Hey I was hoping someone would Although some of it is a 'laugh or I would be crying' thing!
Disclaimer: I know I have been useless but I'm fed up with having 'chats' with her all the time and ds takes a long time to get used to people hence she is still here and will remain til end of contract..besides you got to give her some allowance for youth
Food/Exercise
This is the AP who doesn't eat - first couple of weeks barely ate a thing but turned up my heating to the max 24 hours a day (I was sweltering it was awful), cost us £125 in heating oil in 2 weeks!..was very worried she was anorexic..she then started eating but only low carb stuff, so chicken, fish, veg, salad, protein shakes, and vast amounts of exotic fruit (about £10-15 a week just for fruit). To some extent that's all well and good (if very expensive) but then she started on my family's diet (vegetarian, no junk food, cooked from scratch most days (occasional quorn thing)). Ds has (amongst roll, fruit, yog etc) a cake bar in his school pack lunch - AP was taking it out every day (after dh/i made the lunches and left for work)..took weeks for ds to tell us. Last week AP hid the chocolate biscuits (ie. went into the biscuit barrell and took out every bourbon/choc digestive and hid them, from me, kids, everyone!) She also goes to the gym every day (at least once, sometimes twice), and (although I go to the gym 4 times a week) is constantly telling asking me to go to the gym more often. (Yes, I am overweight, but still!)
Ds has started a new club (Karate) after school and she has refused to take him/pick up (or to stay at home with dd whilst I take/pick up) because it clashes with a gym class she like to go to (booked each week so not paid in advance)..so I spend one afternoon a week entertaining dd in a leisure centre cafe whilst ds does karate and AP is in her class, and then we all have to wait (past tea time) for AP to finish so we can drive her home. (I know, the tail is wagging the dog but by now I have given up!)
'Gardening'
Gardening is not part of AP's job - so why oh why, when we were away on holiday (she was at home on full pay and had her mum/sister stay with her) did she take large lumps of tree which were sitting on the patio awaiting dh's chainsaw and place them 'artistically' around the garden in 'stonehenge' type formations..thus killing off parts of lawn, making mowing difficult, and meaning we have to collect them all for chopping (oh, and my neighbour laughed at them).
'Choosing her own jobs'
So, AP has been given a list of jobs to do, dust shelves/piano once a week, wipe windowsills, etc. but does she do them...no..not at all for first 6 weeks and then only with nagging gentle persuasion from me in any week after.
But she does do stuff we haven't asked for including...folding up the washing (not just the kids..I am coming home to folded pants ), creating flower arrangements/decorating easter eggs and dangling them from twigs 'artistically', and this week she rearranged the (folded) clothes in the kids' drawers (and then asked me why dd had so many long-sleeved tops - um...because I haven't bought her any summer ones yet!).
'Breaking the law/social conventions'
She regularly parks in the mum+toddler spaces at the gym (I have a really distinctive car so have had text messages from friends asking about it!)
She is open about speeding (in my car!) and has been caught by a speed camera.
She is open about not buying a train ticket unless she has to (has barriers)
She is studying from a book marked 'Do not remove from XXXXX library'
And she picks flowers (either 'wild' or from verges - which in our village belong to the house behind) and uses them for our 'flower arrangements'. I have always told the kids 'take nothing but photos' but she refuses to see it as wrong.
This is also reflected in the way she interacts with us - she pushes everything to the limit. We said she would have to pay towards fuel if she did a trip over 50 miles, so she does several trips of 40+ miles a week. We say ok her family can stay when we are on holiday, I fill the house with food and leave £40 for emergencies/food top ups/taxi to supermarket...come home to empty cupboards, no milk etc, and no change from my £40..we fed/housed her family for a week and didn't even get a thank you from her or them!
Talking of shopping, she also waits until I get home from work and then informs me that she needs something (agar flakes, or something obscure) for the next day and expects me to jump into the car and zip off to get them for her (rather then her get them during the day and me re-imburse her).
Oh, and I've just found out that she's been encouraging the dog to go upstairs and into her room (dog was trained not to go upstairs at all). And she walks the dog off the lead when she is on the road (also, after I have repeated told her to use the lead until she is in the fields).
Argh....ok...I know..she is young (20)..I am useless... but I really want the next AP to do the 'jobs' and to be better at recognising a 'clash' and getting rid sooner...