the girls were six month old and it was time for me to
go back to work, we decided to hire Sara as a nanny for Kenzie & Lexi. I wasn’t even sure if I really wanted a
nanny, as I thought there were socialization benefits to day care. But it was one of the best decisions we have
ever made, as soon Sara became much more than a nanny. She became part of our family and our
village. Not only did we trust her to
care for, love, and teach our daughters for 50 hours a week, she was also the
one we called to watch Lexi on a Sunday night when we had to take Kenzie to the
emergency room with a 105 degree fever.
She was the one who would watch the girls overnight when both Randall
and I had to travel for work or over the weekend when we needed a little
getaway. She was with Kenzie & Lexi
5 days a week for 5 years - that’s 12,500 hours that she spent caring for
them. She knew the girls better than
anyone and was the cornerstone of our village.
When we found out about our move to Geneva, we knew that one
of the trade-offs of the amazing experiences the expat life offers, would be
the fact that we would need to leave “our village” behind – great friends in
Cincinnati, family who was at least on the same continent, and Sara. Sara accompanied us on the move to Geneva and
was here with us for our first 8 weeks to help us get settled. This was such a blessing for us all, but I
think it is also why saying goodbye today was so very hard. SHE was our village in Geneva for the past 8
weeks, and now that she is gone there is this huge void in all of our hearts. What makes it even more difficult is that we
really haven’t had a chance to start building up a new village here yet. It is Summer and we have been travelling a
lot, as have the few people that I know in Geneva. I am sure that once school starts we will all
start building a network of friends and community, but right now it feels a bit
lonely. I feel isolated from my tribe,
and I realize just how important Sara was not only to the girls, but also to
me. She was the one I would bounce things
off of when it came to all things Kenzie & Lexi, but also interior design
and party planning and fashion and pretty much everything. Sara was not only Kenzie & Lexi’s nanny,
she was also my friend. I know that Sara
will always be a part of our lives and I am so grateful for everything that she
has done for our family over the past 5 years.
She will be missed and today my little tribe is in mourning.
I have no doubt that we are giving the girls an incredible
experience by living abroad. In the
first 2 months, they have already visited 4 new countries and have been exposed
to so many things that they would never have seen in Cincinnati. I know that over the course of our time in
Geneva they will grow in ways that would not have been possible if we had
stayed put. But, with the risk of
sounding whiny, I will say that leaving your village behind is hard – we miss
our friends and family dearly – and living a transient life can feel lonely and
isolating. For now, I am going to
embrace my little tribe of four (three this week while Randall is in the States for
work) and am going to enjoy the last week of Summer with my sweet girls.
We miss you Sara!
Thanks so much for being the cornerstone of our village for the past 5
years! xoxo
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